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Effects of deltamethrin applications on non-target small mammal populations in South Dakota, Colorado, and Idaho, 2010-2017

August 11, 2022

We trapped small mammals at two sites in Badlands National Park, Pennington County, South Dakota from 2013-2017; two sites in Larimer County, Colorado from 2010-2011; and four sites in Adams County, Idaho from 2014-2017. Each site contained at least one or more treated plots (deltamethrin dust applied to burrows or bait stations for flea control) paired with one or more non-treated plots. We trapped Peromyscus mice in all three states. We trapped Microtus voles in Colorado and South Dakota. We trapped Chaetodipus mice in Colorado and South Dakota. We trapped Reithrodontomys mice only in Colorado. We trapped paired treated and non-treated plots simultaneously within each site, with traps opened in the evening and checked the following morning. We anesthetized trapped animals (and their fleas) with isoflurane in induction chambers for processing. We combed each individual with a fine-tooth comb to remove and count fleas. We marked all animals with metal ear tags for individual identification, and marked some individuals with a single passive integrated transponder tag, allowing us to track individual survival rates over time with repeated trapping during 3-6 sessions per site per year (with intervals between sessions, within years of study, averaging 24 days for South Dakota, 33 days for Colorado, and 30 days for Idaho). We released all animals, after they were recovered from anesthesia, at the location where they were captured. The first data set (Flea Data.csv) includes all small mammal species except Reithrodontomys because very few individuals of that species had fleas. The data set lists the state, small mammal species, trapping session, and treatment for each animal processed. Flea parasitism for each individual is presented as flea prevalence, defined as detection or non-detection of at least 1 flea. The second data set (South Dakota Captures.csv) lists the species, year, site, and treatment of each individual small mammal, and whether or not it was trapped in each of 4-6 trapping sessions in a given year. The third data set (Colorado Captures.csv) lists the species, year, site, and treatment of each individual small mammal, and whether or not it was trapped in each of 3 trapping sessions in a given year. The fourth data set (Idaho Captures.csv) lists the species, year, site, and treatment of each individual small mammal, and whether or not it was trapped in each of 3 trapping sessions in a given year. Funding for the Idaho study was provided by the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Funding for the South Dakota study was provided by the U.S. Geological Survey and National Park Service, supplemented by direct support from Badlands National Park and the U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center (FORT). Funding for the Colorado study was provided by West Virginia University and U.S. Geological Survey FORT.

Publication Year 2022
Title Effects of deltamethrin applications on non-target small mammal populations in South Dakota, Colorado, and Idaho, 2010-2017
DOI 10.5066/P9N8SWMV
Authors Amanda R. Goldberg, Dean E Biggins, Shantini Ramakrishnan, Jonathan W. Bowser, Courtney J Conway, David A Eads, Jeffrey Wimsatt
Product Type Data Release
Record Source USGS Digital Object Identifier Catalog
USGS Organization Fort Collins Science Center