The bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus Shreb.) in indigenous and anthropogenic landscapes of Eastern Fennoscandia

Rodents are widespread in terrestrial ecosystems. These animals are bio indicators of the environmental conditions; therefore, it is convenient to use them for solving a number of applied and theoretical problems of animal ecology. The main aim of the research to study comprehensively the ecology of the bank vole inhabiting Karelia. In the study, the following methods of counting the number of small mammals were used: trap-lines and trapping grooves. The abundance of voles is controlled by a large number of factors (weather and feed conditions, habitat quality, the status of coexisting species etc.). It was revealed that concentrated forest felling leads to the increased instability and extreme simplification of the population organization, to the streamlining of the ecological structure of the population of the Bank vole species.