CHAPTER 10. COMMUNITY COMPONENTS - MAMMALS 



Thirty-six native and nine introduced (Layne 1974). Hamilton and Whittaker 

 species of land mammals occur in the south (1979) state that it is the coastal ham- 

 Florida region (Layne 1974; Hamilton and mocks of south Florida, including mangrove 

 Whittaker 1979). Of these, almost 50% (18 areas, which serve to preserve this 

 species) are found in the mangrove zone species in the Eastern United States. 

 (Layne 1974). In addition, two species of Shemnitz (1974) reported that most of the 

 marine mammals are known from mangrove remaining panthers were found in the 

 areas. Data on the abundance and food southwest portion of Florida along the 

 habits of these 20 species are summarized coast and in the interior Everglades 

 in Appendix E. All are permanent resi- regions, 

 dents. The criteria for inclusion in this 



table are similar to those used for the The extent to which other carnivores 



avifauna. Sight records in mangroves or use mangrove areas varies widely among 



locality data from known mangrove areas species. Schwartz (1949) states that 



were required before a species was in- mink, although rare, prefer mangroves to 



eluded. This has produced a conservative other coastal habitats in Florida. Layne 



estimate of the mammal species that uti- (1974, see his figure 1) gives a disjunct 



lize mangrove areas. distribution for this species in Florida, 



with the major geographical range being 



Several mammals do not appear in the southwest coast. River otters also 



Appendix E because they have not been utilize mangrove habitat heavily. Otters 



recorded from mangrove swamps in south have been found even far from shore on 



Florida; however, they occur so widely small mangrove overwash islands in Florida 



that we suspect they will be found in this Bay (Layne 1974). Gray fox are not depen- 



habitat in the future. This group dent upon mangroves, although they occa- 



includes the cotton mouse, Peromyscus sionally use this habitat. Less than 20% 



gossypinus , the hispid cotton rat, Si g- of all sightings of this species in Ever- 



modon hispidus , the round-tailed muskrat, glades National Park were from mangroves 



Neof iber a! leni , the house mouse, Mus (Layne 1974). Bobcat are found in almost 



musculus , the least shrew, Cryptoti s all habitats in south Florida from pine- 



parva , and the short -tailed shrew, Blarina lands to dense mangrove forests. The 



brevicauda . preponderance of recent sightings, how- 

 ever, has been made from the mangrove 



Few rodents and no bats are included zone, particularly on offshore mangrove 

 in Appendix E. Compared to the rest of overwash islands (Layne 1974). Black bear 

 the State, the south Florida region is are apparently most abundant in the Big 

 deficient in these two groups (Layne Cypress Swamp of Collier County (Shemnitz 

 1974). Although we have no confirmative 1974) and are rare in the remainder of 

 field data, we suspect that mangrove south Florida, 

 swamps along the central and north Florida 

 coasts contain more mammal species, par- 

 ticularly rodents and bats. The small mammal fauna of the man- 

 grove zone of south Florida are predomi- 



A number of medium-sized and large nately arboreal and terrestrial species 



carnivores, including panther, gray fox, which are adapted to periodic flooding, 



bobcat, striped skunk, raccoon, mink, Opossum, marsh rabbits, cotton rats, and 



river otter, and black bear, appear to rice rats are commonly found in mangrove 



utilize south Florida mangrove areas. swamps. The Cudjoe Key rice rat is a 



Only three of these species (striped newly described species found only on 



skunk, raccoon, and bobcat) are common in Cudjoe Key in the Florida Keys. This 



mangroves, but several of the rarer species appears to be closely associated 



species seem to be highly dependent on with stands of white mangroves (Hamilton 



mangrove swamps. Of 18 recent sightings and Whittaker 1979). 

 of the panther in Everglades National 



Park, 15 were from mangrove ecosystems White-tailed deer are common in 



72 



