Trapping small mammals in the forest understory: a comparison of three methods

During a 19-month Study in an area of the Atlantic Coast rainforest in southern Brazil, two simple and effective alternative methods for trapping small mammals (< 1,000 g) in the forest understory were compared to the standard " V " frame method. The " support pole method " and " L-bracket method " did not differ in capture rate from the " V " frame method. The L-bracket method did prove to be easier to set up, requiring the same baiting time as the " V " frame method. Most important, the L-bracket method allowed greater uniformity of site selection of the traps distributed on a grid.