Climatic Factors, Reproductive Success and Population Dynamics in the Montane Vole, Microtus montanus

Abstract

Multiannual fluctuations in populations density ("cycles") of small rodents have been long recognized (Elton 1942). Numerous hypotheses have been proposed to explain this phenomenon (for reviews see Krebs and Myers 1974, Finery 1980, Taitt and Krebs 1985). However, none, alone or in combination, explain the causality of cycles.