Benali Abdel Wahab Wahid

• Biodiversity Journal, 12 (4): 0805-0810

  Benali Abdel Wahab Wahid, Labdelli Fatiha, Maamar Benchohra, Adamou-Djerbaoui Malika & Nouar Belgacem
  Strategy efficiency to control Meriones shawi (Duvernoy, 1842) (Rodentia Gerbillinae) infestation in Tiaret region during the period (2015–2020), Algeria
  https://doi.org/10.31396/Biodiv.Jour.2021.12.4.805.810

  ABSTRACT
  Tiaret is confronted with arvicultural rodents invading considerable areas, despite the control programs adopted. The analysis of the abundance of Meriones shawi (Duvernoy, 1842) (Rodentia Muridae Gerbillinae), despite the application of the rodenticide during the five agricultural campaigns (2015–2020), revealed a growing and considerable infestation, clearly heterogeneous in the spatial distribution across the 14 dairas, with peaks of infestation recorded in the regions of Sougueur and Mahdia. Our analysis focuses on two main aspects, namely the diet of the rodent and the composition of the landscape in which it thrives. We were able to conclude that the populations are more abundant in the dairas of Sougueur and Mahdia having cereal vocation mainly cultivated in barley, which offer to the M. shawi food, security against predators and especially more mobility. On the other hand, the heterogeneous reliefs with a cover plant variety constitute unfavorable environments for the proliferation of rodents, as in the case of Mghila. Therefore, in order to have a more efficientcontrol strategy, the nature of the area should be taken into consideration before applying the rodenticide.

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