[Vegetation as a factor in species diversity in communities of desert rodents]

Diversity of rodent species was studied in relation to the abundance of grass vegetation, projection cover of arboreal and semi-arboreal vegetation, and mechanical soil composition in the Kyzyl Kum desert (Bukhara Province, Uzbekistan) and in the Chihuahua desert (Bolsón de Mapimí, Durango, Mexico). Species diversity indices for rodent communities in 1-hectare plots significantly varied in both deserts in similar environmental conditions. Nevertheless, the obtained data agree with the data on the hill-shaped relationship between species diversity and productivity of the environment. Stepwise regression analysis of the linear component links suggests that the abundance of grass and the projection cover of arboreal and semi-arboreal perennials, rather than the type of soil surface, exert a significant influence on the diversity of rodent species. At a given projection cover of arboreal and semi-arboreal plants (or an abundance of grass), the diversity of rodent species in Bukhara decreases with an increase in grass abundance (or projection cover of arboreal and semi-arboreal plants). By contrast, in Mapimí the diversity increases. The difference is probably due to both specific environmental conditions and particular fauna genesis.