Effects of ecological factors on the settlement of alpine marmots in different alpine landscapes [Effets de différents facteurs écologiques sur l’installation des marmottes alpines dans différents paysages alpins].

Résumé

Alpine marmots Marmota marmota, Sciuridae) live only in mountain environments where they occupy open areas covered by Alpine meadows. The selection of such an ecosystem leads to an active competition with anthropogenic use of the land. Marmots are confronted with either game pressure, or agricultural pressure (hay cutting or dog shepherd) or to hiker presence in summer. In winter, skiing and other snow activities also have consequences on the availability of the space that marmots can occupy. A study of site selection for marmot settlement showed that marmots avoided places where agricultural activities (hay cutting) are important (in relation with non friend behaviour of farmers such as burrow blocking with stones, use of dogs or irrigation of the fields). The recent use of fertilisers, on the contrary, attracts marmots especially in spring when they have a specific hunger for salt. It seemed that agricultural pressure induces seasonal displacements during the hot season between « winter burrows » and « summer burrows » when in other places marmots have a single system of burrows. The presence of hikers acted on marmots in a different manner. The presence of hikers or marmot watchers did not seem to be a real constraint although food intake could be disturbed limiting fat accumulation for winter hibernation. An incidence appeared on the daily rhythm of marmots which was deeply diphasic with a large « break » at noon in touristic places and only a small depletion in non touristic places. The frequency of outside latrines seems to be a good indicator of the disturbance of a marmot population in a given environment. Game influence has not been taken into account because marmots do not seem to interest hunters any longer in France.