regime that involves each section of the park being burned on a 3-year rotation, which may be why the small mammal community has changed (Eads 2005). Recent studies of small mammals in Appalachian grasslands show that small mammal communities take more than 3 years to recover from a burn (Francl and Small 2013). Eastern woodrats use areas based in part on abundance of cover and nest sites, which fire would destroy (Birney 1973), and the closely related Mexican woodrat (N. is susceptible to the reductions in shrub cover and mexicana) woody debris caused by too frequent fire (Converse et al 2006). Many vole species also have extreme, multiannual population fluctuations so it is possible that we did not find any voles because we sampled during a low period in the cycle (Krebs et al. 1969). The similarity in community composition between cool-season grassland and oak-hickory forest may result from the low number of captures in both habitats. The similarity among the 3 forested habitats is likely due to the low species richnesses and spp. composing Peromyscus 34%, 90%, and 92% of the individuals captured in eastern red cedar, post oak, and oak-hickory forests, respectively. We only found 1 small mammal species endemic to a specific wooded habitat, southern flying squirrel to eastern red cedar forest. Because this is based only on a single capture and southern flying squirrels use numerous forest types throughout the eastern United States, there were likely undetected squirrels in all forest types (Muul 1974). One of the species we caught in cool-season grasslands, the plains harvest is a species of special concern in Arkansas and we found it at both cool-season transects but nowhere else (AGFC 2013). The main concern for this species is that it belongs to the geographically distinct subspecies whose current range is unknown but likely shrinking (Benedict R.m. griseus, et al. 2000). This subspecies uses dry, upland habitat characterized by sparse grass and forb cover, and much of that has been destroyed (Panella 2012). The first records of plains harvest
regime that involves each section of the park being burned on a 3-year rotation, which may be why the small mammal community has changed (Eads 2005). Recent studies of small mammals in Appalachian grasslands show that small mammal communities take more than 3 years to recover from a burn (Francl and Small 2013). Eastern woodrats use areas based in part on abundance of cover and nest sites, which fire would destroy (Birney 1973), and the closely related Mexican woodrat (N. mexicana) is susceptible to the reductions in shrub cover and woody debris caused by too frequent fire (Converse et al 2006). Many vole species also have extreme, multiannual population fluctuations so it is possible that we did not find any voles because we sampled during a low period in the cycle (Krebs et al. 1969). The similarity in community composition between cool-season grassland and oak-hickory forest may result from the low number of captures in both habitats. The similarity among the 3 forested habitats is likely due to the low species richnesses and Peromyscus spp. composing 34%, 90%, and 92% of the individuals captured in eastern red cedar, post oak, and oak-hickory forests, respectively. We only found 1 small mammal species endemic to a specific wooded habitat, southern flying squirrel to eastern red cedar forest. Because this is based only on a single capture and southern flying squirrels use numerous forest types throughout the eastern United States, there were likely undetected squirrels in all forest types (Muul 1974). One of the species we caught in cool-season grasslands, the plains harvest is a species of special concern in Arkansas and we found it at both cool-season transects but nowhere else (AGFC 2013). The main concern for this species is that it belongs to the geographically distinct subspecies R.m. griseus, whose current range is unknown but likely shrinking (Benedict et al. 2000). This subspecies uses dry, upland habitat characterized by sparse grass and forb cover, and much of that has been destroyed (Panella 2012). The first records of plains harvest