Feeding Ecology and Pest Status of Common Mole Rat (Tachyoryctes splenden) in Selected Agricultural Fields, Dewachefa District, Oromia Special Zone, North East, Ethiopia

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the abundance, distribution, feeding habite, population structure and impact of common mole rat on agricultural products in three selected kebeles on Dewachefa District,Oromia special zone, North East, Ethiopia.The study was conducted for two seasons ( August and September) and ( November and December, 2019 ) wet and dry season respectively. The abundance and distribution of common mole rat in the three selected study sites were estimated from fresh mound count. Localy made snap conical traps were used to capture common mole rats. To identify the food sample and quantity of food fragments,stomach content analysis was conducted. Semi-structure interview with open and closed-ended questions were used to gather relevant information about traditional control mechanisms. T-test was used to compare two related means ( external body measurement and burrow system between seasons and sex ratio ). A total of 45 common mole rats ( 30 males and 15 females ) were trapped from the three study sites in both seasons. The abundance of common mole rats in selected three study sites ( Siter ( 34 ), Bedeno ( 30 )and Tuche ( 23 )), was not statistically significant ( t = 3.464, p = 0.074 ). The total damages of Sugarcane and Banana in both seasons in three selected kebeles were 11.56 % and 3.2% respectively. From a total of 661 isolated food fragments of stomach sampel,Grass with 225 ( 34 % ) contributed the largest proportion, followed by Sugarcane ( 31.2% ), Banana ( 24.5 % ) and Papaya ( 10.3 % ) as food items. From the response of 52 respondents, the techniques such as trapping ( 32.7 % ) and rodenticide ( 23.1 % ) were majorly used to reduce the impacts of common mole rats.The result of this research indicated that the abundance and distribution of common mole rats were high in grassland and Sugarcane habitats.Therfore, the researcher strongly belives that further investigation should be conducted to reduce the damage by common mole rats on the agricultural crops