We clarified the landscape-scale habitat selection of Japanese squirrels during winter in heavy snowfall areas in northeastern Japan. In this study, we examined the importance of evergreen coniferous plantations as habitats for Japanese squirrels. We searched for Japanese squirrel footprints in the snow along the 37 survey routes, from January 8 to March 8, 2020. We analyzed the relationships between the occurrence of Japanese squirrels based on footprints and environmental factors (i.e., the proportion of surrounding broad-leaved forest, Cupressaceae forest, and Pinaceae forest; distance from broad-leaved forest, Cupressaceae forest, Pinaceae forest, and water bodies, and elevation) using a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM). The results showed a high probability of footprint occurrence in areas close to Cupressaceae and Pinaceae forests and a low probability of footprint occurrence in areas with a high proportion of Cupressaceae forests. This study suggests that Cupressaceae plantations play a part in the function of habitats, such as refuge, resting and nesting environments, and protection from wind and snow, for Japanese squirrels during winter in snowy areas. However, the landscape, which is dominated by cedar plantations in the surrounding area, was considered unsuitable owing to the lack of food resources. Thus, for Japanese squirrels, a forest environment with multifaceted functions, including coniferous plantations and food resources such as walnut and pine trees, would be beneficial.

我们阐明了日本东北部大雪地区冬季日本松鼠的景观尺度栖息地选择。在这项研究中，我们研究了常绿针叶林作为日本松鼠栖息地的重要性。2020 年 1 月 8 日至 3 月 8 日，我们在 37 条调查路线的雪地中搜索了日本松鼠的足迹。我们根据足迹和环境因素（即周围阔叶树的比例）分析了日本松鼠的发生与森林、柏科林和松科林；与阔叶林、柏科林、松科林和水体的距离和海拔）使用广义线性混合模型（GLMM）。结果表明，靠近柏科和松科森林的地区发生足迹的概率很高，而在柏科森林比例较高的地区，足迹发生的概率较低。本研究表明，柏科人工林在冬季雪区日本松鼠的栖息地功能中发挥着作用，如避难所、休息和筑巢环境以及防风雪。然而，由于缺乏食物资源，周边地区以雪松种植园为主的景观被认为不适合。因此，对于日本松鼠来说，具有多方面功能的森林环境，包括针叶林和核桃和松树等食物资源，将是有益的。