Obtaining reliable data on rodent biology and behaviour requires comprehensive field studies. Herein, we compared six different baits on the capture rate of Calomyscus elburzensis (Rodentia: Calomyscidae) in North-eastern Iran during spring and summer of 2014. Our aim was to investigate the seasonal and sexual differences in trapping success of C. elburzensis and evaluate the efficiency of different bait types. Single capture custom-made mesh live traps were set for 16 trials. We had 48 captures of C. elburzensis: 27 adults, nine subadults, and 12 juvenile males and females. Capture rates were 47.9% and 52.1% in spring and summer, respectively. Overall capture number was 25 (52.1%) individuals for males and 23 (47.9%) individuals for females. Sunflower seeds were more effective in capturing than any other bait. Trapping success averaged at 11.95±0.5%. More adult males were trapped during the mating season (in spring), whereas more adult females were caught during the lactating period (in summer). There was no overall difference between male and female captures. However, there was a significant difference in the number of captures between males and females when using different baits: seeds captured more females and fruits more males. Further studies are required to investigate the population dynamics and the success of trapping with different baits in varying habitats for Calomyscus species, for most of which limited scientific data are available.

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