A field study of ocelots (Felis pardalis) in Peru

Etude réalisée par radiopistage dans la forêt hygrophile de Cocha Cashu au sud-est du Pérou : rythme d'activité, territoire, reproductio

Collpas: Activity hotspots for frugivorous bats (Phyllostomidae) in the Peruvian Amazon

In the SE Peruvian Amazon, large numbers of frugivorous bats regularly visit natural forest clearings known locally as collpas (which are also referred to as clay licks or mineral licks). Bats arrive at collpas to drink water that has accumulated in depressions created by larger geophagous mammals that consume exposed soil. Although collpa visitation is common, little is known about its causes and its ecological implications for the bat community. We compared patterns of use of collpas and non-collpa forest sites by bats in SE Peru. We mist netted bats at collpas and non-collpa sites during the dry season and compared abundance, species richness, species composition, sex ratio, and reproductive condition. More species were captured at collpas than at non-collpa sites, and collpas were visited almost exclusively by frugivores. Overall, bat-capture frequency and combined frugivorous bat-capture frequency were higher at collpas than at non-collpa sites, although some species of frugivorous bats were captured more frequently at non-collpa sites than at collpas (e.g., Carollia spp.). Irrespective of capture site, more female bats were pregnant or lactating than not, but there was a distinct female sex bias in bats that visited collpas: 70 percent of bats captured at collpas were female, whereas 44 percent of bats captured away from collpas were female. These patterns suggest that collpas may provide important resources for frugivorous bats in SE Peru, just as they are thought to provide important resources to the vertebrates that consume collpa soils. Accordingly, collpas are important conservation targets in the region. © 2008 The Author(s)

Maned wolves retain moderate levels of genetic diversity and gene flow despite drastic habitat fragmentation

The maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus is the largest South American canid and categorized as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. The major threat to conservation efforts is the drastic reduction of suitable habitat for the species. A large portion of its range has been converted into farm and ranch lands as well as urban areas. To better understand the impact that these anthropogenic activities are having over the remaining populations across their current distribution range, we evaluated patterns of genetic variability and differentiation between them. We also compared these results with those obtained from captive maned wolves in order to make proper ex situ recommendations. We cross-amplified 12 microsatellite loci in maned wolf samples collected throughout their range (from Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Bolivia) and from captive stocks (from captive breeding centers and zoos in Brazil, Argentina and the USA). We found that wild populations retain moderate levels of genetic variability compared with other microsatellite studies on wild canids, and our structure analysis revealed 2 genetic clusters in wild samples, one of which included samples exclusively from Bolivia. This cluster could represent a different management unit with conservation priority. The captive stock population showed higher levels of genetic variability, with the ones from Brazil being the most genetically diverse stock. The USA stock showed strong genetic differences with all other groups. This is the first study to examine the patterns of genetic diversity of both wild and captive populations of maned wolves. These results should be incorporated into further population viability assessments and in the Maned Wolf Species Survival Plan.Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovació

Maned wolves retain moderate levels of genetic diversity and gene flow despite drastic habitat fragmentation

The maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus is the largest South American canid and categorized as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. The major threat to conservation efforts is the drastic reduction of suitable habitat for the species. A large portion of its range has been converted into farm and ranch lands as well as urban areas. To better understand the impact that these anthropogenic activities are having over the remaining populations across their current distribution range, we evaluated patterns of genetic variability and differentiation between them. We also compared these results with those obtained from captive maned wolves in order to make proper ex situ recommendations. We cross-amplified 12 microsatellite loci in maned wolf samples collected throughout their range (from Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Bolivia) and from captive stocks (from captive breeding centers and zoos in Brazil, Argentina and the USA). We found that wild populations retain moderate levels of genetic variability compared with other microsatellite studies on wild canids, and our structure analysis revealed 2 genetic clusters in wild samples, one of which included samples exclusively from Bolivia. This cluster could represent a different management unit with conservation priority. The captive stock population showed higher levels of genetic variability, with the ones from Brazil being the most genetically diverse stock. The USA stock showed strong genetic differences with all other groups. This is the first study to examine the patterns of genetic diversity of both wild and captive populations of maned wolves. These results should be incorporated into further population viability assessments and in the Maned Wolf Species Survival Plan

The status of the world's land and marine mammals: diversity, threat, and knowledge

Knowledge of mammalian diversity is still surprisingly disparate, both regionally and taxonomically. Here, we present a comprehensive assessment of the conservation status and distribution of the world's mammals. Data, compiled by 1700+ experts, cover all 5487 species, including marine mammals. Global macroecological patterns are very different for land and marine species but suggest common mechanisms driving diversity and endemism across systems. Compared with land species, threat levels are higher among marine mammals, driven by different processes (accidental mortality and pollution, rather than habitat loss), and are spatially distinct (peaking in northern oceans, rather than in Southeast Asia). Marine mammals are also disproportionately poorly known. These data are made freely available to support further scientific developments and conservation action

Averting biodiversity collapse in tropical forest protected areas

The rapid disruption of tropical forests probably imperils global biodiversity more than any other contemporary phenomenon¹⁻³. With deforestation advancing quickly, protected areas are increasingly becoming final refuges for threatened species and natural ecosystem processes. However, many protected areas in the tropics are themselves vulnerable to human encroachment and other environmental stresses⁴⁻⁹. As pressures mount, it is vital to know whether existing reserves can sustain their biodiversity. A critical constraint in addressing this question has been that data describing a broad array of biodiversity groups have been unavailable for a sufficiently large and representative sample of reserves. Here we present a uniquely comprehensive data set on changes over the past 20 to 30 years in 31 functional groups of species and 21 potential drivers of environmental change, for 60 protected areas stratified across the world’s major tropical regions. Our analysis reveals great variation in reserve ‘health’: about half of all reserves have been effective or performed passably, but the rest are experiencing an erosion of biodiversity that is often alarmingly widespread taxonomically and functionally. Habitat disruption, hunting and forest-product exploitation were the strongest predictors of declining reserve health. Crucially, environmental changes immediately outside reserves seemed nearly as important as those inside in determining their ecological fate, with changes inside reserves strongly mirroring those occurring around them. These findings suggest that tropical protected areas are often intimately linked ecologically to their surrounding habitats, and that a failure to stem broad-scale loss and degradation of such habitats could sharply increase the likelihood of serious biodiversity declines.Keywords: Ecology, Environmental scienc

A new genus and species of rat from Borneo (Rodentia : Muridae)

Volume: 106Start Page: 752End Page: 76

FIG. 4 in A Review of the Pattonomys/Toromys Clade (Rodentia: Echimyidae), with Descriptions of a New Toromys Species and a New Genus

FIG. 4. Pelage of dorsum at rump. A, Leiuromys occasius. FMNH 84529, high density of sharply pointed spines and fine, wavy red underhairs; B, Pattonomys semivillosus USNM 280204, dense, more tapered, white-tipped spines, abundant pale bristles, straight ochraceous underhairs; C, Makalata cf. didelphoides USNM 549593, agouti pelage, sparser narrowly buff-tipped spines, tapered hairlike spine tips; D, Toromys grandis AMNH 94036, thick bristles, no spines; E, T. rhipidurus AMNH 73273, fine-banded agouti bristles; F, T. sp. nov., narrow aristiforms and a few narrow spines with hairlike tips, abundant thin, agouti bristles. The resemblance between Toromys congeners is evident. Spine tips are more sharply tapered in A than in B.Published as part of <i>Emmons, Louise H. & Fabre, Pierre-henri, 2018, A Review of the Pattonomys/Toromys Clade (Rodentia: Echimyidae), with Descriptions of a New Toromys Species and a New Genus, pp. 1-52 in American Museum Novitates 2018 (3894)</i> on page 15, DOI: 10.1206/3894.1, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/5369712">http://zenodo.org/record/5369712</a&gt

A Review of the Pattonomys/Toromys Clade (Rodentia: Echimyidae), with Descriptions of a New Toromys Species and a New Genus

Emmons, Louise H., Fabre, Pierre-henri (2018): A Review of the Pattonomys/Toromys Clade (Rodentia: Echimyidae), with Descriptions of a New Toromys Species and a New Genus. American Museum Novitates 2018 (3894): 1-52, DOI: 10.1206/3894.1, URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/10.1206/3894.