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Unexpected documentation and inter-Andean range expansion of a vulnerable large mammal (Mammalia, Pilosa, Myrmecophaga tridactyla) in Colombia

  • Joe J. Figel EMAIL logo , Sebastián Botero-Cañola , Juan David Sánchez-Londoño and Andrés Quintero-Ángel
Published/Copyright: August 26, 2015
Mammalia
From the journal Mammalia Volume 80 Issue 4

Abstract

The distribution of the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla Linnaeus, 1758) is poorly known, especially outside Brazil. Here, we present an approx. 430-km range expansion for the species based on 71 records collected from interviews, camera traps, tracks, and direct sightings in the Magdalena-Urabá moist forest ecoregion (MUMFE), Colombia. Our records, obtained from 31 localities during July 2013 to July 2015, represent the first evidence of M. tridactyla in the middle Magdalena River valley since the late 18th Century. Our camera traps identified at least six individual giant anteaters, including a female with offspring. We discuss the severity of threats in the MUMFE and the urgency for conservation planning.

Keywords: anteaters; camera trap; Colombia; Myrmecophaga tridactyla; Pilosa; range expansion
Corresponding author: Joe J. Figel, Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4000 Central Florida Blvd, Orlando, FL, USA, e-mail:

Acknowledgments

We thank two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. The Panthera Foundation, Conservation Leadership Programme (project ID: 02206114) and Cleveland Zoo Scott Neotropical (Grant/Award number: See: http://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/Zoo/Grant-Recipients/ANDRES-QUINTERO-ANGEL-320.aspx) Fund provided financial support. We also thank the Corporación de Antioquia, Corporación de Bolivar and Corporación de Santander for permits and the Santander-based NGO Cabildo Verde for their continued collaboration.

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Received: 2015-2-27
Accepted: 2015-6-8
Published Online: 2015-8-26
Published in Print: 2016-7-1

©2016 by De Gruyter

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  2. Original Studies
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  4. Trophic similarity and coexistence of Carollia perspicillata and Sturnira lilium (Phyllostomidae), two sympatric fruit bats from the Brazilian Atlantic forest
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  7. Diet of black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas) on farmlands in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa
  8. Dynamics of health of wild capybaras: biochemical and physiological parameters
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  10. Short Notes
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  13. Unexpected documentation and inter-Andean range expansion of a vulnerable large mammal (Mammalia, Pilosa, Myrmecophaga tridactyla) in Colombia
  14. Cooperative defence of female chamois successfully deters an eagle attack
  15. New distributional record of Chelemys megalonyx (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the central valley of Chile, and some implications for its distribution and conservation
  16. Negative effect of the wild boar (Sus scrofa) on the population size of the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) in forest habitats of Sardinia
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https://doi.org/10.1515/mammalia-2015-0037
Keywords for this article
anteaters; camera trap; Colombia; Myrmecophaga tridactyla; Pilosa; range expansion

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Original Studies
  3. Past, present, and future distribution of Afromontane rodents (Muridae: Otomys) reflect climate-change predicted biome changes
  4. Trophic similarity and coexistence of Carollia perspicillata and Sturnira lilium (Phyllostomidae), two sympatric fruit bats from the Brazilian Atlantic forest
  5. Identification of four Plecotus species (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Croatia based on cranial characters
  6. Density and activity patterns of ocelot populations in Yasuní National Park, Ecuador
  7. Diet of black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas) on farmlands in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa
  8. Dynamics of health of wild capybaras: biochemical and physiological parameters
  9. A new taxonomic toolkit for identification of two sympatric species of Bandicota (Rodentia: Muridae) from mainland Southeast Asia
  10. Short Notes
  11. Unique loss of cheek teeth and subsequent ossification in a mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus)
  12. Limb abnormality in a neotropical scansorial marsupial, Gracilinanus agilis (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae)
  13. Unexpected documentation and inter-Andean range expansion of a vulnerable large mammal (Mammalia, Pilosa, Myrmecophaga tridactyla) in Colombia
  14. Cooperative defence of female chamois successfully deters an eagle attack
  15. New distributional record of Chelemys megalonyx (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the central valley of Chile, and some implications for its distribution and conservation
  16. Negative effect of the wild boar (Sus scrofa) on the population size of the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) in forest habitats of Sardinia
  17. Range extension of Mimon bennettii (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) in Brazil with comments on its systematics
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