Volume 71, Issue 3

Records of marine mammal strandings, sightings, and captures from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People's Republic of China, were reviewed. A total of 16 species of cetaceans (1 baleen whale and 15 toothed whales, dolphins, and porpoises) have been confirmed to occur in Hong Kong. An additional two species of baleen whales have been reported, but cannot be confirmed at this time (in fact, we suspect that they are both misidentifications). Additional species may have occurred in Hong Kong in the past; however, the dugong and the gray whale have probably been extirpated from the area. Of those species found to be present in the area, only two are regularly observed in Hong Kong waters and are considered residents: the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin ( Sousa chinensis ) and the finless porpoise ( Neophocaena phocaenoides ).

The Cuban hutia ( Capromys pilorides ) is the largest native mammal occurring in Cuba. Endemic to the West Indies, most species of hutia are rare or extinct because of over-harvesting, exotic species introductions, and habitat modifications by humans. An exception is Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where the Cuban hutia is very common and is responsible for a variety of damage and conflicts, including damage to landscaping, gnawing through cables, damage to vehicles, the accumulation of large amounts of feces in residential areas, and damage to native vegetation, with little subsequent regeneration of many plant species. Current management focuses on population reduction by shooting and some trapping, followed by euthanasia or relocation to remote areas. There is little published information on the Cuban hutia. We present information on the biology of the hutia, along with population monitoring results from field studies at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 2001–2003. We found that the hutia is quite prolific and well adapted to exploit most habitats and plant foods. It appears that population sizes are greater in remote areas than in developed areas, but are nonetheless widespread and sizeable in all areas, despite several years of population control. However, even in areas of intense population control, hutia densities of 1–5 /ha are common. Management implications are discussed and several areas of additional data or research needs are identified.

A small population of the Finlayson's squirrel introduced into Italy was studied, distinguishing the individuals according to pelage colour. The border between the dark brown and the white coloration of the frons, the white spots on the dark brown frons and the dark brown side-burns on the white genal-temporal area were characters useful for individual identification. Colour variations during the course of the squirrels' life and colour aberrations in the brood of aberrant individuals were also observed.

Evening emergence and dawn return of the noctule bat ( Nyctalus noctula ) were visually observed directly at the day roosts in Central Slovakia (in 2002 and 2003). The timing of emergence from, and return to, the roosts relative to the times of sunset, sunrise and civil twilight (evening and morning) was analysed. To determine the influence of external and internal factors on activity schedules, four comparisons were performed (the influence of the extent of roost illumination, reproductive status and air temperature and colony size). The evening emergence from, and the morning return to, the roosts of noctules were concentrated in the period between sunset and civil twilight, and between civil twilight and sunrise, respectively. On average, bats started leaving the tree hollows 11 min after sunset. The mean time of the start of the morning return was coincident with the time of morning civil twilight. No significant relationships between the other selected factors and activity schedules were found. Several behavioural displays were recorded during visual observations of dawn swarming.

Golden lion tamarins ( Leontopithecus rosalia ) are known to sleep in tree holes as a means of protection against predators. The aim of this study was to compare the activity period of the diurnal golden lion tamarins with the home range of each group, and the sleeping sites used by tamarins in the União Biological Reserve. Two groups (Geni and SJ2) were followed monthly from April 2003 to March 2004, for a total of 712 h. The daily distance and the home range of the groups were estimated, the trees used as sleeping sites were marked with numbered tags, and the habitat and the positions of the trees were mapped. During the study, the mean daily activity period was 10.30 h. The SJ2 group had a home range of 96.22 ha and 21 different sleeping sites, and the Geni group had a home range of 72.52 ha and nine different tree hole sleeping sites. The daily activity of golden lion tamarins varied seasonally and was associated with photoperiod and temperature. The size of the home range may be influenced by the occurrence and interaction with neighboring groups.

This paper examines 167 records of 14 bat species killed on roads in Poland. Regional differences in the species composition of road traffic accident records resulted from differences in the structure of local bat faunas. Young-of-the-year individuals (ind.) were killed significantly more often than adults. The highest mortality occurred in August and in the first half of September during intense dispersal of young bats. The highest incidence of road casualties was noted in places where roads crossed bat flyways, especially at junctions with forest edges and tree alleys. The rate of mortality depended on the habitat. It was highest where roads approached tree stands (up to 6.8 ind./km/year) or crossed a forest (2.7 ind./km/year) and lowest within densely built-up areas of Warsaw (0.3 ind./km/year). The mean was 1.5 ind./km/year in an 8-km section of a road near Warsaw. Road mortality depended on the hunting strategy of bats, in particular on the height of their flight. Road casualties were frequent for the low-flying gleaner, Myotis daubentonii (39.5% of the records), but rare for the high-flying aerial hawker, Nyctalus noctula (1.9%).