Volume 86, Issue 2

Zoonoses are diseases or infections naturally transmissible from vertebrate animals to humans, and can be bacterial, viral or parasitic. The growth of urbanization, industrialization and the advance of agriculture and livestock facilitate the spread of infectious and parasitic agents from wild animals to the human population and to their domestic animals. Among the various reservoirs of zoonotic agents, we find that didelphid species, due to their high capacity for adaptation in urban environments, as an important study case. We reviewed the literature data on the pathogens, including with zoonotic potential of marsupial species occurring in Brazil, accounted for infections by agents that we categorized into Bacteria, Viruses, Protozoa, and Helminths. Aiming identifies possible knowledge gaps, we also surveyed the origin of studied samples and the institutions leading the researches on host didelphids. Among the hosts, the genus Didelphis in the cycles of these agents stands out. Moreover, we found that the majority of reported cases are in the Southeastern Brazil, mean the data from other Brazilian localities and didelphid species could be underestimated. Most studies took place in graduate programs of public research institutions, emphasizing the importance of the funding public research for the Brazilian scientific development.

We assessed the habitat association of the diversity and abundance of small mammals in the Ukaguru Mountains within the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania. An estimation of the vegetation parameters and live-trapping of small mammals for three consecutive nights per month for 21 months were carried out in farmland, disturbed and intact forests. A total of 1196 individual small mammals comprising 13 species were captured. Species diversity and evenness in intact forest were much higher compared to disturbed forest. Principal component analysis (PCA) explained 87.7% of the variance with two factors. The study suggests vegetation and habitat disturbances are factors responsible for the observed diversity of small mammals in the Ukaguru Mountains. Mastomys natalensis , Mus triton and Praomys delectorum accounted for 90.0% of total captures. M. triton and M. natalensis were the most abundant in farmland with 46.8 and 42.8% of total captures respectively and associated with the herbaceous vegetation. P. delectorum correlated with litter depth and trees and accounted for 90.0 and 80.0% total captures in disturbed and intact forests respectively but the mean abundances in both habitats were not significantly different ( p  = 0.72).

Bats spend more than half of their life in roosts, where key life events transpire. Therefore the availability and selection of roosts are important to bats everywhere, and may limit their ability to exploit every habitat, including agricultural landscapes such as paddy fields, orchards and tea plantations. This study aimed to investigate the day roosts used by insectivorous bat species in tea plantations of Sri Lanka. We surveyed 18 tea plantations where we recorded a total of 44 roosts involving five families and nine species of bats ( Hipposideros galeritus , Hipposideros lankadiva , Hipposideros speoris , Rhinolophus beddomei , Rhinolophus rouxii , Megaderma spasma, Pipistrellus ceylonicus , Pipistrellus coromandra and Miniopterus cf . fuliginosus ). Most (26) of the recorded roosts were geomorphic, (11) were anthropogenic, and (7) were in vegetation. H. lankadiva and M. cf . fuliginosus are the only species known to roost exclusively in geomorphic roosts; all others were opportunistic. Although protecting bat roosts is crucial for their conservation, it is challenging in view of existing tea management practices. Therefore, natural roosts should be maintained and protected. The introduction of artificial roosts might increase the number of bats able to forage over tea plantations and maximize their consumption of agricultural pests, thereby increasing tea production.

We report diversity data and ecological aspects (richness, abundance and guilds) of bat assemblages in the Esteros del Iberá. We sampled four sites at Reserva Natural Don Luis, with an effort of 75 nights, 256 nets and 12 harp traps over six years. We made a species accumulation curve, Whittaker diagram, and calculated inventory completeness. A complete inventory for the area included 471 individuals belonging to 14 species of Phyllostomidae, Vespertilionidae, and Molossidae families. Insectivorous guilds present the greatest richness and abundance. Esteros del Iberá shelters a diversity of guilds, one threatened species, and a new bat record for the region.

Bats represent an important, but poorly known component of mammal diversity in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Our surveys in two altitudinal rainforest gradients recorded 43 bat species of which six ( Dobsonia minor , D. praedatrix , Hipposideros calcaratus , H. maggietaylorae , Miniopterus australis , Miniopterus sp.) fell outside of their known altitudinal ranges. This enlargement could reflect the lack of past sampling, or a genuine range extension, potentially in response to climate change. Our study highlights the importance of baseline data on the altitudinal distribution of vertebrates, including bats, in PNG for the monitoring of their response to climate change and anthropogenic disturbance.

From 2015 to 2018, a total of 60 dens of red fox Vulpes vulpes have been visited in three sites of southern Tunisia. In this arid habitat, we recorded deposited skins of hedgehogs in front of 34 dens, an uncommon behaviour to our knowledge. These sightings suggest that red fox can be the main predator of hedgehogs in arid zones of North Africa.

The stump-tailed porcupine, Coendou rufescens , is a widely distributed but scarcely documented species inhabiting the Andean region of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and an isolated population in Bolivia. Despite the wide distribution different aspects on its biology and ecology are still unknown. We present an update to the distribution of C. rufescens , and recent observations on the anatomy, natural history, and conservation in Colombia. For this, we described the male genitalia and present data on reproductive periods, plants used and consumed, and threats. The distribution of C. rufescens comprises 12 ecoregions in an area of 376,225 km 2 for the northern group (Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru) and 393 km 2 for the southern group (Bolivia). The highest elevational record is in Ecuador (4387 m), being the porcupine inhabiting at highest elevations. The anatomy of the glans is similar to that observed in Coendou quichua and constitutes the second species of Coendou with available information on glans morphology. C. rufescens consumes fruits and leaves of potato cider ( Sechium edule : Cucurbitaceae) and woody shrub ( Bejaria : Ericacea), and usually perches even in exotic species such as pines. Finally, common treats for the species in Colombia are related to hunting pressures, predation by domestic dogs, and roadkills.

Wild sheep ( Ovis spp.) are of conservation concern throughout the Middle East. Little is known, however, about the natural history or ecology of this taxon. To better understand size relationships among wild sheep occupying Iran, we analyzed results from 120 females collected from widely separated ecosystems. Morphometrics and body weights for all age categories of females occupying the Khosh-Yeilagh Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Iran were larger than those for the same age classes of females occupying Bamou National Park in southwestern Iran. Females from Bamou National Park, however, obtained adult body weight ( x̅  = 25.8 ± 2.47 [SD] kg) at an earlier age than those from the Khosh-Yeilagh Wildlife Refuge ( x̅  = 36.6 ± 3.21 kg). Ecological differences between these two areas suggest that net primary productivity, which is a function of numerous climatic and geographical factors, has been a primary force contributing to these results. Weights and measurements reported here provide the basic information for additional, more detailed research necessary to fully understand the evolutionary significance and management implications of these differences in body size and emphasize the conservation value of even the most basic natural history information.

The fishing cat’s persistence in a ‘semi-aquatic niche’ suggests the evolution of a successful hunting strategy. We describe it for the first time by analysing 197 camera-trap video-clips, collected from a participatory-science initiative, within an ethogram framework . The cats spent ∼52% of the time sitting and waiting for prey (fishes) to come nearer and took limited attempts to hunt (3.89%) in deeper waters (in which the upper portions of the cat’s body were submerged), where its hunting success was found to be 42.86%. In shallow waters, it adopted a predominantly active mode of hunting (∼96%) to flush out prey.

We report two records of jaguars ( Panthera onca ) registered with camera traps at 2300 and 2660 m a.s.l. in the Ecuadorian Andes, which represent the first verifiable records of the species above 2000 m in Ecuador. As the first records of jaguars from Río Negro-Sopladora National Park and Tapichalaca Reserve, these records raise important questions about the species’ ecology and conservation in Andean montane forests. From a regional perspective, these records may indicate connectivity between jaguar populations inhabiting both sides of the Andes. Sustained monitoring of wildlife populations is necessary to discern the significance of these records and help develop strategies to ensure the conservation of this highly mobile species across the increasingly fragmented Andean-Amazonian landscapes of southern Ecuador.

The phylogenetic position of the “Upper yungas inca hocicudo” Oxymycterus juliacae , one of the lesser-known species of the genus Oxymycterus , is still unresolved. Several authors considered it a subspecies or synonym of Oxymycterus inca, but more recently, it was recognized as a valid species based on morphometric analysis and morphological traits. The objectives of this study were then to substantiate the morphological distinction of O. juliacae and evaluate its phylogenetic position using cytochrome b sequences. We evaluated the morphology of O. juliacae and compared it with congeneric species. In addition, a Cytochrome b gene matrix was subjected to analyses of maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Our results support the morphometric and morphological distinction of O. juliacae and found that this species is more closely related to Oxymycterus willkaurco than to O. inca . Therefore, the recognition of O. juliacae as a full species is supported and a rediagnosis is provided. In addition, we found O. inca is more related to other lowland species from Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, than to central Andean species. More efforts are needed to secure genetic material of Oxymycterus species, mainly the Andean species, for a better understanding of their phylogenetic relationship.