Volume 87, Issue 4

In West Africa, high deforestation rates and poaching have induced dramatic declines of mammal’s populations and local extinctions. Due to their isolation, island species are more vulnerable than mainland species. The premises of that scenario are perceptible in the Ehotilé Islands National Park, south-eastern Côte d’Ivoire, but have not been documented. This study aimed to update the diversity and conservation status of medium and large mammals in that protected area. Several surveys were conducted between 2019 and 2021, using ethno-zoological interviews and individual surveys with local populations, as well as reconnaissance walks and camera trapping to collect data on the presence or absence of mammals. From interviews with local populations and literature review, a list of 27 species of mammals that were potentially present in the park in the past was established. Most “lost” species are large mammals, especially primates that are globally threatened. A total of 11 species were pictorially identified, including two Near threatened species ( Aonyx capensis and Hydrictis maculicollis ) and one Vulnerable species ( Cercopithecus lowei ). The study confirms a trend of population decline and the erosion of mammal diversity in the park, hence highlighting the need for urgent conservation actions.

To enable long-term coexistence, species need to differentiate at least one of the three main dimensions of the ecological niche (temporal, spatial, or trophic dimension). Here, we investigated whether mammalian predators ( Chrysocyon brachyurus , Cerdocyon thous , Lycalopex vetulus , and Puma concolor ) follow the prediction of trophic niche partitioning, which is expected when partitioning of food resources represents an important mechanism for coexistence. We predicted low niche overlap in general and low between P. concolor and the other species. We analyzed 207 fecal samples collected at a landscape composed of forest remnants immersed in Eucalyptus plantations. Food items (animals and plants) were identified using exoskeletons, feathers, scales, teeth, hair, and seeds. We calculated the frequency and percentage of occurrence of food items, niche breadth, and niche overlap between pairs of species. Prey size was similar among all predators, consuming mainly small-sized prey (<1 kg). However, niche breadth was larger for smaller carnivores compared to larger ones. No species pair showed significantly lower niche overlap than expected by chance. Our study provided detailed information on trophic resource use of sympatric carnivores, showing that trophic niche partitioning seems not to be crucial for the coexistence of carnivores in the study area.

Crocidura olivieri is a large-sized shrew species showing a clear trend towards commensalism in West Africa, where it co-occurs and interacts with a number of rodent species in indoor small mammal communities. Among the rodents present is the house mouse Mus musculus , a major invasive species worldwide. We here test the hypothesis that M. musculus could be part of the diet of C. olivieri in a number of localities of Senegal where the two species are known to coexist. We use a metabarcoding approach based on the high-throughput sequencing of a 133 bp fragment of the COI gene, on DNA extracted from digestive tracts and faeces of a sample of 108 shrews. Beside insects of various groups (ants, beetles and cockroaches especially) representing usual items of shrew’s diet, and traces of domestic mammals and poultry that were probably scavenged, several species of rodents were evidenced. Among them, M. musculus was by far the best represented species, found in 17 of the 54 shrews where at least one prey taxon was identified. This finding tends to confirm the potential role of C. olivieri as predator of house mice, while highlighting the capacity of this species to adapt its diet to environmental conditions.

A survey was done to estimate margay abundance and activity in the context of high forest loss rates from avocado plantations for the temperate forest region of Michoacán state. Camera trap surveys were conducted from November 2015 to April 2020, recording 21 Margay detections of seven individuals. The capture rate ranged from 0.09 to 0.83 records/100 trap nights. The mean temporal density was 0.12 ind./km 2 , with an activity peak between 04:00 and 05:00 h. The Margay could serve as indicator species for restoration and forest conservation initiatives.

Information on growth of the Japanese raccoon dog, Nyctereutes procyonoides is limited. We collected 237 juvenile raccoon dogs, road-killed and culled for pest control in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan from 2002 to 2019. We measured the skull, mandible, femur lengths, and body weights of all specimens and used the body weights of healthy animals ( n = 136). We found that these variables increased rapidly up to September and reached maximum values in October. Evidence of dorsal surface roughness of the neurocranium became obvious in October, and up to 35 % of individuals had rough dorsal surfaces of neurocranium in December. Epiphyseal fusion of femurs appeared in September, and 27 % of specimens having fused femurs was recorded in December. This study firstly described the growth patterns of the Japanese raccoon dogs based on a lot of samples.

Bats provide essential ecosystem services and some are cave dependent. Caves favour the association of bats with ectoparasite Diptera, however, they are poorly sampled in the Amazon biome. Here we present the first description of a community of bats and bat flies from the largest sandstone cave in Brazil, the Planaltina cave, located in the municipality of Brasil Novo, state of Pará. Diptera were removed from captured bats and taken to the laboratory for identification. From nine species of bats belonging to four families we recorded 17 species of Diptera, 13 were monoxenous. A possible explanation for the monoxenous parasites collected is that flies have poor survival in unusual hosts. These results are an indicator that the Streblid species are host-specific since even if the hosts take refuge in the same cave, they will not share their parasites. Therefore, the present study provides important information on the parasite-host dynamics in a cave, thus highlighting the importance of cave as are essential shelters for bat species and, despite reported cases of cohabitation, mixed colonies are unlikely to form.

Pond bat Myotis dasycneme is distributed from Belgium to Eastern Siberia, between 44°–50° N and 60° N. The total population of M. dasycneme is probably declining, but supporting data are incomplete. The conservation status of the species is not yet completely assessed. Surveys of hibernacula and foraging sites have been carried out recently in Northwest Russia. Evidence of a recent increase in numbers of wintering bats have been recorded, a northwards expansion is supposed. However, the local pond bat is still under threat as its most significant population is concentrated in only one hibernaculum, which is not well protected.

We used Maxent to model the distribution of the Nilgiri marten ( Martes gwatkinsii ), a cryptic semi-arboreal mammal, with climate, forest, and human disturbance as covariates. We modelled the species niche, which identified suitable habitat across a variety of land uses and protection regimes. The findings point to a species niche defined by isolated, cold, and wet areas along the Western Ghats’ montane grasslands (shola) and adjoining wet forests. A sizable portion (62 %) of the total 8922 km 2 niche area is multi-use, including tea, coffee, and timber plantations. Our findings emphasise the importance of conservation in non-protected areas adjacent to reserves in order to sustain this endemic species.

The cricetid rodent Rhagomys septentrionalis was previously known only from its type locality in Ecuador. Four new records are reported here, documenting a northward range extension of about 300 km. Obtained evidence include, for the first time, nests and a video of an individual in the wild. Distribution models suggest that R. septentrionalis potentially has an ample geographic range along the eastern Andean Forest. According to IUCN criteria the species should be categorized as Vulnerable. The case of R. septentrionalis , now recorded from five localities within a year after its original description, suggests that rarity in sigmodontines is mostly driven by limited field efforts.

The Annamite striped rabbit Nesolagus timminsi is an Endangered lagomorph endemic to the Annamite mountain range in Vietnam and Laos. We report new records of the Annamite striped rabbit from the elevations of 967–1210 m (mean = 1097 m) in the Ngoc Linh Mountains in Quang Nam and Kon Tum provinces, central Vietnam, located south of the southernmost known records in the central Annamites part of the species’ range. We also document previously unreported incidents of Annamite striped rabbit being caught for the pet trade. Our findings provide additional information on the distribution and threats to this little-known species that can be used to inform conservation measures.

Chimpanzee accumulative stone throwing at trees has been described by Kühl, H.S., Kalan, A.K., Arandjelovic, M., Aubert, F., D'Auvergne, L., Goedmakers, A., Jones, S., Kehoe, L., Regnaut, S., Tickle, A., et al. (2016). Chimpanzee accumulative stone throwing. Sci. Rep. 6: 1–8, but we lack important details about the social and ecological context for this rare behavior. Further observations may enhance future research, as the described observations have not yet been shared in the literature. We analyzed camera trap records from 2010 to 2020 of various research projects conducted in the Boé sector of Gabu Province in south-east Guinea Bissau, West-Africa, to identify ecological and social factors that might potentially influence chimpanzee accumulative stone throwing behavior (on a total of 298 records). From September 2019 until November 2019, we filmed five trees over 48 days to conduct a further exploratory study of this behavior. We discuss the importance of study design when investigating a little-described phenomenon, and the threat posed to chimpanzee populations in West-Africa by the expected expansion of mining activities. More knowledge on chimpanzee accumulative stone throwing is needed as the chimpanzee population is under stress because of increased mining activities in the area. With habitat rapidly being disturbed and destroyed, this population and its rare behavior are increasingly at risk of extermination.

In this study we document two records related to potential food opportunism in crab-eating fox, Cerdocyon thous . The records were made in Itapuã State Park, Viamão, RS, Brazil, and were obtained through camera traps. These showed individuals of C. thous carrying a brown howler monkey and an unidentified fish, both already lifeless. There are no records of howler monkey consumption by this species of carnivore, and fish are considered as unusual taxa in its diet. We assume that the captures occurred with the animals already dead, illustrating the food opportunism of the species and the potential occurrence of scavenging by this canid.

Hoary marmots ( Marmota caligata ) dig burrows in alpine meadows rich in forage as ready refuge from potential predators. Refuge burrows enable hoary marmots to engage in risk-sensitive foraging when they are away from more secure resting burrows on talus slopes. Grizzly bears ( Ursus arctos ) commonly excavate refuge burrows while hunting marmots, substantially changing the physical characteristics of the burrow by removing earthen material. However, it is not known if marmots continue to use excavated burrows as refuge. We opportunistically inspected 22 burrows excavated by grizzly bears for use by marmots at two sites in northwestern Canada. We found marmot feces at 10 of 22 excavated burrows, indicating that marmots continued to use these burrows after they were excavated by bears. While marmots may dig several refuge burrows in alpine meadows, and bears may substantially modify them while hunting marmots, our observations indicate that some excavated burrows retain value for foraging marmots. However, the extent of their utility is unknown. We postulate several reasons why hoary marmots may use excavated burrows and suggest avenues for further research.

Myotis bakeri is a Peruvian endemic bat with little information about its natural history and geographic distribution. Based on a revision of museum specimens, we report new records of M. bakeri extending its distribution range 143 km northwest and 98 km southeast. Also, the elevational range is extended to 1445 m. The current allopatric distribution of M. bakeri and M. atacamensis , and other bat species, suggests the existence of two unreported bat assemblages in the Peruvian western slope.

Orthohantaviruses are a group of zoonotic pathogens that can cause severe and potentially fatal syndromes in humans. Although orthohantaviruses have been documented in Iran, little is known about their potential reservoirs in the country. The present study constitutes the first attempt to detect orthohantavirus infections in rodents in Iran. Sampling was performed in the East Azerbaijan province, during October 2017 and June 2018. To detect orthohantavirus infection, we performed a Pan-hantavirus nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction targeting the large segment of the viral genome using consensus primers on lung tissue samples. We identified Tula orthohantavirus for the first time in Iran and from Dryomys nitedula sensu lato (s.l.) (Gliridae), a non-muroid host. There are two possible interpretations for this finding: an interspecies spillover or the presence of a broader primary host/reservoir list. However, at present, we do not advocate for either interpretation, but instead, argue for further accumulation of relevant data. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close relationship between the Tula orthohantavirus identified in this study and those detected in Turkey. Nevertheless, comprehensive field studies, as well as full-length sequence analyses, are required to gain a better understanding of the potential reservoirs, ecology, and epidemiological cycle of the virus in Iran.

Albinism is a kind of anomalous hypopigmentation with a complete white pelage, and it is completely devoid of melanin in the skin, hair follicles and eyes. The present paper firstly reports two cases of adult mole shrews ( Anourosorex squamipes ) with albinism, which were found in Sichuan province of southwestern China. The two female mole shrews show a complete white pelage. Stained by the soil, the albinistic mole shrews show a yellowish white color. Besides the same morphological characteristics, all the body parameters of the two albinistic mole shrews are within the parameter range of the six normal mole shrews captured at the same site.