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Substrate type determines nesting success and fitness in turtles and is a critical consideration for nesting area protection and restoration. Here, we evaluated the effect of substrate on nest removal by humans in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. We analyzed substrate composition and fate of 216 P. unifilis nests along 88 km of rivers. River segment and substrate type were the most important predictors of nest removal by humans. We found up to 36% lower removal of nests in fine sand and experimental results support the hypothesis that wind more often obscures tracks of nesting females in substrates with more (>66%) fine sand. Our findings are useful for informing the restoration of artificial nesting areas across the Amazon, as nesting area substrates should be selected not only to maintain hatchling sex ratios, but also to minimize nest removal by humans.

Sustainable use as a mechanism for the conservation and recovery of exploited wildlife populations remains intensely debated, including for freshwater turtles, a diverse and imperilled group of aquatic reptiles that are an important food source for many residents of tropical regions. Here we evaluated the geographical extent of recovery options for a heavily exploited tropical freshwater turtle fauna across 8.86 M km2 of South American river catchments under Business-as-Usual (BAU), Protection (Pr) and Community-Based-Management (CBM) scenarios. For the widespread indicator species, Podocnemis unifilis, demographic analysis showed that populations subject moderate levels of female harvest (≤10%) can recover over broad areas if concurrent headstarting of hatchlings is practiced more widely. With regional strengthening of the protected area network unlikely, CBM developed with harvest frameworks derived from demographic rates appropriate to tropical species could catalyse a rapid continental scale recovery of Amazonian freshwater turtles within a few decades.

Construction of hydropower dams is associated with negative impacts on biodiversity, yet there remains a lack of robust scientific evidence documenting the magnitude of these impacts particularly across highly biodiverse tropical waterways. Hydropower expansion is an increasing threat to the Endangered yellow-spotted river turtle (Podocnemis unifilis) across its tropical South American range.Yellow-spotted river turtle nesting areas were monitored as an indicator of dry season river level changes following run-of-river dam reservoir filling. A Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) study design was used with multi-year field campaigns monitoring turtle nesting areas upstream of the dam.The cause and extent of changes in nesting areas were established using Generalized Additive Models. Nesting area density was evaluated in relation to: time (before versus after), treatment (control versus impact), time treatment interaction (BACI), distance to the dam and precipitation. The extent of changes was examined by comparing the proportion of nesting areas remaining during four years after reservoir filling.Dam construction generated an immediate and apparently permanent dry season river level rise that extended more than 20 km beyond impact assessment limits. On average the density of nesting areas declined 69% (from 0.48 to 0.15 per km) across 33 km of river directly impacted by the dam. This loss was reflected in a significant BACI interaction. Nesting area density was not explained by seasonal precipitation.Standardized monitoring of freshwater turtle nesting areas provided an effective means to quantify impacts of hydropower developments across biodiverse yet rapidly changing waterways. The negative impacts documented in this study should be preventable by mitigation actions including habitat creation and dry season flow regulation. Such measures would also likely benefit multiple species elsewhere in tropical rivers increasingly impacted by run-of-river dams.

Seasonal changes in runoff and inundation create river-habitats that are considered key to the diversity of Amazonian bird species. However, studies on avifauna in different riverine habitats remain scarce. We used camera traps to survey the avifauna in river-created habitats along 39 km of river in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. We examined the number of bird species detected and species composition in islands and margin banks, evaluated species���area relationships in these two habitats, and examined if the most abundant bird species have differences in activity pattern between habitats. Cameras recorded 21 bird species from 13 families (Accipitridae, Ardeidae, Bucconidae, Caprimulgidae, Cathartidae, Columbidae, Cracidae, Hirundinidae, Icteridae, Scolopacidae, Thraupidae, Threskiornithidae, and Tyrannidae). Species composition did not differ between habitat types but we found a discernible area effect, explaining as much as 84% on the number of species detected across island sites. Overlaps of activity pattern of bird species were high between habitat types, but differences in activity peaks were found for Molothrus oryzivorus and Pitangus sulphuratus while examining islands and margin banks. River-created habitats are relevant to Amazonian bird diversity and studies on these habitats must be increased to better understand their value across the Amazon.

The conservation and recovery of increasingly threatened tropical freshwater turtle populations depends on effective management plans and actions. Here we show that community-based actions saved Yellow-spotted river turtle (Podocnemis unifilis) eggs submerged by unseasonal flooding and ensured the release of hatchlings. We recovered 926 eggs and 65 premature hatchlings from 74 submerged nests at 16 flooded nesting areas along 75 km of waterways. The rescued eggs were transferred to a rearing center and incubated. Hatchlings emerged from eggs that had remained underwater for up to two days. Hatchlings were maintained in 250–500 L nursery tanks until yolk sac scars had closed. Healthy hatchlings were then immediately released around the original nesting areas. We released 599 hatchlings (60.4%) from 991 submerged eggs and hatchlings. Egg survival (61.7% (571/926)) was substantially less than hatchling survival (94.2% (599/636)) but within the expected range of values reported for this species. These findings suggest that Yellow-spotted river turtle eggs and embryos are resistant to short-term submersion, which could help explain the widespread distribution of this species across highly seasonal Amazonian rivers. Management plans should take the possible survival of submerged eggs into consideration as part of species conservation and recovery actions.

Accurate identification of predator species is a critical requirement to investigate their diet using faecal samples. We used non-invasive sampling and two methods of predator identification to investigate the diets of sympatric carnivores in a highly deforested region of the Brazilian Amazon. Of 108 scats, 81 could be identified at the species level using DNA sequencing and/or trichology. The former performed better than the latter (81.5% vs. 54.3% of the identified samples), and results were quite congruent (89.7% concordance in the 29 samples that could be assessed with both approaches). Nine species were identified, out of which four (crab-eating fox, ocelot, puma and jaguar) presented a sufficient number of samples to allow dietary analyses. The crab-eating fox was the most generalist (BA=0.92); ocelots focused on small- to medium-sized prey; pumas fed mostly on medium-sized items; and jaguars mostly targeted large-sized prey. A considerable overlap was observed between ocelots and pumas in all estimations (O=0.47–0.83). The presence of jaguars in the same region could be driving pumas to select medium- and small-sized prey. The results of this study highlight the importance of reliable predator identification and the need for in-depth ecological studies in areas where carnivore species are sympatric.

Funder: Arcadia Fund; FundRef: https://doi.org/10.13039/100012088, Funder: Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior; FundRef: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100002322, Funder: The David and Claudia Harding Foundation, Funder: MAVA Foundation; FundRef: https://doi.org/10.13039/100013324, Background and Research Aims Dams impact freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity. Freshwater turtles are at direct and indirect risk due to changes caused by damming including the loss of terrestrial and aquatic nesting habitats, changes to food availability, and blocking movement. Effective management of these impacts requires robust evidence in order to gain an understanding of conservation solutions that work. Methods We reviewed the global scientific literature that evaluated the impact of dams on freshwater turtles, and carried out additional searches of literature published in seventeen languages for studies evaluating actions to mitigate dam impacts. Results The search produced 47 published articles documenting dam impacts on 30 freshwater turtle species from seven families (Chelidae, Chelydridae, Emydidae, Geoemydidae, Kinosternidae, Podocnemididae, and Trionychidae) in 13 countries. Few studies were found from Europe and Asia and none from Africa. Most studies were from temperate latitudes, where studies focused more on adults and less threatened species compared with tropical latitudes. More than half of the studies (57%, n = 27) suggested actions to help mitigate dam impacts. Yet, only five studies (three temperate and two tropical) documented the effect of interventions (dam removal, flow management, artificial pond maintenance and community-based action). Conclusion These findings demonstrate a serious lack of documented evidence evaluating mitigation actions for dam impacts on freshwater turtles. Implications for Conservation This lack of evidence reinforces the importance of strengthening and maintaining robust long-term studies needed to develop effective and adaptive conservation actions for this group of threatened vertebrates particularly in tropical regions.

The Guiana Shield has large pristine tracts of tropical forest with high biological diversity and is an area of endemism within the Amazon Basin. However, the conservation status of primates in eastern Amazonian Brazil is still poorly known. Here, we report information on relative abundance, group size, density estimates, plus the effects of environmental variables and seasonality of primates in a sustainable-use reserve in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. From a 603 km transect-based census conducted in October–December 2013 and March–June 2014 we obtained 122 sighting records of six primate species. The most common were Ateles paniscus (45 detections) and Saguinus midas (40 detections). The high calculated density estimates for Sg. midas (2.01 groups/km2 or 12.05 individuals/km2) and for At. paniscus (3.44 groups/km2 or 10.31 individuals/km2) underscore the conservation importance of the study area for the vulnerable At. paniscus. We found no effect of environmental variables on the number of detec...

Incluye contenido parcial de los autores Abstract.Mammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecologicalhealth and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carni-vores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide managementand conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropicalregion: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; andUrsidae. Herein, we include published and unpublished data on native terrestrial Neotropicalcarnivores (Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae). NEOTRO-PICAL CARNIVORES is a publicly available data set that includes 99,605 data entries from35,511 unique georeferenced coordinates. Detection/non-detection and quantitative data wereobtained from 1818 to 2018 by researchers, governmental agencies, non-governmental organi-zations, and private consultants. Data were collected using several methods including cameratrapping, museum collections, roadkill, line transect, and opportunistic records. Literature(peer-reviewed and grey literature) from Portuguese, Spanish and English were incorporated inthis compilation. Most of the data set consists of detection data entries (n=79,343; 79.7%) butalso includes non-detection data (n=20,262; 20.3%). Of those, 43.3% also include count data(n=43,151). The information available in NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES will contribute tomacroecological, ecological, and conservation questions in multiple spatio-temporal perspec-tives. As carnivores play key roles in trophic interactions, a better understanding of their distri-bution and habitat requirements are essential to establish conservation management plans andsafeguard the future ecological health of Neotropical ecosystems. Our data paper, combinedwith other large-scale data sets, has great potential to clarify species distribution and relatedecological processes within the Neotropics. There are no copyright restrictions and no restric-tion for using data from this data paper, as long as the data paper is cited as the source of theinformation used. We also request that users inform us of how they intend to use the data.

The bush dog Speothos venaticus is a medium-sized Neotropical canid. It is considered to be rare and its biology and population parameters are still poorly understood. The Amazon is one of the main strongholds of this species and is important for maintaining viable populations, as the region still holds extensive tracts of pristine habitat. We gathered field data from camera-trap studies throughout the Brazilian Amazon to estimate the relative abundance of the species and gain an understanding of its rarity, and how this compares with estimates from other vegetative formations and for sympatric hypercarnivores. We focused on three pristine or partially disturbed sites and one fragmented site. The estimated relative abundance of the species was 0.060–0.185 individuals per 100 trap-days, confirming that the species is rare. The bush dog's abundance in the Amazon is equivalent to that in all other areas outside the Basin. The mean group size recorded was c. 2.5 individuals. There were no differences in group sizes between forests in the Amazon and in other regions of Central America; however, there were significant differences between forests and open habitats. A combination of competition/predation, habitat structure/integrity, and disease may be acting synergistically in determining the abundance and rarity of bush dogs.

The Brazilian Amazon harbours 70 % of the world’s tropical forests and is essential to the country’s economy because it maintains biodiversity, sustains the livelihoods of the indigenous people and local communities, and provides ecosystem services such as water production, soil stabilization, flood prevention, and climate regulation. In the last three decades, the Brazilian government has established a regional protected area (PA) network that currently covers approximately 48 % of the region. Despite their importance, some sectors of the Brazilian society have argued that the expansion of the PAs across the region hampers the local economic development, because they make less area available for non-forest economic activities such as large-scale agriculture, mining, and power generation. In this study, we analysed the relationship between local economic growth and PA coverage in 516 municipalities in the Brazilian Amazon from 2004 to 2014. We modelled the impact of the coverage of the three types of PAs (strictly-protected, multiple-use, and indigenous lands) on the (i) compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of the real gross domestic product per capita (GDP per capita), and (ii) real gross value added per capita (GVA per capita) of the agriculture, industry, services, and government sectors in each municipality. The models also considered the following control variables at the municipal level: area, age, per capita GPD in 2004 (or per capita GVAs in 2004), population growth rate between 2004 and 2014, education index, deforested area outside PA per capita, deforested area inside PA per capita, degraded area outside PA per capita, degraded area inside PA per capita, and presence of illegal mining within PA. We applied spatial Durbin error models (SDEM) to analyse the direct, indirect, and total impacts of the PAs on the local economic growth. We did not find a statistically significant relationship between the local economic growth and PA coverage in any of the three PA groups evaluated. Only the total impact of the GVA per capita of the industry was negatively correlated with the coverage of the strictly-protected PAs. Our findings do not support the arguments used by some interest groups of the Brazilian society that the social and environmental gains generated through the expansion of PAs across the region constrain the overall local economic growth.

We report the opportunistic predation of a female Common Scale-backed Antbird (Willisornis poecilinotus) entangled in a mist-net by a Goliath bird-eating spider (Theraphosa blondi) in the Brazilian Amazon. We suggest that the predation event occurred for the following combination of reasons: the spider is common in the study area; the bird became entangled at dusk, when the spider begins its activity; and the lowest mist-net shelf was suspended close to the ground. To reduce opportunistic predation events we recommend that it is critical to keep intervals between mist-net checks to a maximum of 15 min in Amazon forests. We also emphasize that attention is required when installing mist-nets to avoid nets touching the ground when animals become trapped in them.

The global expansion of energy demands combined with abundant rainfall, large water volumes and high flow in tropical rivers have led to an unprecedented expansion of dam constructions in the Amazon. This expansion generates an urgent need for refined approaches to river management; specifically a move away from decision-making governed by overly generalized guidelines. For the first time we quantify direct impacts of hydropower reservoir establishment on an Amazon fresh water turtle. We conducted surveys along 150 km of rivers upstream of a new dam construction during the low water months that correspond to the nesting season of Podocnemis unifilis in the study area. Comparison of nest-areas before (2011, 2015) and after (2016) reservoir filling show that reservoir impacts extend 13% beyond legally defined limits. The submerged nesting areas accounted for a total of 3.8 ha of nesting habitat that was inundated as a direct result of the reservoir filling in 2016. Our findings highlight limitations in the development and implementation of existing Brazilian environmental impact assessment process. We also propose potential ways to mitigate the negative impacts of dams on freshwater turtles and the Amazonian freshwater ecosystems they inhabit.

Historic anthropogenic impacts affecting the distribution and ecology of Giant otters are well documented, however little is known regarding the factors affecting the current distribution of this species. Our objective was to determine the relative importance of temporal (seasonal river levels), and anthropogenic (presence of houses, boats and fishing nets) factors on the distribution of Giant otters around a sustainable-use protected area in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. We conducted a total of 6836.1 km of boat surveys to record locations of both direct and indirect Giant otter sightings along 198.9 km of waterways. To understand the importance of the factors at different spatial scales we conducted analysis using data summarized at two spatial scales: 50 km river “zones” and 5.1 km river sections. Our results showed that anthropogenic disturbances were the most important determinants of the presence of both direct and indirect signs, with Giant otters rarely detected within 40 km of the nearest town. Giant otters were present in the waterways throughout the annual water cycle (high, decreasing, low and increasing river levels), with direct observations positively related with the number of fishing nets present in the waterways. Our results suggest considerable spatial and temporal overlap between Giant otters and the activities of local fishermen which must be considered for the effective management of conservation conflicts in this rapidly developing region.

Although large-bodied tropical forest birds are impacted by both habitat loss and fragmentation, their patterns of habitat occupancy will also depend on the degree of forest habitat disturbance, which may interact synergistically or additively with fragmentation effects. Here, we examine the effects of forest patch and landscape metrics, and levels of forest disturbance on the patterns of persistence of six gamebird taxa in the southern Brazilian Amazon. We use both interview data conducted with long-term residents and/or landowners from 129 remnant forest patches and 15 continuous forest sites and line-transect census data from a subset of 21 forest patches and two continuous forests. Forest patch area was the strongest predictor of species persistence, explaining as much as 46% of the overall variation in gamebird species richness. Logistic regression models showed that anthropogenic disturbance—including surface wildfires, selective logging and hunting pressure—had a variety of effects on species persistence. Most large-bodied gamebird species were sensitive to forest fragmentation, occupying primarily large, high-quality forest patches in higher abundances, and were typically absent from patches 10,000 ha), relatively undisturbed forest patches to both maximize persistence and maintain baseline abundances of large neotropical forest birds.

To better understand the threats posed by human activities on cetaceans, we compiled published studies and determined where, how, and by whom the research on this subject has been conducted in Brazil. We also determined which cetacean species were mostly investigated in these studies. We gathered the available scientific literature published from 1986 to 2016 that contained search terms in English that depicted major cetacean threats. Then, we developed a collaboration network among the authors' institutions and generated a distribution map of the investigated threats and study areas. From the 1047 compiled publications, we selected 103 studies that precisely addressed cetacean threats. The selected studies were carried out by 82 institutions from 12 countries. Most of these institutions were universities (n = 55), followed by non-governmental organizations (n = 15) and research institutes (n = 12). Among the two cetacean suborders, odontocetes were the most representative, with Sotalia guianensis and Pontoporia blainvillei present in 50 and 38 publications, respectively. For mysticetes, publications on Megaptera novaeangliae (n = 6) and Eubalaena australis (n = 5) were the most common. Among the addressed threats, more than half (54.4%) of the publications focused on pollution, followed by bycatch (19.4%) and vessel traffic (10.7%). Most of the study areas took place in the states of Rio de Janeiro (22.4%), Sao Paulo (19.7%), and Rio Grande do Sul (12.9%). Six institutions were the most prevalent in the collaboration networks, and their location corresponded to hotspots of cetacean diversity. Our findings may contribute to identifying research priorities and guide the conservation of cetacean species in Brazil.

Understanding people’s attitudes towards wildlife species is key for developing and effectively implementing conservation initiatives. Although attitudes towards different wildlife classes have been examined separately within a variety of regions, there have been no comprehensive comparisons of attitudes towards wildlife between different tropical ecoregions over large spatial scales. Here, we examined attitudes of 106 rural wage-earners from two ecoregions in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. We used generalized Linear Models (GLMs) to examine the influence of socioeconomic variables and ecoregion type on attitudes towards wildlife species, grouped into three classes (liked, disliked, and damage income). Overall we obtained attitudes regarding 57 wildlife species that were organized into 11 faunal groups (amphibians, ants, bats, birds, fishes, medium-bodied mammals, large-bodied mammals, primates, snakes, tortoises and turtles, and other invertebrates). Ecoregions where wage-earners lived was the strongest predictor of the total number of liked and disliked wildlife species. The total number of species damaging income was explained by socioeconomic variables related to the number of people living in the property and level of education. Medium and large-bodied mammals were most frequently reported both as liked and causing damage, while snakes were most frequently reported as disliked in both ecoregions. Although socioeconomic variables were important predictors to wage-earners’ attitudes towards wildlife species, the environment (ecoregion) was the strongest predictor affecting human-wildlife attitudes. Our findings contribute with information about the importance of considering differences in local attitudes across a representative spectrum of wildlife species to inform the identification of effective focal species in different tropical regions.

Here we present new data on relative abundance and diet of Bradypus tridactylus Linnaeus, 1758 resulting from 2,505 km of river based surveys conducted in northern Amazonia. Our sampling effort using a motorized boat provided a low number of B. tridactylus detections (n = 4, relative abundance of 0.02 individuals/ 10 km surveyed). Our observations provide the first record of Parkia velutina Benoist (Leguminosae - Mimosoideae) consumption for B. tridactylus. We contribute with recommendations of standardized complementary survey techniques that can be used to provide data on relative abundance of arboreal mammals such as sloths in tropical forests.

The effects of habitat configuration on species persistence are predicted to be most apparent when remaining habitat cover is below 30%. We tested this prediction by comparing vertebrate communities in 21 landscapes located in the southern Amazonia, including 7 control landscapes (~100% of forest cover) and 14 fragmented landscapes (4 × 4 km). The fragmented landscapes retained similar proportions of forest (~25%), but had contrasting configurations, resulting from two different deforestation patterns: the “fish-bone pattern” common in small properties, and the large-property pattern generally used by large ranchers. Vertebrates were surveyed in all landscapes in February–July 2009 with interviews (n = 150). We found a significant difference in reported species richness among the fish-bone, large-property, and control areas (mean = 29.3, 38.8 and 43.5 respectively). Control areas and large-properties tended to have a higher number of specialist species (mean = 13.7, and 11.7, respectively), when compared with the fish-bone pattern (5.1). Vertebrate community composition in the control and large-properties was more similar to one another than to those of the fish-bone landscapes. The number of fragments was the main factor affecting the persistence of species, being negatively associated with specialist species richness. Species richness was also positively related with the size of the largest fragment structurally connected to the studied landscapes (i.e., a regional scale effect). Our results demonstrated that the large-property pattern, which results in less fragmented landscapes, can maintain a more diverse community of large vertebrates, including top predators, which are considered fundamental for maintaining ecosystem integrity. These results support the hypothesis that landscape configuration contributes to the persistence and/or extirpation of species.

The use of scat surveys to obtain DNA has been well documented in temperate areas, where DNA preservation may be more effective than in tropical forests. Samples obtained in the tropics are often exposed to high humidity, warm temperatures, frequent rain and intense sunlight, all of which can rapidly degrade DNA. Despite these potential problems, we demonstrate successful mtDNA amplification and sequencing for faeces of carnivores collected in tropical conditions and quantify how sample condition and environmental variables influence the success of PCR amplification and species identification. Additionally, the feasibility of genotyping nuclear microsatellites from jaguar (Panthera onca) faeces was investigated. From October 2007 to December 2008, 93 faecal samples were collected in the southern Brazilian Amazon. A total of eight carnivore species was successfully identified from 71% of all samples obtained. Information theoretic analysis revealed that the number of PCR attempts before a successful sequence was an important negative predictor across all three responses (success of species identification, success of species identification from the first sequence and PCR amplification success), whereas the relative importance of the other three predictors (sample condition, season and distance from forest edge) varied between the three responses. Nuclear microsatellite amplification from jaguar faeces had lower success rates (15-44%) compared with those of the mtDNA marker. Our results show that DNA obtained from faecal samples works efficiently for carnivore species identification in the Amazon forest and also shows potential for nuclear DNA analysis, thus providing a valuable tool for genetic, ecological and conservation studies.

Amazonia (sensu lato) is by far the largest tropical forest region, but has succumbed to the highest absolute rates of tropical deforestation and forest degradation, driven by rapid frontier expansion, road-building, and spontaneous or government-subsidized migration. The large area-through-time and paleo-climatic stability of Amazonian forests may help explain the high regional to local scale plant and animal species diversity of true forest specialists and high ecological sensitivity to contemporary land-use change. We describe the prevailing forms of anthropogenic disturbance that affect forest organisms in the context of the geographic and evolutionary background that has shaped the degree to which forest species may be resilient to environmental change. The fate of Amazonian biodiversity will partly depend upon the interaction between land-use and climate change, and the extent to which seasonally-dry forests can retain immunity against catastrophic recurrent wildfires. This review illustrates the importance of considering interactions between different forms of forest disturbance to develop effective conservation policy. We conclude with some considerations of the policy agenda necessary to protect forest cover and forest biodiversity at a meaningful scale across the Amazonian biome.

Understanding how environmental change influences the behavior of organisms is central for both ecological understanding and species conservation. We used camera traps to monitor the diurnal variation in activity of 3 ubiquitous terrestrial mammals in neotropical forests—nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus), common opossums (Didelphis marsupialis), and red-rumped agoutis (Dasyprocta leporina)—across a fragmented forest landscape of the southern Brazilian Amazon. Results from a total of 3,086 camera-trap days distributed across 21 forest patches (ranging in size from 2 to 14,480 ha) and 2 undisturbed continuous forest areas were used to test the effects of a series of abiotic and forest disturbance variables on species activity. An information theoretic analysis revealed significant predictors of the temporal distribution of activity that varied among species. Habitat fragmentation affected the activity of both nocturnal species, but effects of habitat patch area depended on interactions with disturbance variables for the common opossum. Of the 3 species investigated, D. novemcinctus exhibited the greatest variation in activity in relation to forest patch size. Armadillos were strictly nocturnal in forest areas .1,000 ha, whereas their foraging activity switched to a cathemeral pattern, with up to 60% of all photos recorded during the day in smaller forest patches (,1,000 ha). In contrast, the time since forest patches had been isolated was the only significant predictor of activity patterns for agoutis, a diurnal species exhibiting a bimodal activity pattern. Our results support the hypothesis that behavioral plasticity is an important determinant of species persistence in small forest remnants dominated by edge effects. DOI: 10.1644/09-MAMM-A-199.1.

Monitoring rare and elusive species for effective management and conservation is particularly challenging and often demands the development of specialized techniques. Scat surveys have been applied to monitor a variety of rare species but relatively little attention has been given to the development of appropriate sampling designs. To determine if scat surveys could be applied to compare the distribution of species across three habitats of a fragmented region in the Brazilian Amazon, the removal of human (n = 27) and jaguar (n = 27) scat samples in forest, riparian corridor and pasture habitats was recorded for 24 hours. Dung beetles were responsible for removing the majority of samples (71%) and a generalized linear mixed effect model revealed significant influence of habitat and scat type on removal probability, with forest and riparian corridors having higher removal compared with samples in pasture habitats. Although non-invasive scat surveys can potentially address fundamental broad-scale conservation and management questions, our results demonstrate that scat surveys in the tropics must account for differences in scat removal rates between habitats and target species before conclusions can be drawn regarding patterns of habitat use.

The bush dog Speothos venaticus and the short-eared dog Atelocynus microtis are categorized as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. I document the occurrence of these two little known canids in a fragmented landscape in southern Amazonia (around Alta Floresta, Mato Grosso state, Brazil) using interviews and two extensive camera-trapping surveys. From a total of 144 interviews conducted during 2001–2002 in forest fragments and continuous forest sites, bush and short-eared dogs were confirmed in only eight (5.6%) and 14 (9.7%) forest sites, respectively. Two camera-trapping surveys, conducted in 2003–2004 and 2007–2008, with a total of 6,721 camera-trap days, recorded two photographs of bush dogs and seven of short-eared dogs, in three continuous forest sites. On the basis of the large sampling effort it appears that these two elusive species occur at low densities in the study region. The continued presence of these species in an agricultural frontier with high deforestation rates makes this information of relevance for long-term conservation initiatives in this region and in other Neotropical agricultural frontiers.