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Sequences showing the use of armadillo burrows by rodents (prey) and carnivores (predators) in the Southern Pantanal wetland, Brazil, November 2015 to August 2016. A1-3: Leopardus pardalis
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Dasypus novemcinctus and Euphractus sexcinctus are common armadillo species in the Brazilian Pantanal. Due to their
digging habits, they alter the surroundings providing environmental alternatives that can be used by other organisms. We
therefore aimed to identify the animal species that utilize the burrows of these armadillos in the Pantanal Wetla...
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Context 1
... T. pecari, S. scrofa feral, S. gouazoubira, T. terrestris, T. tetradactyla, M. domestica, D. azarae, C. fasciolata, L. verreauxi, and C. undulatus) were only related with pass (Module 3 [Color Red], Fig. 1). Regarding vertebrate species that had < 10 records (Table 1), we highlight C. thous and L. pardalis, with approach and entrance with burrows (Fig. 2), as well our study were E. sexcinctus and D. novemcinctus. During the excavations, we found eight taxa of invertebrates and small vertebrates inside 51% of monitored burrows (Online Resource ...
Context 2
... results revealed that the carnivorous L. pardalis and C. thous showed some interesting uses of approach and entrance (Fig. 2). As predators, they may be able to smell the presence of common prey, such as the small rodents observed here entering the armadillo burrows, as reported by Bianchi et al. (2014). The presence of potential prey may also explain why the top predator bird M. semitorquatus was observed interacting with the burrows. We recorded ten species ...
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Armadillos are considered important ecosystem engineers as their burrows can benefit many species. Monitoring burrows with camera traps allows us to obtain relevant biological data on the species that utilize this resource. Our goal in this study was to examine the lesser anteater's (Tamandua tetradactyla) use of giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus...
Citations
... Hydromedusa maximiliani commonly made use of shelters, which consist of a complex network of roots, burrows, and overhanging vegetation along the riverbank. These burrows provide refuge not only for turtles but also for a diverse range of other animals, including species of herpetofauna (Rocha et al. 2008, Bertoluci et al. 2021, crustaceans (Onda and Itakura 1997), mammals (Linley et al. 2024, Santos et al. 2024), etc. The use of burrows also influenced their home range size as the turtles tracked repeatedly use the same shelters along the stream margin, a common behavior of herpetofaunal species (Row and Blouin-Demers 2006;Famelli et al. 2016). ...
Identifying the habitat area used by animals is vital for understanding species-level life-history traits and ecological requirements. The Maximilian's Snake-necked Turtle (Hydromedusa maximiliani) is an endemic and endangered freshwater turtle from the Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil. We tracked 14 adult Hydromedusa maximiliani (seven males and seven females) with radio-transmitters at the Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho, southeastern Brazil. We also monitored 22 turtles (11 males and 11 females) with thread-bobbins to evaluate habitat use and selection. We calculated movement distances with linear measurements and estimated home ranges sizes using five home range estimators: (1) Brownian Bridge Movement Models (BBMM), (2) dynamic Brownian Bridge Movement Models (dBBMM), (3) Autocorrelated Kernel Density Estimator (AKDE), (4) Minimum Convex Polygons (MCP), and (5) Kernel Density Estimators (KDE). Home range sizes varied between 0.4 and 137.4 ha throughout a year of monitoring. These estimates differed depending on the estimator method applied, with BBMMs showing larger areas overall. Home range sizes did not differ between sexes; however, males were more likely to overlap either with females or other males. Hydromedusa maximiliani used stream-bank burrows as refuge, showing the importance of shelter for this turtle species. We observed small individuals occupying shallow pool habitats more often than adults. Our estimates of home range size are the first reported for this species.
Armadillos and anteaters exhibit a wide range of interactions with various pathogens and ectoparasites, which, along with their physiological and ecological characteristics, contribute to their potential as hosts for a broad variety of pathogens with zoonotic potential. However, there has been limited research into the occurrence and diversity of vector-borne agents in this group of mammals. The present study aimed to investigate the occurrence and molecular identity of Ehrlichia spp., Anaplasma spp., Bartonella spp. and hemotropic mycoplasmas (hemoplasmas) in free-ranging armadillos and anteaters sampled in the southeast and central-west regions of Brazil. To this purpose, 167 biological samples (139 blood and 28 spleen) from Xenarthra mammals sampled in the states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul were analyzed: 48 from six-banded armadillos (Euphractus sexcinctus), 29 from giant armadillos (Priodontes maximus), 4 from nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus), 1 from naked-tailed armadillo (Cabassous unicinctus), 79 from giant anteaters (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) and 6 from southern tamanduas (Tamandua tetradactyla). Screening PCR assays were performed for Ehrlichia spp. based on the dsb gene, nested PCR for Anaplasma spp. and PCR for hemotropic mycoplasmas based on the 16S rRNA gene, and qPCR for Bartonella spp. based on the 16-23S rRNA intergenic region (ITS). The positive samples were additionally subjected to PCR assays targeting different molecular markers for molecular characterization. As a result, 1/48 (0.59%) blood sample from E. sexcintus was positive for Anaplasma spp., and 1/79 (0.59%) blood sample from M. tridactyla was positive for Ehrlichia spp. The 16S rRNA sequence of Anaplasma sp. detected in E. sexcintus clustered within the same clade as 'Candidatus Anaplasma brasiliensis', previously detected in T. tetradactyla. The dsb sequence of Ehrlichia sp. detected in M. tridactyla clustered within the same clade as Ehrlichia minasensis. In the PCR tests for hemoplasmas, 31/46 (64.5%) E. sexcinctus, 9/29 (65.5%) P. maximus, 2/4 (50%) D. novemcinctus, 33/79 (41.7%) M. tridactyla, and 2/6 (33.3%) T. tetradactyla tested positive. The 16S rRNA and 23S rRNA sequences of hemoplasmas found in E. sexcinctus clustered within the same clade as 'Candidatus Mycoplasma haematomaximus', which was previously detected in P. maximus in Brazil. High positivity rates were also observed for Bartonella spp., with 23/48 (47.9%) E. sexcinctus, 1/4 (25%) D. novemcinctus, 9/29 (31%) P. maximus, 21/79 (26.5%) M. tridactyla, and 3/6 (50%) T. tetradactyla showing positive results. The ftsZ sequences of Bartonella sp. detected in E. sexcinctus clustered with 'Candidatus Bartonella washoensis subsp. brasiliensis', previously identified in six-banded armadillos in Brazil. These findings reinforce the presence of 'Candidatus Anaplasma brasiliensis' and 'Candidatus Bartonella washoensis subsp. brasiliensis' in armadillos, and Ehrlichia minasensis in anteaters. This is the first report of ‘Candidatus Mycoplasma haematomaximus’, a hemoplasma previously described in giant armadillos, in six-banded armadillos. The zoonotic potential and real significance of infection by these agents in xenarthrans’ health and conservation efforts are yet to be investigated.
