Reintroduction is an increasingly important tool to restore local extinctions and ecological interactions. Evaluating the success of reintroduction projects allows conservationists to learn from previous experience. Here we report on the reintroduction of agoutis, Dasyprocta leporina, to a Brazilian Atlantic Forest reserve in order to (1) determine the short-term status of the reintroduction; (2) describe and evaluate the management procedures that contributed to reintroduction success; and (3) identify the fruits and seeds consumed and buried by the agoutis, as an indication of their role in restoring ecological processes. We captured and tagged 21 adult individuals from a semi-captive population and reintroduced four males and seven females. One male died and almost all individuals lost weight (range=0-620 g; n=11) during quarantine (median=133 days; range=67-243 days; n=20). Six males and three females died, but the others gained weight during acclimatization (range=150-260 g; n=5). Individuals abandoned the food supplement up to 87 days after release, establishing home-ranges at least three times larger than in natural populations of agoutis. The estimated annual survival rate was 0.83, and 10 nature-born cubs were observed. The reintroduction was considered successful in the short-term. Among the main recommendations for future reintroductions, we suggest the reduction of quarantine and the maintenance of acclimatization periods, with structural improvements for both. Agoutis were seen eating fruits and seeds of 10 species and burying seeds of three of them. The buried seeds are from zoochoric large-seeded trees, thus enhancing recruitment in a disperser-impoverished forest.Keywords: Dasyprocta leporina, frugivory, radiotracking, reintroduction, spatial patterns. Resumo A reintrodução é uma ferramenta cada vez mais importante para restaurar extinções locais e interações ecológicas. Avaliar o sucesso de projetos de reintrodução permite que conservacionistas aprendam com experiências prévias. Aqui nós reportamos a reintrodução de cutias Dasyprocta leporina em uma reserva da Mata Atlântica brasileira, objetivando (1) determinar o status da reintrodução em curto prazo, (2) descrever e avaliar os procedimentos de manejo que contribuíram para o processo de reintrodução e (3) identificar os frutos e sementes consumidos e enterrados pelas cutias, como um indicativo do seu papel na restauração de processos ecológicos. Nós capturamos e marcamos 21 indivíduos adultos originários de uma população semicativa e reintroduzimos quatro machos e sete fêmeas. Um macho morreu e quase todos perderam peso (variação=0-620 g, n=11) durante a quarentena (mediana=133 dias, variação=67-243 dias, n=20). Seis machos e três fêmeas morreram, mas os outros ganharam peso durante a aclimatação (variação=150-260 g; n=5). Os indivíduos abandonaram a suplementação alimentar em até 87 dias depois da soltura, estabelecendo áreas de vida pelo menos três vezes maiores do que as encontradas para populações naturais de cutias. A taxa de sobr...

The consumption of the carrion of a tapiti by a reintroduced female Dasyprocta leporina was observed in the wild. Herein, besides describing this event, we reviewed other evidence of vertebrate consumption by agoutis. Most of the studies describing this behaviour have been carried out in captivity. The preyed animals included birds and small rodents, which were sometimes killed by agoutis. This pattern suggests that this is not an anomalous behaviour for the genus, reflecting its omnivorous habits. This behaviour can be a physiologically sound feeding strategy, so new studies should focus on the temporal variation in the consumption of this resource, possibly related to food scarcity periods or to reproductive seasons, when the need for high-quality food tends to increase.Keywords: diet, Rodentia, zoophagy, carrion. Consumo de carniça por Dasyprocta leporina (RODENTIA: DASYPROCTIDAE) e uma revisão do uso de carne por cutias ResumoFoi observado na natureza o consumo da carniça de um tapiti (Sylvilagus brasiliensis) por uma fêmea reintroduzida da cutia Dasyprocta leporina. Neste estudo, além da descrição desse evento, é feita uma revisão de outras evidências de consumo de vertebrados por cutias. A maioria dos estudos que descreveram esse comportamento foi realizada em cativeiro. Os animais predados incluíram aves e pequenos roedores, que foram mortos pelas cutias em algumas ocasiões. Esse padrão sugere que esse não é um comportamento anômalo para o gênero, refletindo seus hábitos onívoros. Esse comportamento pode trazer vantagens fisiológicas para esses animais, de forma que novos estudos devem focar na variação temporal do uso desse recurso, relacionando-o com períodos de escassez e com a estação reprodutiva dos animais, onde a necessidade de alimentos de alta qualidade energética pode ser maior.

The prebasic molt is a perilous period for songbirds, characterized by heightened energetic demands and vulnerability to predators. Given these vulnerabilities, songbirds are under selective pressure to locate and use quality habitat during the prebasic molt, potentially resulting in site fidelity between years. In this study, we aimed to determine how differences in breeding and molting activity affected site fidelity for a diversity of species at the landscape scale. To accomplish our objective, we used 31 yr of banding data from northern California and southern Oregon for 16 species of songbirds with Cormack-Jolly-Seber analyses and weighted linear regression models to assess the effects of molting and breeding activity on the probability of a species returning to a site in subsequent years. Despite substantial variation in site use for breeding and/or molting, each study species had at least some locations that were used for both breeding and molting. Captured breeding birds (n = 18,574) were much more common than molting birds (n = 7,622). Breeding activity was positively correlated with higher site fidelity for 10 of the 16 species, while we found little evidence of a relationship between molting activity and site fidelity. Only the Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) showed increased site fidelity with increased presence of molt activity. It is likely that a shifting mosaic of food resources during the post-breeding period drives dynamic movements of songbirds in search of the necessary resources to successfully complete their annual molt.