Diet adjustments of maned wolves, Chrysocyon brachyurus (Illiger) (Mammalia, Canidae), subjected to supplemental feeding in a private natural reserve, Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

From the analysis of 230 scats, the diet of the maned wolves, Chrysocyon brachyurus (Illiger, 1815), was determined in a private natural reserve in southeastern Brazil in which ecotourism activities are developed and the animals are deliberately fed bovine meat. A total of 569 occurrences of food items were recorded, of which 56.8% were of animal origin and 29.1% of vegetal origin. Rodents, insects and birds added up to 35.8% of the occurrences, yet accounted for 68.5% of the total number of preys (277). Insects, however, had practically no importance (0.1%) in the total estimated biomass consumed. Even though the fruit Solanum lycocarpum St.-Hil. is a common food item in the diet of the maned wolf, its occurrence in the diet at the Serra do Caraça Reserve was insignificant, accounting for only 4.8% of the total number of food item occurrences and 3.4% of the total estimated biomass consumption. Food items of anthropic origin and inorganic items (e.g., plastic) represented 14.1% of all occurrences, which shows that the animals are used to the presence of humans. Seasonal variations in consumption were found for S. lycocarpum (c² = 10,09; p < 0,001), for other fruits (c² = 19,73; p < 0,001), and for reptiles (c² = 15,56; p < 0,001), all of which were more frequently eaten during the dry months. There was a significant correlation between the availability of small mammals and their consumption by the maned wolves (r s = 0.59; p = 0.041), yet the same was not observed for the fruits of S. lycocarpum (r s = 0,101; p = 0,754). Our findings stress the need for a better understanding of the effects of additional foods on the natural feeding habits of the maned wolf

Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park

“…Our work confirms the results of most other studies, which show rodents as the chief prey taxa of MW (Table 4.3 Aragona and Setz, 2001;Belentani et al, 2005;Bueno and Motta-Junior, 2004Dietz, 1984;Juarez and Marinho-Filho, 2002;MottaJunior et al, 1996;Silva and Talamoni, 2003;Queirolo and Motta-Junior, 2007). At some sites, cavies were important components of the diet (Bueno and Motta-Junior, 2004;Motta-Junior et al, 1996), but in others they were not (Dietz, 1984;.…”

“…Lilienfeld (2000) reported one scat with a tortoise (Chelonoidis sp. ), but other studies with large samples report no chelonians in the diet (Bueno and MottaJunior, 2009;Dietz, 1984;Jácomo, 1999;Silva and Talamoni, 2003). Rapid tooth wear and molar damage may be major costs of frugivory that effect both morbidity and mortality (Chapter 6).…”

“…Maned wolves are dietary opportunists that feed on fruit, small vertebrates, and invertebrates, according to local availability. All studies show a diet that varies closely around half of fruits and half of small animal prey (Aragona and Setz, 2001;Bueno and Motta-Junior, 2004Dietz, 1984;Jácomo et al, 2004;Juarez and Marinho-Filho, 2002;Queirolo and MottaJunior, 2007;Santos et al, 2003;Silva and Talamoni, 2003). The frugivorous part of the diet is usually dominated by a single species: the giant fruits of Solanum lycocarpum (Solanaceae; "lobeira" or wolf's fruit); and the carnivorous part is usually dominated by either rodents and other small mammals or armadillos (summarized in Rodden et al, 2004;.…”

The Effects of Food Waste on Wildlife and Humans

“…In scavenging food waste, animals are at risk of consuming plastic and other non-digestible waste and, while the consumption of plastic by marine wildlife is well-studied [39], it is less so for terrestrial species. In the maned wolf, however, non-digestible anthropogenic waste (e.g., plastic) has been found to comprise 14.1% of all diet items [40] and to be present in up to 40% of scats [41]. Similar studies on dingoes indicate that the probability of a scat sample containing rubbish is relatively high at 17% [14].…”

Mammals of Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural Santuário do Caraça, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

“…Sampling of small, non-flying mammals (rodents and marsupials) was performed using live-traps (wire mesh trap 30 cm × 15 cm × 15 cm) in forested areas [Tanque Grande (Cordeiro-Júnior and Talamoni 2006), portion of the forest along the path to the cave Gruta do Padre Caio (Cordeiro-Júnior et al 2010), and in areas of cerrado [Descampado (Silva and Talamoni 2003)] (Figure 1). In total, the sampling effort was 18,940 trap-nights in semideciduous forest and 5,472 trap-nights in cerrado.…”