Differentiation and characterization of burrows of two species of armadillos in the Brazilian Cerrado

Abstract

Background: Signs left by some mammals such as tracks, trails, burrows, scratches, feces, hair, and others can be an important tool for species identification. This study was conducted in the Itirapina Ecological Station, in the southern Brazilian Cerrado, whose main objectives were to (1) compare the burrow morphometric variables of Cabassous unicinctus and Euphractus sexcinctus and (2) check for differences in the occurrence of foraging burrows in two different environments: areas with vegetation (shrubby grassland) and areas without vegetation (roads). The collected measures of armadillo's burrows have been width, height, depth, and angle relative to the soil. To record foraging burrows (<70 cm), the linear transect methodology was used simultaneously in roads and shrubby grassland environments. Results: In a shrubby grassland environment of the Itirapina Ecological Station, a density of 121 burrows/ha pertaining to C. unicinctus and of 277 to E. sexcinctus was observed. Although there is overlap between them, morphometric variables were used to measure the burrows; significant differences were observed in all: depth, p < 0.001; ratio, p < 0.001; perimeter of the ellipse (perimeter), p < 0.001; and angle of excavation relative to the soil, p < 0.001. There was an observed interaction between the variables p < 0.001 for Wilk test. The PCA analysis evidenced two highly distinct groups of burrows, which corresponded to the initial visual classification. The variance explained by axes 1 and 2 was 83.18 %. The variable that most influenced the distinction of the burrows of the species was the perimeter. There was a density of 114 foraging burrows/ha across the roads and 42 in shrubby grassland. The results of the ANOVA, p < 0.05, and Tukey test, p < 0.05, demonstrate significant difference between the mean densities of foraging burrows in the said environments. This indicates that armadillos use the area devoid of vegetation to feed. Conclusions: Thus, this study provides information that can assist in the surveys of these species as well as to clarify aspects of its ecology in the Cerrado.

Mammalian Diversity and Matses Ethnomammalogy in Amazonian Peru Part 2: Xenarthra, Carnivora, Perissodactyla, Artiodactyla, and Sirenia

“…1 The nocturnal activity reported by the Matses agrees with other rainforest observations (Emmons, 1997), but not with the diurnal activity reported from Brazilian savanna habitats (Bonato et al, 2008). The perpendicular orientation of burrows attributed to this species by the Matses is consistent with quantitative data on burrow characteristics summarized by Trovati (2015).…”

The armadillos: from ecosystem services and online opinions to land use in agricultural landscapes

“…Although armadillos are rarely observed in nature, they dig burrows directly related to the construction of shelter (housing, raising offspring), protection (to hide from predators and to buffer against environmental temperatures), and feed (foraging burrows) Eisenberg & Redford, 1999;. Burrows created by armadillos have peculiar shapes and sizes (Carter & Encarnação, 1983;Trovati, 2015;Attias, Miranda, Sena, Tomas, & Mourão, 2016;, which are influenced by anatomical and morphological differences among the species (e.g. Attias et al, 2016;.…”

“…Few studies reported burrow measurements for different armadillo species, and each reported measure varies among the studies or not always are associated with their corresponding sampling error estimates (e.g. Carter & Encarnação, 1983;Trovati, 2015). Factors such as age, sex, and habitat may increase the correlation among the burrow measurements by different species of armadillos further complicate the identification (Medri, 2008;Arteaga & Venticinque, 2010).…”

“…Species belonging to the genera Cabassous, Dasypus, and Euphractus are efficient diggers Medri, 2008;Trovati, 2015), have similar body sizes (Eisenberg & Redford, 1999), and can be sympatric (Trovati, 2015;.…”

“…novemcinctus, and E. sexcinctus inhabit a region highly affected by anthropogenic disturbances Trovati, 2015), improving identification methods might help to ascertain the role of anthropogenic threats for each species of armadillo. Here, we target the following question: is it possible to identify similar body-sized armadillos based on their burrows?…”