Diversity of small land mammals in a subtropical Atlantic forest in the western region of the state of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil

Abstract

MAESTRI, R., GALIANO, D., KUBIAK, B.B., MARINHO, J.R. Diversity of small land mammals in a subtropical Atlantic forest in the western region of the state of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil. Biota http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1676-06032014012914Abstract: Small land mammals possess features that significantly influence the dynamics of ecosystems and participate in various levels of the food web. In the Brazilian Atlantic Forest the richness of these animals is high, which makes them even more ecologically and numerically relevant in this environment. In this context, we investigated the species composition of small mammals in an unexplored area of southern Brazil, and compared the species composition of this area with other Atlantic Forest regions in order to understand how this community is related to others. The study area was located in an interior Atlantic forest formation, at a transition region between deciduous and Araucaria forests. Small mammals were captured at five collection points using pitfall traps. We compared the species composition found in our studied area with the composition of other 11 studies in different regions by a cluster analysis, and we investigated the presence of spatial autocorrelation between communities with a Mantel test. We recorded 779 individuals from 21 species of small rodents (15 species) and marsupials (six species) during the 13 months of the collection period. This richness was high compared to other studies conducted in the Atlantic Forest formations near to coastline and in interior forest formations. This may be a result of the conditions provided by this transition area (deciduous and Araucaria forests), where could be found elements of the both forests formations, which probably allows the establishment of small mammal species from both forest types. Despite differences in sampling effort of the studies, our results suggest that the interior forest formations may harbor a number of species comparable to the formations near the coast. The species composition of this area was similar to those found in other interior forest formations with the same phytophysiognomy characteristics and at nearby regions, and it was less similar to the distant formations located in southeastern and northeastern Brazil and nearby to the coastline. This can be a result of both the spatial autocorrelation (i.e. more nearby communities tend to have more similar species composition) and the differences of forest characteristics among regions. Keywords: Richness, species composition, Uruguay River, Rodentia, Didelphimorphia.MAESTRI, R., GALIANO, D., KUBIAK, B.B., MARINHO, J.R. Diversidade de pequenos mamíferos terrestres em floresta Atlântica subtropical na região oeste do estado de Santa Catarina, sul do Brasil. Biota http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1676-06032014012914Resumo: Pequenos mamíferos terrestres possuem características que influenciam significativamente a dinâmica dos ecossistemas, participando em vários níveis da teia tró fica. Na floresta Atlântica brasileira a riqueza desses animais é alt...

Small mammals and microhabitat selection in forest fragments in the transition zone between Atlantic Forest and Pampa biome

“…Our fragments are in the southern portion of the Atlantic Forest biome, outside the tropical region. Studies with a similar methodology in the Atlantic Forest have found between six to 21 species, and, in general, studies in lower latitudes had greater species richness (e.g., Pardini et al, 2005;Vieira et al, 2009;Lima et al, 2010;Maestri et al, 2014). The PET itself, the most preserved forest area in the southernmost portion of Atlantic Forest, had lower species richness than other well-preserved forests further north (Melo et al, 2011).…”

Levantamento rápido de mamíferos em duas áreas antropizadas no estado de Santa Catarina, sul do Brasil

“…Trata-se de um pequeno roedor endêmico da mata atlântica, de hábito semifossorial e dieta insetívoro-onívora (PAGLIA et al, 2012). Isso contrasta com os outros estudos sobre pequenos mamíferos na mata atlântica do sul do Brasil, nos quais Akodon montensis é o táxon mais frequente (LIMA et al, 2010;MELO et al, 2011;BALIEIRO et al, 2015) ou o segundo mais frequente (GRAIPEL et al, 2006;MAESTRI et al, 2014). Em termos de comparação, Cherem & Althoff (2019) registraram 43 capturas (81,1%) de Akodon sp.…”

“…Nessa área, obteve-se uma menor quantidade de amostras fecais de felinos e não foi empregada a captura com armadilhas, o que se refletiu na baixa riqueza do grupo. Entretanto Akodon e Oligoryzomys têm sido reportados como os gêneros predominantes em assembleias de pequenos mamíferos em outras áreas no sul do Brasil (DALMAGRO & VIEIRA, 2005;PETERS et al, 2010;MELO et al, 2011;MAESTRI et al, 2014).…”

New record and distribution extension of the rare Atlantic Forest endemic Abrawayaomys ruschii Cunha & Cruz, 1979 (Rodentia, Sigmodontinae)

“…Historically, the study area has been affected by selective removal of wood and use of the land for cellulose monoculture. Part of the area is now in regeneration process, but is still subject to disturbances, especially illegal hunting (Maestri et al 2014).…”