Dynamics of species composition of small non-volant mammals from the northern Cordillera Central of Colombia

Abstract

On the basis of our recent fieldwork and historical records, we document the diversity of small non-volant mammals in the northern end of Cordillera Central of Colombia, an important region in the context of vertebrate biodiversity. From February 2004 to February 2006, we completed mammal surveys in three localities at the department of Antioquia, with elevations ranging from 1650 to 2000 m. We recorded a total of 14 species: three marsupials, one shrew, one heteromyid, and nine sigmodontinae rodents, including three species endemic in Cordillera Central. The rodents Heteromys australis , Nephelomys pectoralis , and Rhipidomys latimanus were recorded in all localities. Nephelomys pectoralis was captured in all surveys and was the most abundant species. Nearby historical records exist for 16 species, seven of which were not captured during our surveys. The community of small mammals in the northern Cordillera Central has species richness similar or higher than that in other Andean localities with a broader elevational range. We show that small mammal communities from middle elevations are a mixture of middle elevation endemics and highland species, but with little contribution from the lowlands. Finally, the occurrence of endemic and threatened species in this region suggests its importance from a conservational and biogeographical standpoint for small terrestrial mammals.

Non-volant mammals from the protected areas associated to hydroelectric projects on the eastern slope of the northern Cordillera Central, Colombia

“…Among the 19 species recorded in only one of the hydroelectric plants (seven in Jaguas and 12 species in San Carlos), 13 also have wide distributional ranges and occur between lowlands and areas above 1,500 (Solari et al 2013), so they could be present in both study areas. Proechimys chrysaeolus, Tylomys mirae Thomas, 1899, and Sigmodon hirsutus (Burmeister, 1854) found in San Carlos are associated with typical lowlands assemblages (Solari et al 2013;Sánchez-Giraldo & Díaz-Nieto 2015;.…”

“…The northern part of the Cordillera Central has been the focus of mammalian studies since the early 1900s (Allen 1916;Patterson 1987;Sánchez-Giraldo & Díaz-Nieto 2015). Recent survey efforts have significantly improved the species lists for several sites, finding new populations of threatened and endemic species from Colombia, and complex taxonomic entities (e.g., Castaño & Corrales 2010;Díaz-N et al 2011;Sánchez-Giraldo & Díaz-Nieto 2015).…”

“…Recent survey efforts have significantly improved the species lists for several sites, finding new populations of threatened and endemic species from Colombia, and complex taxonomic entities (e.g., Castaño & Corrales 2010;Díaz-N et al 2011;Sánchez-Giraldo & Díaz-Nieto 2015). Nonetheless, large portions of the region…”

“…have not yet surveyed, or surveys have been sporadic and scattered; information on mammal diversity is incomplete (Sánchez-Giraldo & Díaz-Nieto 2015). For the area on the eastern slope of the Cordillera Central holding hydroelectric power complex, check lists of mammal species are based mainly on literature reviews, sparse specimen collections, and focus mostly on bats (e.g., Cuartas-Calle & Muñoz-Arango 2003;Navarro et al 2005).…”

A Revision of the Didelphid Marsupial Genus Marmosops, Part 1. Species of the Subgenus Sciophanes

“…28). Recorded capture habitats include premontane rain forest (Sán-chez-Giraldo and Díaz-Nieto, 2015), premontane moist forest (Estrada-Pareja et al, 2007), and lowland rain forest (Castaño and Corrales, 2010), all of which now occur as fragments within an anthropogenic matrix of pastures and agricultural fields. At the upper limit of its known elevational range, M. chucha occurs sympatrically with M. handleyi (e.g., near Valdivia [appendix 1: locality 24]; see Díaz-N. et al, 2011).…”