Hair-trap efficacy for detecting mammalian carnivores in the tropics
Por:
Castro-Arellano I., Madrid-Luna C., Lacher Jr. T.E., León-Paniagua L.
Publicada:
1 ago 2008
Resumen:
Direct studies of mammalian carnivores are challenging due to the animals' secretive nature and the high costs associated with their capture and handling. Use of noninvasive hair sampling to survey these reclusive species has great potential as an alternative, with wide applicability in ecology and conservation. Hair-trapping has been extensively used for focal studies of temperate mammals, but its use and applicability as a means to survey mammals in tropical environs has never been addressed. We evaluated the effectiveness. of 2 hair-trap types and 2 scents along an elevational gradient within El Cielo Biosphere Reserve (ECBR, Mexico) to detect presence of carnivores. Hair-traps that used roofing nails as a hair-collecting surface collected more hairs and detected a greater number of species than did hair-traps that used velcro, strips. Different scent treatments (commercial fragrance and catnip oil) did not differ for these same variables. Of successful nail hair-traps, 60% collecte
Filiaciones:
Castro-Arellano I.:
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX 77843-2258, United States
Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 3107 Horsebarn Hill Road, Storrs, CT 06269-4210, United States
Madrid-Luna C.:
Univ Nacl Autonoma Mexico, Fac Ciencias, Museo Zool, Mexico City 04510, DF, Mexico
Lacher Jr. T.E.:
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX 77843-2258, United States
León-Paniagua L.:
Univ Nacl Autonoma Mexico, Fac Ciencias, Museo Zool, Mexico City 04510, DF, Mexico
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