André Faria Mendonça

Diet composition of Gracilinanus agilis (Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae) in dry woodland areas of Cerrado in central Brazil

No abstract available

A New Species of Amphisbaena Linnaeus, 1758 from a Cerrado Region in Bahia, Northeastern Brazil (Squamata: Amphisbaenidae)

Abstract:  A new species of Amphisbaena is described from a Cerrado area in the southwestern region of the state of Bahia, northeastern Brazil. The new species is distinguishable from all other congeners by having a rounded snout; slender body with visible lateral and dorsal sulci; two rounded precloacal pores medially located; 230–241 body annuli; 19–22 caudal annuli; 12–14 dorsal and 14 ventral segments to a midbody annulus; tail with a marked autotomic constriction at caudal annuli 6–8; tail tip laterally compressed; three supralabials followed by one postsupralabial, and three infralabials followed by one postinfralabial on each side of the head. Resumo:  Uma nova espécie de Amphisbaena é descrita de uma região de Cerrado no sudoeste do estado da Bahia, nordeste do Brasil. A nova espécie se distingue dos demais congêneres por possuir o focinho arredondado; corpo delgado, com sulcos laterais e dorsal bem visíveis; dois poros pré-cloacais arredondados localizados medialmente; 230–241 anéis corporais; 19–22 anéis caudais; 12–14 segmentos dorsais e 14 segmentos ventrais contados em um anel no meio do corpo; plano de autotomia caudal bem marcado entre o anel caudal 6–8; extremidade da cauda comprimida lateralmente; três supralabiais seguidas por uma pós-supralabial e três infralabiais seguidas por uma pós-infralabial em cada lado da cabeça.

Spool-and-line in a backpack: a new technique for studying movement of small mammals

No abstract available

Limb abnormality in a neotropical scansorial marsupial, Gracilinanus agilis (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae)

Abstract In this study, we describe a limb abnormality, possibly ectrodactyly, in a male adult gracile mouse opossum (Gracilinanus agilis), an arboreal species, captured in a fragmented landscape in the Brazilian Cerrado. The captured individual lacked the central rays of the right hindlimb and was the thinnest male adult captured. Despite the abnormality, the scaled mass index of the individual did not differ from other adult males captured in the study. To our knowledge, this is the first described case of limb abnormality for a didelphid marsupial, which indicates that this type of malformation may not negatively affect individual body condition.

Round-pot feeder: low-cost apparatus for field studies on food supplementation for arboreal small mammals

Abstract We describe a newly developed and low-cost feeder designed for use with arboreal small mammals under any climatic condition. As part of a project on bottom-up regulation of small mammal populations in central Brazil, we present the results of 16 months of food supplementation. During the study, more than 118 kg of milled cat food were consumed, out of a total of 207 kg offered. Moreover, we registered a low rate of loss (14.05%) of feeders from falling to the ground or termite/ant colonization. The round-pot feeder described here represents a low-cost method for providing continuous food-supplementation, contraceptives, or poisoned baits to arboreal small mammals.