Francisco Botello

Noteworthy records of margay, Leopardus wiedii and ocelot, Leopardus pardalis in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico

No Abstract available

NEW RECORD OF THE ROCK SQUIRREL (SPERMOPHILUS VARIEGATUS) IN THE STATE OF OAXACA, MEXICO

Abstract We collected 3 specimens of the rock squirrel (Spermophilus variegatus) in San Francisco Cotahuixtla, Oaxaca, Mexico, which represent the first record of this species for this state. The new record expands the distributional range southward by 85 km.

Jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi) in Guanajuato, Mexico

Abstract We report the first record of the jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi) in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. This record expands the distribution of this species by 117 km to the west into the Mexican Central Plateau and increases the number of species of felids reported in Guanajuato to five.

Vampire bats, Desmodus rotundus, feeding on white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus

No abstract available

First Records of Jaguar (Panthera onca) from the State of Michoacán, Mexico

Abstract In May 2010, we documented the presence of jaguars (Panthera onca) in the state of Michoacán, Mexico, by means of six photographs obtained with camera traps and a skull collected in the field. The photographs show an adult female and a subadult cub. These records were from tropical semi-deciduous forest in a transitional area between the Sierra Madre del Sur and the Pacific Coast. These records constitute the first evidence of the jaguar in Michoacán. Additional research is needed to confirm whether the records correspond to a resident population of jaguar rather than to wandering individuals. Resumen En mayo del 2010, documentamos la presencia de jaguares (Panthera onca) en el estado de Michoacán, México, a través de seis fotografías obtenidas con trampas cámara y un cráneo encontrado en el campo. Las fotografías enseñan a una hembra adulta y una cría subadulta. Estos registros se encontraron del bosque tropical subcaducifolio en una zona transicional entre la Sierra Madre del Sur y costa del Pacífico. Estos registros constituyen la primera evidencia del jaguar en Michoacán. Se requiere investigación adicional para confirmar si los registros corresponden a una población de jaguares residentes o a individuos errantes.

An ignored role of sartenejas to mitigate water shortage hazards for tropical forest vertebrates

Water availability is a key limiting resource for vertebrates (Hayward and Hayward 2012). Even in tropical ecosystems supporting lush vegetation, water exists in forms not easily exploited by the local fauna (Kr€ ugel and Richter 1995; Ferrari and Hil ario 2012). For example, tropical seasonal forests growing on karst landscapes in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico lack flowing rivers or extensive water bodies on the surface (Garc ıa-Gil et al. 2002). However, it supports an extremely rich and abundant terrestrial vertebrate fauna (Calm e et al. 2015; Reyna-Hurtado et al. 2015). The capacity of this fauna to withstand the harsh environmental conditions imposed by water scarcity, particularly during the dry season, has traditionally been associated with natural waterholes, locally known as “aguadas” (O’Farrill et al. 2014). These aguadas form when rainfall accumulates in topographic depressions under sparse canopy cover (Torrecano-Valle and Folan 2015). There are approximately one aguada per 10.5 km in the region. Although their size may range from less than a few square meters to several hectares, most of them occupy less than a half hectare (Reyna-Hurtado et al. 2012; O’Farrill et al. 2014). The majority of the aguadas dry out during the dry season that occurs between November and April (O’Farrill et al. 2014). The likelihood of the aguadas to dry out is determined, to a large extent, by their size and depth, which also affect their thermal and chemical stratification and primary productivity (Hodell et al. 2005). While conducting field surveys to monitor wildlife in the 128,390-ha Bala’an K’aax Protected Area in the central region of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico (Appendix S2: Fig. S1), we set up camera-traps in nearby aguadas as well as in the vicinity of water accumulated in small crevices opened in the rocky floor. These crevices of small water deposits are known locally as sartenejas (Millspaugh 1896; Appendix S2: Fig. S2). Unexpectedly, we recorded a highly diverse faunal ensemble using water in the sartenejas. These sartenejas occurred beneath full canopy cover. There is not an estimate of the density of the sartenejas. Their estimated volume, calculated based on their length, width, six depth measurements, and the application of the half-ellipsoid formula, ranged between 11 and 79 L (SD 28; personal observation). The ecological

Mammals large and medium of the municipality of Victoria, Biosphere Reserve Sierra Gorda, Guanajuato, Mexico

Conservation of mammals in central Mexico is vital, because of their complex functional roles in ecosystems locally. The aim of this study is to determine the richness and abundance of medium and large size mammals in the different vegetation types in the municipal ity of Victoria, Guanajuato. Between 2007 and 2013 five localities of the municipality were surveyed by placing camera traps along random sites on wildlife trails. With a sampling effort of 9803 trap-days we recorded 18 species of mammals of six orders, highlighting three wild felidae (bobcat, cougar and jaguarundi). The pine-oak forest contained the highest richness with 17 species, whereas in the submontane scrub 16 species were registered. These results increase our understanding of the regional patterns of mammal richness and distribution for areas of central Mexico, and are particularly relevant for the design of management plans for the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve.