English

Tiago Fernandes Carrijo,Pollyane B Rezende,Hélida Ferreira Da Cunha,Divino Brandão,Thiago Santos,Lucas Souza Arruda,Anna Carolina Prestes

doi:10.14393/bj-v31n1a2015-23360

Abstract

Giant ( Myrmecophaga tridactyla ) and collared anteaters ( Tamandua tetradactyla ) are common mammals in the Cerrado biome. They are specialized in eating termites (Isoptera, Blattaria) and ants (Formicidae, Hymenoptera). This study tested the preference of the giant anteater for termites with different defense strategies: 1) soldier with chemical defense and a soft nest ( Nasutitermes ), and 2) soldier with mixed defenses - chemical and mechanical - and a hard nest ( Cornitermes ). Pieces of nests of both genera of termites were provided to captive giant anteaters, their behaviors were observed, and the time spent feeding in each termite nests was recorded. The anteaters exploited both termite species, although no significance difference was found, they spent more time feeding on Cornitermes than on Nasutitermes . The stomach contents of one road-killed giant anteater and one collared anteater were analyzed. The collared anteater fed on a wider diversity of termite species with different defense strategies, but showed a preference for Cornitermes . We argue that the preference of anteaters for a termite species that has a harder nest, and soldiers with mixed defense, may be due to the presence of terpenoids in the chemical apparatus of Nasutitermes , absent in Cornitermes . Also, the much higher proportion of soldiers in Nasutitermes may influence the anteaters' choice.

Highlights

The giant (Myrmecophaga tridactyla Linnaeus, 1758) and collared anteaters (Tamandua tetradactyla Linnaeus, 1758) are common mammals in the Cerrado biome (South American savanna)
Observations at the Zoo In most of the observations, the captive giant anteaters perceived the presence of the nest of Nasutitermes sp. before that of Cornitermes sp
The anteaters spent most of the time or all the time feeding on Cornitermes

Summary

Introduction

The giant (Myrmecophaga tridactyla Linnaeus, 1758) and collared anteaters (Tamandua tetradactyla Linnaeus, 1758) are common mammals in the Cerrado biome (South American savanna) The former is nocturnal and crepuscular, and feeds mainly on the ground but is able to climb trees and large termite nests (RUMMEL, 1988; YOUNG et al, 2003); while the latter is nocturnal and feeds mainly in the treetops, but may search for food on the ground (YOUNG et al, 2003; MEDRI et al, 2006). Termites have evolved many defense strategies against predators, which can be divided into two components: the individuals of the colony (soldier and worker castes) and the nest (structure and location)

Methods

Results

Conclusion