Abstract
Abstract The Restinga forests are plant formations associated to the Atlantic Forest which still have not been much studied in terms of their mastofauna. The objective of the present work was to list for the first time the mammal species found in a Restinga on northeastern Brazil and show the similarities on species composition to other areas of the same environment and of Atlantic Forest. Our records were based on several complementary approaches: field survey, interviews, and museum collections. Subsequently, we performed similarity analysis between Restinga areas along Brazil and Atlantic Forest areas. We found a total of 30 species of mammals distributed in 28 genera, 16 families and 7 orders for Restinga of Mataraca. Species richness was similar to other Restinga areas and similarity analyzes pointed out that Restingas are more closely related to adjacent Atlantic Forest areas than to other Restingas in the country. This suggests that Restingas do not exhibit an autochthone fauna, but rather a faunal subsample of neighbor Atlantic Forest. Therefore, conservations policies for the Restinga habitat depends not only on actions focused on this habitat, but on initiatives that encompass nearby Atlantic Forest remnants, allowing the connectivity between these habitats.
Highlights
The Restinga forests of northeastern Brazil grow on the coastal sandy lowland areas that were formed from sand deposits in regions that were below sea level during the Quaternary period (Thomas & Barbosa 2008)
The mammal fauna of Restinga has been considered as a subset of the fauna of the Atlantic Forest with no particular identity (Cerqueira et al 1990, Cerqueira 2000), three rodent species are endemic of these areas: Cerradomys goytaca, Ctenomys lami and Ctenomys flamarioni (Pêssoa et al 2010, Tavares et al 2011, Lopes et al 2010)
In addition to the similarity in richness, these faunas are similar in terms of their composition, being mostly composed by elements of wide geographic distribution, generalists in habitat and dietary, and tolerant to environmental disturbances, as Didelphis marsupialis, Monodelphis domestica, Euphractus sexcinctus and Cerdocyon thous
Summary
The Restinga forests of northeastern Brazil grow on the coastal sandy lowland areas that were formed from sand deposits in regions that were below sea level during the Quaternary period (Thomas & Barbosa 2008). The Restinga forests form a vegetation complex typical of the coastal zone, very common along beaches, sandy cords and coastal surfaces, where the soil is sandy and poor in nutrients (Thomas & Barbosa 2008). This vegetation, contiguous to the Atlantic Forest, constitutes a mosaic of phytophysiognomies, ranging from open grassland savannas to forests (Pereira 2001, Scarano 2002). This diversity of environments favors the presence of plant species with different ecological requirements, which could suggest the presence of a great biological diversity in these areas (Moreira & Mendes 2010). The mammal fauna of Restinga has been considered as a subset of the fauna of the Atlantic Forest with no particular identity (Cerqueira et al 1990, Cerqueira 2000), three rodent species are endemic of these areas: Cerradomys goytaca, Ctenomys lami and Ctenomys flamarioni (Pêssoa et al 2010, Tavares et al 2011, Lopes et al 2010)
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