New altitudinal record for white-lipped peccary Tayassu pecari (Link, 1795) in Ecuador, with notes about activity patterns and herd size.

Javier Torres,María Mercedes Gavilánez

doi:10.3897/bdj.7.e33275

Abstract

White-lipped peccaries (Tayassu pecari) represent a key element of trophic networks in tropical rainforest ecosystems by playing the dual role of consumer and prey. Despite their importance, pressures on their populations have increased during the last few decades due to hunting and deforestation across its distributional range. These pressures may have led the remaining populations to move into new territories and to change their migratory and gregarious behaviour. In this study, we used photographic records from camera traps to collect data on biogeography of white-lipped peccaries in order to answer some questions about the demography, distribution and population size of the species in Ecuador’s western Amazonia. We present new altitudinal records for the species (2,000 metres above sea level), along with some notes on herd size and activity patterns. This information is valuable for obtaining a better understanding of the species distribution and population status in order to achieve better conservation plans.

Highlights

White-lipped peccaries are distributed from Mexico to Argentina, occupying a wide range of habitats, commonly living in large herds of 50–300 individuals (Taber et al 2008, Altrichter et al 2012)
It is known to occur at elevations up to 1,900 metres (Keuroghlian et al 2013), while in Ecuador it has only been recorded between 0–1,600 metres above sea level (Tirira 2017)
The study was conducted in a subtropical forest in the north-western Ecuadorian Amazon, close to the city of El Chaco, in Napo Province (Fig. 1), containing an evergreen montane and sub-montane forest ecosystem of the north-eastern Andes in Ecuador (Ministerio del Ambiente del Ecuador 2013)

Summary

Introduction

White-lipped peccaries are distributed from Mexico to Argentina, occupying a wide range of habitats, commonly living in large herds of 50–300 individuals (Taber et al 2008, Altrichter et al 2012). It is known to occur at elevations up to 1,900 metres (Keuroghlian et al 2013), while in Ecuador it has only been recorded between 0–1,600 metres above sea level (Tirira 2017) It is distributed on the eastern and western slopes of the Andes, inhabiting wet, dry, tropical and subtropical forests, in herds ranging from 50 to 300 or more individuals (Kiltie and Terborgh 1983, Mayer and Wetzel 1987, Sowls 1997, Fragoso 2004, Tirira 2017), there are records of much smaller herds (less than 10 individuals) (Moreira-Ramírez et al 2015). Peccaries are one of the largest contributors to the secondary production (biomass) in tropical rainforests (Taber et al 2008, Altrichter et al 2012), as a main food source for predators, allowing for the maintenance of stability in these ecosystems (Aranda 1994, Taber et al 2008)

Methods

Results

Conclusion