Wildlife inventory from camera-trapping surveys in the Azores (Pico and Terceira islands).

Abstract

BackgroundThe present publication provides a dataset from five camera-trapping sampling campaigns on two islands of the Azorean archipelago (Pico and Terceira islands), between 2013-2018. This dataset was obtained as a by-product of campaigns designed for different purposes. The sampling campaigns were designed to: (i) study the ecology of introduced mammals; (ii) assess the impact of introduced mammals on native birds (Azores woodpigeon - Columba palumbus azorica and Cory's shearwater - Calonectris diomeda borealis), through nest predation; and (iii) obtain information about the impact of vertebrates on agricultural systems, particularly on Azorean traditional vineyards. A total of 258 sites and 47 nests were sampled using camera traps. These sampling campaigns provided a large data series that allowed the creation of a vertebrate wildlife inventory.New informationWe obtained a total of 102,095 camera-trap records, which allowed us to to identify 30 species of vertebrates: one amphibian, one reptile, 17 birds and ten mammal species. This represented 100% of the amphibians and terrestrial mammals, 58% of the breeding birds and 50% of the reptile species known for Pico and/or Terceira islands. Concerning the colonisation status of the species, we recorded 15 indigenous (native non-endemic or endemic) and three introduced bird species; all known terrestrial amphibians, reptiles and mammals in the Azores are introduced species. The data collected contribute to increasing knowledge on the distribution of vertebrate species on Pico and Terceira islands, where most existing records of some species were only available to Island level (e.g. mustelids and hedgehogs). None of the identified species was previously unknown to the study area.