Carnivora atnd their larger mammalian prey species invenory and abundance in the Janos-Nuevo Casas Grandes praire dog complex, Chihuahua.

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Rurik H. List Sánchez
David W. Macdonald

Resumen

Abstract. This study examined the carnivore species composition and abundance in the Janos-Nuevo Casas Grandes prairie dog complex of north-western Chihuahua, Mexico. Thirteen species of carnivores were recorded in habitats including prairie dog towns, grassland, mesquite scrub and riparian vegetation. From artificial scent-stations and spotlight transects the most abundant carnivore species appeared to be the kit fox Vulpes macrotis and the coyote Canis latrans. Striped/hooded skunks (Mephitis spp) and American badgers (Taxidea taxus) were also common. No significant differences were found between the abundance of kit foxes or coyotes on prairie dog towns or grassland; but skunks were more abundant on grasslands. The abundance of hares (Lepus californicus), rabbit (Sylvilagus audubonii), and kangaroo rat (Dipodomys spp) was also estimated; hares and kangaroo rats were more abundant in the grassland, whilst rabbits were more abundant in prairie dog towns.

Resumen. Se estudió la composición de espeices de carnívoros en el complejo de perros llaneros Janos-Nuevo Casas Grandes, en el noroeste de Chihuahua, México. Se registraron 13 especies de carnívoros en los siguientes hábitats; colonias de perros lIaneros, pastizal, matorral de mezquite y vegetación riparia. Por medio de estaciones olfativas y transectos de lampareo se determinó que la zorra norteña Vulpes macrotis y el coyote Canis latrans fueron los más abundantes. Los zorrillos (Mephitis spp) y tejones (Taxidea taxus) también fueron comunes. No se encontraron diferencias significativas en la abundancia de zorras norteñas o coyotes entre colonias de perros llaneros o pastizal. Los zorrillos fueron más abundantes en el pastizal. También se estimó la abundancia de liebres (Lepus californicus), conejos (Sylvilagus audubonii), y ratas canguro (Dipodomys spp); las liebres y ratas canguro son más abundantes en el pastizal, mientras los conejos son mas abundantes en las colonias de perros lIaneros.

Key words: Carnivore abundance, Chihuahua, Mexico, prairie dog, scent-station, spotlighting.

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