GROUP DYNAMICS OF CAPYBARAS IN A HUMAN-MODIFIED LANDSCAPE IN SOUTHEASTERN BRAZIL

Authors

  • Marcelo Bahia Labruna Universidade de São Paulo https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9675-3132
  • Beatriz Lopes Departamento de Ciências Florestais, Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz”, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Pádua Dias, 11, 13418-900, Piracicaba, SP, Brazil
  • Hector Benatti Horae Gene Therapy Center, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 368 Plantation St, Worcester, MA 01605, United States
  • Hermes Luz Programa de Pós-graduação em Saúde e Ambiente (PPGSA), Biodiversidade e Conservação (PPGBC), Ponto Focal Maranhão, Universidade Federal do Maranhão, Av. dos Portugueses, 1966, 65080-805, São Luís, MA, Brazil
  • Francisco Costa Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual do Maranhão, Av. Lourenço Vieira da Silva, 1000, 65055-310, São Luís, MA, Brazil.
  • Sebastian Munoz-Leal Departamento de Ciencia Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Concepción, Av. Vicente Méndez 595, Chillán, Ñuble, Chile
  • Lais Mariscal Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Prof. Dr. Orlando Marques de Paiva, 87, 05508-270, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
  • Peter Leimgruber Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, 1500 Remount Road, 22630, Front Royal, VA, United States
  • Katia Ferraz Departamento de Ciências Florestais, Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz”, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Pádua Dias, 11, 13418-900, Piracicaba, SP, Brazil

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4257/oeco.2023.2701.04

Keywords:

Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris, Rodentia, capybara groups, dispersal, GPS collar

Abstract

Previous studies monitoring free-ranging capybaras with GPS collars showed no evidence of capybara dispersion or the formation of new groups. These phenomena may have gone unnoticed due to the low number of collared capybaras in previous studies. Aiming to fill this lacuna, this study monitored the group dynamics of capybaras in a human-modified landscape in Pirassununga municipality, state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. To this aim, we documented group formation, number of individuals, and dispersion events of capybara groups from 2015 to 2020. We evaluated the presence of established groups and formation of new groups throughout the study period, when we monitored 12 adult female capybaras with GPS-collars and regularly counted the number of individuals per group. We found that an initial group of 33 - 45 capybaras split itself into two groups from 2016 to 2017, and then into three groups from 2019 to 2020, each one with at least 30 individuals. This is the first study reporting group dynamics in capybaras with the use of GPS-collars. Long-term studies are needed to assess the factors that are driving the formation and division of groups, and motivating dispersion events.

Author Biography

Marcelo Bahia Labruna, Universidade de São Paulo

Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia
Universidade de São Paulo

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Published

2023-03-15

Issue

Vol. 27 No. 1 (2023): Spontaneous Submissions

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Articles