Echimyidae
Author
Don E. Wilson
Author
Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
Author
Russell A. Mittermeier
text
2016
2016-07-31
Lynx Edicions
Barcelona
Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I
552
604
book chapter
67690
10.5281/zenodo.6623649
5be7e52f-9b9c-4c03-99ed-f346bbcde1d0
978-84-941892-3-4
6623649
27.
Pantanal Punare
Thrichomys pachyurus
French:
Punaré du Paraguay
/
German:
Pantanal-Punaré
/
Spanish:
Punaré de Paraguay
Other common names:
Paraguayan Punare
Taxonomy.
Isothrix pachyura Wagner, 1845
,
“Cuyaba [= Cuiaba],” Mato Grosso, Brazil.
Austrian naturalist J. A. Wagner in 1845 placed this species in the genus
Isothrix
, the Amazonian brush-tailed rats, where it continued to be listed even by A. Cabrera in 1961, although in 1880 E. L. Trouessart had correctly assigned
pachyura
to
Thrichomys
. L.. M. Pesso6a and colleagues in their 2015 review of the genus included
T. fosteri
as a synonym based on shared qualitative craniodental characters and mapped individuals from localities in central Brazil with chromosomal complement of 2n = 30 and FN = 56 as
Thrichomys sp.
Monotypic.
Distribution.
W Brazil (Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sulstates), extreme E Bolivia (Santa Cruz Department), and most of Paraguay.
Descriptive notes.
There are no specific measurements available, but the Pantanal Punare is among the largest species of
Thrichomys
, with greatest skull length averaging 55-4 mm. Chromosome complement is 2n = 30 and FN = 56. External and cranial characteristics are similar to those of Foster’s Punare (7.
fosteri
), with the two species distinguished primarily by karyotype and DNA sequences.
Habitat.
Northern and central Cerrado ecoregions at elevations of 130-1190 m, being lowest in northern extreme of the distribution. Pantanal Punares occur in dry forest patches, including aggregations of
Attalea
phalerata (
Arecaceae
) palms. In seasonally wet Pantanal devoid of rocky areas, individuals have been caught in traps set in trees 1-5 m above ground during the rainy season.
Food and Feeding.
Pantanal Punares are known to feed on palm fruits, eating mesocarp flesh and seeds.
Breeding.
Reproduction of the Pantanal Punare is concentrated in the dry season, which corresponds to a period of higher resource availability, greater habitat availability, and higher population density coupled with reduced individual crowding. Compared with the Sao Lourenco Punare (7.
laurentius
), the Pantanal Punare has smaller litter sizes (average 2-5) with larger birth weights; females also become reproductively active later and at larger masses.
Activity patterns.
There is no specific information for this species.
Movements, Home range and Social organization.
Home ranges of the Pantanal Punares estimated from grid trapping and radio-tracking are 0-26-2-9 ha (mean = 0-85 ha).
Status and Conservation.
Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Population trend of the Pantanal Punare is unknown, but it is considered common throughout its distribution. No major conservation threats have been reported.
Bibliography.
Andreazzi et al. (2012), Cabrera (1961), Nascimento et al. (2013), Oliveira-Santos et al. (2013), Pessoa, Tavares, Neves & da Silva (2015), Pittker et al. (2012), Santos-Filho et al. (2012), Teixeira et al. (2005), Trouessart (1880), Wagner (1845).