Abstract

CROUZEILLES, Renato; BARROS, Camila S.  and  FERNANDEZ, Fernando A. S.. Philander frenatus and Metachirus nudicaudatus: competition or different ecological requirements in the Atlantic Forest?. Mastozool. neotrop. [online]. 2010, vol.17, n.1, pp.135-140. ISSN 0327-9383.

This study aimed to describe reciprocal population shifts for the marsupials Philander frenatus and Metachirus nudicaudatus in the Atlantic Forest, and to evaluate the hypotheses that they were caused by differential trappability between species and seasons, asynchrony of breeding seasons, different diets and physiological tolerances or interspecific competition. A capture-mark-recapture study (1995-2005) showed that P. frenatus and M. nudicaudatus peaked in drier and wetter years respectively. Differences in trappabilities and breeding seasons could not explain fluctuations. The pattern could be explained by differences in diets, coupled to variations in resource availability, although the hypothesis of competition cannot be excluded.

Keywords : Alternated population fluctuations; Coexistence; Marsupials; Population dynamics; Seasonality.

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