INVESTIGADORES
LUCHERINI Mauro
artículos
Título:
DENNING ECOLOGY OF Conepatus chinga (Carnivora: Mephitidae) IN A GRASSLAND RELICT OF CENTRAL ARGENTINA
Autor/es:
CASTILLO D.; LUENGOS VIDAL E.; CARUSO N.; LUCHERINI M.; CASANAVE E.
Revista:
MASTOZOOLOGí­A NEOTROPICAL
Editorial:
UNIDAD DE ZOOLOGÍA Y ECOLOGÍA ANIMAL, INSTITUTO ARGENTINO DE INVESTIGACIÓN DE LAS ZONAS ARIDAS, CRICYT, CONICET
Referencias:
Lugar: Mendoza; Año: 2013 vol. 20 p. 373 - 379
ISSN:
0327-9383
Resumen:
To investigate the factors affecting den site selection in Conepatus chinga, we identified and characterized 199 (males: n = 108, females: n = 91) dens used by seven radio-tracked skunks from August 2002 to October 2005 in a protected area of the Argentine Pampas grassland. Skunks a frequently reused dens (25.1%), without a significantly differences between sexes. Although Molina?s hog-nosed skunks are solitary animals our data indicate that males and females may be able to share dens, presumably in the breeding season. Den sites were not homogeneously distributed within an animal?s home range, being the density in core areas greater than in middle and border regions of home ranges. This study confirmed that C. chinga selects specific habitat characteristics for its den sites and suggests that the access to prey is a major factor in their selection.