Publications by authors named "Monique van Sluys"
Article Synopsis
- Norfolk Island is home to a unique land snail population, with 11 species classified as endangered or extinct due to habitat loss and predators.
- Since 2020, targeted surveys have reassessed the threat status of these snails, tracking species' distributions and implementing conservation strategies like predator control and breeding programs.
- Though initial breeding efforts showed high mortality rates, improvements in care resulted in sustainable growth rates, highlighting the need for better predator management and further refinement of conservation methods.
Nutritional status and functional digestive histology of the carnivorous Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii).
Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol
March 2017
Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) are the largest carnivorous marsupial in Australia. Currently many animals are being held in captivity as a management procedure to combat Devil Facial Tumor Disease. Only one published study thus far has investigated nutrition in Tasmanian devils, determining their maintenance energy requirements and digestibility on a rodent diet.
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- Communities are shaped by historical and ecological interactions that affect resource use across different times and spaces.
- The study focused on a lizard group in a coastal sand dune habitat in southeastern Brazil, collecting data on their activity times, microhabitat preferences, and diets.
- The analysis revealed significant dietary overlap among the lizard species, while their temporal and spatial overlaps were as expected, leading to discussions about the factors influencing the local lizard community structure.
In this study, we analyzed diet, sexual dimorphism and bromeliad use in three populations of the hylid frog Phyllodytes luteolus from restinga habitats along the Brazilian coast. We found 13 arthropods categories in 161 stomachs. Ants and termites were the dominant prey items.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHaddadus binotatus is an endemic anuran of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and currently, there is no information about the diet of this species. We analyzed the diet of two populations of this anuran in two states in southeast Brazil. Samplings were carried out in 2004 in the state of Rio de Janeiro and in 2009 and 2010 in the state of Espírito Santo.
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- * Its diet primarily consists of Coleoptera (beetles), Orthoptera (grasshoppers and crickets), and Blattaria (cockroaches).
- * The study also identified five species of nematodes (roundworms) found in the frogs, with a high prevalence of 71% and an average of 7.3 nematodes per infected frog.
Article Synopsis
- We conducted a study on the leaf-litter frog community at Estação Ecológica Estadual Paraíso in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, using three different sampling methods to gather data on species composition, richness, and abundance.
- The frog community consisted of 14 species from nine families, with Haddadus binotatus being the most prevalent, showing a density of 1.1 individuals per 100 m².
- Our findings suggest that leaf-litter frog densities are generally higher in the Neotropical region compared to the Old World tropics, with Central America having the most abundant populations.
Most analyses dealing with the geographical distribution of the chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) have been performed on large geographical scales and data on more localized distribution of the chytrid within catchments are scarce. In this study, we compare the prevalence and intensity of infection of chytrid within and outside rainforest habitats at five independent catchments in southeast Queensland. In each catchment, we sampled adult Litoria wilcoxii along two transects on the same stream: one in forested areas, and the other in open nearby farmland.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe studied the herpetofaunal community from the Atlantic forest of Morro São João, in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, and present data on species composition, richness, relative abundance and densities. We combined three sampling methods: plot sampling, visual encounter surveys and pit-fall traps. We recorded sixteen species of amphibians and nine of reptiles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aims: Hummingbird flower mites feed and reproduce in flowers of host plants pollinated by hummingbirds, and use the nostrils and bill of the hummingbird to move from plant to plant. These mites compete with the pollinator for the nectar produced by flowers. An investigation was made of the relationship between the pattern of nectar production and the effects of hummingbird flower mites in the flowers of two sympatric species of Heliconia (Heliconiaceae).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA quantitative and comparative analysis of the acoustic whistles parameters of tucuxi dolphins (Sotalia fluviatilis) from eight areas in Brazilian waters were conducted. Tucuxi produced mainly upsweep whistles, and despite their similar characteristics to other delphinids, whistles were shorter and less complex in shape. Some signals had fundamental frequency components above 24 kHz, and a broader band system may be useful in further studies concerning tucuxi whistles.
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