USE OF Elaeis guineensis (ARECALES: ARECACEAE) AS SHELTER AND FOOD RESOURCE BY Coendou spinosus (RODENTIA: ERETHIZONTIDAE) IN A MANGROVE SWAMP

Abstract

Coendou spinosus (Rodentia: Erethizontidae) is a nocturnal and arboreal rodent capable of living in fragments of forest with different conservation status, feeding on different plant parts. Little is known about this species and plants it uses. The purpose of this article is to describe the use of palm oil, Elaeis guineensis (Arecales: Arecaceae), as food source and shelter by C. spinosus. The study was carried out in a mangrove swamp of the Guapi-Mirim Environmental Protection Area, municipality of Itaboraí, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. During the period from May 2013 to April 2014, 24 fortnightly expeditions were carried out with six visual records of C. spinosus, during night, between 19:00 and 23:00 h. In six occasions, we recorded individuals consuming fruit pulp and using this tree as shelter. These observations add important information about the occurrence, feeding and behavior of C. spinosus in a mangrove, contributing to the knowledge of its natural history, which is still scarce.