Dasyprocta punctata is about the size of my dog, Amos, and many times faster. Still, I would love to see his reaction to such a big rodent—or even a paca!
Tag Archives: Mammals
Howler monkey calls
Ignore the video (it’s unclear), and appreciate the audio of these mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata) calling in Palo Verde last year.
Manatee calf
A West Indian Manatee calf (Trichechus manatus), probably nearing 2 m in length, casually swims by and circles back towards its mother. In some of the images, the long sensory hairs that uniformly cover the animal’s body are visible.
Adult West Indian Manatee
A few resting adult West Indian Manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris) from Crystal River area, including Three Sisters Springs.
The IUCN first classified T. manatus as vulnerable in 1982, where it has remained since; however, there are two subspecies reported: T. m. latirostris (the Florida manatee) and T. m. manatus (the Antillean manatee) that are both classified as Endangered. In January 2016, the US Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to reclassify and downlist the manatee as threatened from its status under the Endangered Species Act as endangered, but it is still afforded many protections against harassment and habitat loss under the ESA.
Brown four-eyed oppossum
Cristian wrestled an oppossum outside the greenhouses at Las Cruces Biological Station.
Vesper rats
A juvenile vesper rat Nyctomys sumichrasti. We have trapped two of these mice in the house we’re staying in, although the one below was trapped in 2013. They seem to like bananas… and Cristian, another research mentor, doesn’t particularly like the mice…
The Wrinkle-faced Bat
One of the ugliest bats on the planet, the wrinkle-faced bat Centurio senex was caught at Las Alturas by Rachel and her students while mist netting at Las Alturas. The face of the bat may help in directing and manipulating sound waves for echolocation. There are also striations on the bats wings, although I’m unsure of their function.
Some mammals at Cumberland
A few photographs of some of the mammals we saw at Cumberland Island. Knowing how ornery my father’s domesticated horses are, I did not want to approach the wild horses on the island… so you can see a couple in the background of those of those photographs.
More bat research
Jason and Alice work with students (Kela, Tali and Ashley) and the owners of Finca Cántaros during some bat mist netting.
Bat release
Alice sadly releases a bat
