Coendú esperanza

description

Additional records. Two specimens of Coendou speratus were rescued by the Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio) on two different occasions. The first was rescued on 20 September 2009 from a house close to a forest fragment in Curado IV (8 ° 3 ' 54.84 " S 34 ° 59 ' 55.76 " W), city of Jaboatão dos Guararapes, approximately 50 km from Usina Trapiche; this animal was subsequently released in the Mata Xanguá (8 ° 39 ' 13.14 " S 35 ° 10 ' 11.78 " W) on 24 September 2009 by ICMBio employees (release # 38 of Centro de Triagem de Animais Silvestres, CETAS). The second animal was rescued on 28 September 2009 in Várzea (8 ° 2 ' 39.46 " S 34 ° 57 ' 40.10 " W), city of Recife, approximately 60 km from Usina Trapiche; this animal was released in an urban protected forest fragment, Mata Brennand (8 ° 3 ' 13.29 " S 34 ° 58 ' 52.52 " W), Várzea, Recife, on 30 September 2009, by ICMBio employees (release # 41 of CETAS). In addition, a specimen housed at the Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, also matches the description of C. speratus. This specimen apparently lacks a catalog number but it has field number SNP 1 (for “ Serviço Nacional de Peste ” # 1) and consists of

A new species of porcupine, genus Coendou (Rodentia: Erethizontidae) from the Atlantic forest of northeastern Brazil

description

Coendou speratus is externally very distinct from C. insidiosus, especially because the latter has bicolored dorsal quills (light yellow based and black tipped) that are almost completely hidden beneath longer and homogeneous pale or dark hairs. Some specimens of C. insidiosus have tricolored dorsal quills, present only on the head and shoulders (Caldara Jr. & Leite 2012). C. speratus has a longer body, tail, skull, and auditory bullae, and higher infraorbital foramen than C. insidiosus. In addition, C. speratus has a narrower anterior palate and smaller incisive foramina than C. insidiosus (Table 4). The discriminant function analysis also supported species distinction based on cranial measurements, confirming that C. speratus is morphometrically different from both C. insidiosus and C. nycthemera (Figure 8). Thomas (1902) described Coendou roberti from southern Brazil as a spiny, short-haired species allied to C. spinosus, but showing tricolored, orange-tipped spines, not hidden by a long clothing of fur, which therefore resembles C. speratus. However, there are several differences among them, especially the bicolored spines on the rump partly hidden by hair in C. roberti, but no

A new species of porcupine, genus Coendou (Rodentia: Erethizontidae) from the Atlantic forest of northeastern Brazil

description

Description. Head. Tricolored quills whitish yellow basally, black in the middle, brownish red distally (Figure 6 G); bristles yellowish white basally, black in the middle, light brownish red distally; long sparse black mystacial vibrissae, some extending beyond shoulder line (ca. 90 mm); pinkish bulbous muzzle covered with black to brownish short hairs (Figure 2); rounded flat ears with yellow-tipped black hairs on the inner side; shorter submental vibrissae present. Body. Most dorsal quills tricolor (bright yellow basally, black in the middle, and brownish red distally) from head to mid-back (Figure 6 A – B); dorsal quills have a long black band and short brownish red tip in some specimens (e. g., UFPE 1708), but a short black band and long brownish red tip in others (e. g., MN 72045). Less conspicuous, black tipped, light yellow based bicolor quills also present in all specimens (Figure 6 D). Some specimens (e. g., MN 72045) also have yellow based, brownish red tipped bicolor quills from head to mid-back (Figure 6 C). Quills on rump bicolor, shorter than those from head to mid-back, with larger yellow basal band, and black tip. Bicolor quills on rump and thighs varying from dark

A new species of porcupine, genus Coendou (Rodentia: Erethizontidae) from the Atlantic forest of northeastern Brazil

diagnosis

Diagnosis. Coendou speratus is a small-bodied, long- tailed species (Table 2) that appears to be completely spiny because it lacks long fur (Figures 3, 5). The dorsal quills have conspicuously brownish red tips (Figure 6) that contrast with the blackish dorsal background color. The sigmoid notch of the mandible is shallow; the condylar and coronoid processes reach the same height, delimiting a shallow and squarish sigmoid notch (Figure 4). The kidneyshaped auditory bullae are inflated anteriorly, and each one has a small external auditory meatus. The sphenopalatine vacuities are present in most specimens examined. Geographic distribution. The new species is probably endemic to the Pernambuco Endemism Centre or Pernambuco refugium (Punde et al. 2008; Carnaval et al. 2009) in the northeast sector of the Brazilian Atlantic forest (north of the São Francisco river), which encompasses the coastal region of the states of Alagoas, Pernambuco, Paraíba and Rio Grande do Norte. However, we did not find the new species during 5 - year surveys in 23 other areas, including the largest and best-preserved forest fragment, the Mata Coimbra (3,642 ha), not far from the type locality at Usina Trapic

A new species of porcupine, genus Coendou (Rodentia: Erethizontidae) from the Atlantic forest of northeastern Brazil