Predation on Ameiva Ameiva (Squamata: Teiidae) by Ardea Alba (Pelecaniformes: Ardeidae) in the Southwestern Brazilian Amazon
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Herpetology Notes, volume 14: 1073-1075 (2021) (published online on 10 August 2021) Predation on Ameiva ameiva (Squamata: Teiidae) by Ardea alba (Pelecaniformes: Ardeidae) in the southwestern Brazilian Amazon Raul A. Pommer-Barbosa1,*, Alisson M. Albino2, Jessica F.T. Reis3, and Saara N. Fialho4 Lizards and frogs are eaten by a wide range of wetlands, being found mainly in lakes, wetlands, predators and are a food source for many bird species flooded areas, rivers, dams, mangroves, swamps, in neotropical forests (Poulin et al., 2001). However, and the shallow waters of salt lakes. It is a species predation events are poorly observed in nature and of diurnal feeding habits, but its activity peak occurs hardly documented (e.g., Malkmus, 2000; Aguiar and either at dawn or dusk. This characteristic changes Di-Bernardo, 2004; Silva et al., 2021). Such records in coastal environments, where its feeding habit is are certainly very rare for the teiid lizard Ameiva linked to the tides (McCrimmon et al., 2020). Its diet ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758) (Maffei et al., 2007). is varied and may include amphibians, snakes, insects, Found in most parts of Brazil, A. ameiva is commonly fish, aquatic larvae, mollusks, small crustaceans, small known as Amazon Racerunner or Giant Ameiva, and birds, small mammals, and lizards (Martínez-Vilalta, it has one of the widest geographical distributions 1992; Miranda and Collazo, 1997; Figueroa and among neotropical lizards. It occurs in open areas all Corales Stappung, 2003; Kushlan and Hancock 2005). over South America, the Galapagos Islands (Vanzolini We here report a predation event on the Ameiva ameiva et al., 1980), Panama, and several Caribbean islands by Ardea alba in the southwestern Brazilian Amazon. (Silva et al., 2003). It is considered a very abundant During an avifauna survey in the rural area of Porto species where it occurs and seems to reach high Velho Municipality, Rondônia State, Brazil (8.6282°S, densities both in natural and anthropically altered 63.9764°W, elevation 83 m), we observed and areas (Silva et al., 2003). photographed (Fig. 1) a predatory encounter during Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 is popularly known as the which a Giant White Egret captured and consumed an Great White Egret (Dubs, 1992). As a migratory bird of adult Giant Ameiva. The event was recorded with a the heron family (Ardeidae), it can fly great distances, Nikon P900 camera on Rural Road C-01 at 14:37 h on either with a large or small flock (Cubas et al., 2014). 4 January 2021. The bird landed near the ameiva and Among the herons that inhabit Brazilian territory, A. pecked several times at the ground until it managed alba is the most common and one of the largest birds to grab the lizard by the head with its beak (Fig. 1A, in the country (Sick, 1997). According to Weinberg B). There did not appear to be any resistance by the (1992), A. alba inhabits all types of inland and coastal ameiva. After capturing the lizard, ingestion took approximately 32 s (Fig. 1C, D). Herons, such as A. alba, are opportunistic predators that may prey on different lizard species, especially on 1 Clube de Astronomia e Ciências de Rondônia, Avenida juvenile anoles (genus Anolis) (Miranda and Collazo, Presidente Dutra 2965, Centro, Porto Velho, Rondônia 76801- 1997). The egret’s capture of the ameiva by its head 059, Brazil. before ingestion contrast with other commonly 2 Secretária de Estado da Educação, Avenida Farquar s/n, Caiari, employed strategies among raptors (e.g., Geranoaetus Porto Velho, Rondônia 76801-470, Brazil. albicaudatus), which remove the head from the body 3 São Lucas Educacional, Rua Alexandre Guimarães 1927, Areal, Porto Velho, Rondônia 76805-846, Brazil. of the prey (including A. ameiva) before ingestion 4 Biodiversidade e Biotecnologia da Amazônia Legal, Rede (Granzinolli et al., 2007). Whereas the diet of egrets BIONORTE, Rua da Beira, 7671, BR 364, Km 3.5, Lagoa, in a tropical mangrove swamp would mainly consist Porto Velho, 76812-245 Rondônia, Brazil. of crustaceans and fish (with shrimp as the most * Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] important prey), insects and lizards (such as Anolis) © 2021 by Herpetology Notes. Open Access by CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. are less important (Miranda and Collazo, 1997). Other 1074 Raul A. Pommer-Barbosa et al. Figure 1. Predation by Ardea alba on Ameiva ameiva in Porto Velho Municipality, Rondônia State, Brazil. (A) The heron has captured the ameiva by its head and (B) has grasped it firmly. (C) The heron is beginning to ingest the lizard. (D) Ingestion is nearing completion, with only the tail visible next to the heron’s beak. Photos by Raul A. Pommer-Barbosa. authors (Wunderle, 1981; Poulin et al., 2001) have fulgidus – Fischer and Gascon, 1996). Our record suggested that predation on Anolis by birds is generally complements the information regarding the diet of A. very likely. Ameiva species on the other hand, are alba and adds a documented predator to the list for A. much larger lizards than most Anolis, but they are also ameiva, contributing to the knowledge of this lizard’s known to be part of the diet of raptors as well as other natural history. reptiles, including Barred Forest Falcon (Micrastur ruficollis – Poulin et al., 2001), White-tailed Hawks Acknowledgements. We thank the Clube de Astronomia (Geranoaetus albicaudatus – Granzinolli et al., 2007), e Ciências de Rondônia and the Conselho Nacional do Burrowing Owls (Athene cunicularia – Tozzetti et al., Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico for financial 2005), Southern Coralsnakes (Micrurus frontalis – support of our studies. Maffei et al., 2009), and Green Vine Snakes (Oxybelis Predation on Ameiva ameiva by Ardea alba 1075 References McCrimmon, D.A., Jr., Ogden, J.C., Bancroft, G.T., Martínez- Vilalta, A., Motis, A., Kirwan, G.M., Boesman, P.F.D. (2020). Aguiar, L.F.S., Di-Bernardo, M. 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