ABSTRACT
An opportunistic rescue of a stranded 6 m giant manta ray off Ilha Comprida, in São Paulo, southeastern Brazil, revealed a new technique for returning large bodied mobulid rays to the water once beached. The technique, adapted from protocols to move stranded cetaceans, was modified to suit the dorso-ventrally compressed shape of mobulid rays and reduce damage to the animal while being pulled back into deeper water. The method and suggestions for its improvement have been described with the intention of assisting in the rescue of other stranded large mobulids.
ABSTRACT
Abstract Ants are known to feed on a variety of plant resources. Nevertheless, there are very few reports in the literature on ants using flower parts. Here, we describe how two Odontomachus chelifer (Latreille) ants teared and removed a part of an inner tepal of a Neomarica candida (Hassl.) (Iridaceae) flower at the restinga sandy forest in the Cardoso Island State Park, Brazil. To determine which part of the perianth attracted these ants, we performed two independent two-choice field assays: tepals (inner and outer tepals) were cut in two parts (basal and apical), with contrasting colors, which were offered to ants leaving a colony. Our results show that ants significantly preferred to remove or lick the basal part of the inner tepal. Based on the knowledge of N. candida's floral anatomy, we hypothesize that ants were attracted by the nectar produced by trichomatic nectaries at the basal part of the inner tepals. These tepal parts containing nectar are likely to be used as an alternative food resource amid the scarcity of arthropods usually preyed or scavenged by O. chelifer, since the restinga forest is known as an arthropod-poor habitat.