Ecology of the rodents, Proechimys guyannensis trinitatis and Oryzomys capito velutinus, on Trinidad

ABSTRACT

This study deals with ecology of two rodents, Proechimys guyannenis trinitatis and Oryzomys capito velutinus, repersenting nearly 70 per cent of the mammals captured in Turure Forest, Trinidad. Maximum population densities of each species were 5.5 and 9.2 animals per acre, respectively; mean values computed for each home range were 0.425 and 1.012 acres, respectively. Marked individuals of Proechimys have been retrapped for 20 months and others were kept in the laboratory for 3.5 years. O. c. velutinus may live up to 28 months in captivity but individuals caught in the wild have not been retrapped for longer than 12 months. Sex ratios, laboratory breeding, mortality due to laboratory processing and transportation, cutaneous parasites, and the haemoparasites of these two small mammals are discussed. (AU)