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Accepted 2026-01-22
Published 2026-10-14
Abstract
Tayras are relatively common and widely spread mammals in the Neotropics, however, their natural history is partially known. For example, even though their pelage coloration varies between dark-brown and black, and there are reports of pigmentation anomalies, causes and effects on their populations remain unknown. Consequently, documenting these cases is required along with relevant ecological information to improve the understanding of this phenomena. In this note we present the records of hypopigmented tayras obtained during a biodiversity monitoring in 15 conservation areas included within a community-based Dry Forest conservation strategy in the municipality of Tame (Arauca), and we discuss the distribution of this anomalies according to their age, seasonality, activity period and sex. For the monitoring we deployed 33 camera traps over a period of 27 months from 2021 to 2024. We recorded 36 tayra independent records, from which there was a highest number of adults showing xanthism, higher occurrence during the day and the dry season. We considered a record of a couple of hypopigmented individuals as a valuable contribution about interactions among tayras with pigmentation anomalies. Finally, we emphasize the importance of the natural history information generated by monitoring, beyond the species inventories and ecological data.
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