%0 Journal Article %J Animal Behaviour %D 2009 %T Scatter Hoarding by the Central-American Agouti: A Test of Optimal Cache Spacing Theory %A Galvez, D. %A Kranstauber, G. %A R. W. Kays %A Jansen, P. A. %K cache pilferage %K camera trapping %K Central American agouti %K Dasyprocta punctata %K food availability %K optimal cache spacing %K scatter hoarding %K Seed dispersal %K tropical forest %X

Optimal cache spacing theory predicts that scatter-hoarding animals store food at a density that balances the gains of reducing cache robbery against the costs of spacing out caches further. We tested the key prediction that cache robbery and cache spacing increase with the economic value of food: the ratio of food to consumer abundance. We quantified cache pilferage and cache spacing by the Central American agouti, Dasyprocta punctata, in the tropical forest of Barro Colorado Island, Panama, across 10 1 ha plots that encompassed a more than100-fold range in the availability of Astrocaryum palm seeds, the agouti's principal food. We found that caches were pilfered at higher rates in plots with lower seed availability, and that agoutis cached seeds further away and into lower densities where seed availability was lower. Food scarcity apparently increased the pressure of food competitors on caches, stimulating agoutis to put more effort into caching seeds to create lower cache densities, fully consistent with theory. We conclude that the optimal cache density depends not only on the nutritional value of food but also on the economic value, which may vary in space as well as time.

%B Animal Behaviour %V 78 %P 1327-1333 %G eng %U http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.08.015 %R 10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.08.015 %0 Journal Article %J Journal of Tropical Ecology %D 2008 %T Home-range use by the Central American Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) on Barro Colorado Island, Panama %A Aliaga-Rossel, E. %A R. W. Kays %A Fragoso, J. M. V. %K agouti %K Dasyprocta punctata %K habitat use %K home range %K mammal density %K predation risk %K space use %X

This study investigates the movements and home range of the agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. We captured and tracked 12 agoutis from January to December 2003. Home-range size (95% kernel) ranged from 1.56–2.45 ha (n = 6) for males and 1.34–1.97 ha (n = 5) for females. Agouti ranges overlapped and we estimated a density of approximately 100 agoutis km−2. We compared agouti movement with the locations of refuges and food trees, and the results suggest that the agoutis are central-place foragers. Agoutis moved an average of 850 m d−1 covering approximately 35% of their range daily. These movement data help us understand the potential impacts of agoutis as seed dispersers, predicting that D. punctata will encounter and hoard fallen fruit within 10–200 m (i.e. radius of home range) of its source, and move seeds towards refuges such as ground holes and dense vegetation around recent tree falls.

%B Journal of Tropical Ecology %V 24 %P 367-374 %G eng %U https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266467408005129 %R 10.1017/S0266467408005129 %0 Journal Article %J Biotropica %D 2006 %T Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) Predation on Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) %A Aliaga-Rossel, E. %A Moreno, R. S. %A R. W. Kays %A Giacalone, J. %K agouti %K Dasyprocta punctata %K Leopardus pardalis %K Neotropics %K ocelot %K Panama;predation %X

We collected details on the predation of four agoutis (Dasyprocta punctata) by ocelots (Leopardus pardalis). All kills were made outside of the typical agouti activity period (<0500 h). Agoutis were captured from behind and killed with a bite through the back of the skull. The kill sites for two female agoutis were significantly closer to their den sites than expected, while kill sites for two males were not. All carcasses were completely covered by leaves during the day and were fed on during night hours. Predation by ocelots can be a significant cause of mortality for agoutis at Barro Colorado Island (BCI).

%B Biotropica %V 36 %P 691-694 %G eng %U http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7429.2006.00192.x %R 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2006.00192.x