-_——v" —-1 4‘

 

THE MAMMS CF MALLECO PROVENCE, CHILE

Thesis {or ”10 Degree of pH. D.
MECHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

.1? ohn Keever Greer
1965

 

 

THESIS J ‘1

LIBRAR Y
Michigan State

1L1 University r

 

 

This is to certify that the

thesis entitled
MAKE-ZALS OF WELL-ECO PROVINCE,C7TII;E
presented by
John Keever Greer

has been accepted towards fulfillment
of the requirements for

PhD degree in 20010 {Ty

W

Major professor

0-169

 

 

 

ABSTRACT

mus 0F MALLECO PROVINCE, CHILE

by John Keever Greer

Various aspects of the distribution and ecology of mammals of
Malleco Province in south central Chile were investigated for the
purpose of contributing to the knowledge of the natural history of
this region. The field study was sponsored by The Museum, Michigan
State University, and the Museo Dillman S. Bullock, El Vergel,
Angol, Chile, and was carried out from November, 1960 to May, 1962.

This investigation included the following: trapping and pre-
serving for museum study 1,350 mammals from areas of different
vegetation and topography; estimating field densities and movements
of rodents based on records of live-trapping and recapturing; anal-
yzing mammalian.reproductive habits and age ratios; interviewing,
by questionaires, sportsmen living in towns and residents of rural
areas to determine the utilization of mammals for sport, food, and
other purposes; obtaining more than 1,800 collections of plants
from 113 localities; collecting associated fauna; gathering cli-
matological data; and photographing areas of different vegetation
and topography.

Thirtybnine kinds (species and subspecies) belonging to 31
native species and five introduced species were collected or re-
ported in Malleco. The 2h genera of native mammals may be arranged

as follows: cosmopolites, h; Nearctic-Neotropical varicants, 2;

 

 

excurrent Neotropical regionalite, 2; and endemic Neotropical

 

 

John Keever Greer

regionalites, 16; of the latter, ll are endemic to the Patagonian

 

Subregion.

The mammalian species density in Chile is compared to that of
the temperate South America and the species density of Malleco
Province is compared to that of western Washington (U. S. A.).

The impoverished mammalian fauna in Chile may be due in part to
(1) the size of temperate South America; (2) the Andean barrier;
(3) the Pleistocene glaciation; and (h) a "peninsula effect".

The relationship of the mammalian fauna to that of provinces
north and south of Malleco seems to be correlated with climatic
change and the transitional characteristics of the vegetation, lag.,
the northern xerophilic vegetation interdigitating with the southern
mesic vegetation. Twenty (65 per cent) of the 31 species in.Malleco
occupy areas in the provinces to both the north and south, whereas
11 (35 per cent) are identified with the mammalian fauna only to
the north (h) or only to the south (7) of Malleco. Of the 25 polyb
typic species in Malleco, 11 are subspecifically indistinguishable
from populations in the provinces both to the north and south of
Malleco, whereas more than half (1h) are distinguishable from the
subspecies either to the north or south of Malleco.

Twentyhnine (9h per cent) of the 31.Mallecan species of mammals
also occur east of the continental divide in Neuquen, Argentina;
thus it appears that the Cordillera de los Andes in this region
only slightly impedes the east-west movement of animals.

0f Mallecan mammals, Oryzomys longicaudatus, Akodon longipilis,

 

 

and Akodon olivaceus are the most common and widespread rodents.

 

John Keever Greer

Oryzomys longicaudatus is the most ubiquitous rodent, and prefers

 

a shrubby habitat, especially blackberry thickets, which are early

invaders of cleared lands throughout Malleco. Akodon olivaceus

 

is the most common rodent in the Central Valley grasslands; Akodon

longipilis, common in mountainous areas and absent from the Central

 

Valley, is most numerous in partially cleared forests which have
denser ground cover than the virgin forests. Studies of movement
and population densities of these rodents were carried out in 19
quadrate "plots" in selected habitats.

The specimens of vertebrate fauna are in the research collec-
tions of The Museum, Michigan State University, and examples of
each of the common species are deposited in the Museo Dillman S.
Bullock, El Vergel, Angol, Chile. Collections of plants are in
the Beal-Darlington Herbarium at Michigan State University. The
project was supported with funds provided by the Dillman S. Bullock

Fellowship and a Grant-in—Aid from the Society of Sigma Xi.

THE MAMMALS OF MALLECO PROVINCE, CHILE

John Keever Greer

A THESIS

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Zoology

1965

ACKNOWIEDGEMENTS

The present report has resulted mostly from field work carried
on in Malleco Province, Chile. ‘While engaged in field activities,
I used the facilities of the Museo Dillman S. Bullock, El Vergel
Methodist Mission, Angel, for a place both to live and to house my
collections. In 1960, 1961, and 1962 many persons expedited the
field undertakings or otherwise provided information and assistance;

some of these are:

Ramdn Aguilera Miguel Figueroa
Santiago Bachman Robert Garrison
Domingo Boero Carlos Labayru

Basili Cofré' Eduardo Salgado
Robinson Coz Roberto Rosales
Juan.Ferrier Luis Torres

I especially wish to thank Mr. Elbert Reed for permission to
live at the El Vergel mdssion while pursuing the field undertakings.
I am grateful to many of the workers at the El Vergel mission for
providing help in repairing equipment, gathering information on
wildlife, or donating animal specimens. I wish to thank the mis-
sionaries at El Vergel and others connected with the Iglesia
Methodista of Chile for helping to make my stay there pleasant,
and would like especially to mention'Wallace Arms, Glen Keller,
Semeramis Kutz, Russel Lang, and Walter Mason.

I acknowledge the help of Dr. R. A. Philippi of the Museo Nacional

in Santiago, Chile, to obtain permits to take my research material

ii

from Chile to Michigan State University. I wish also to thank
Dr. Guillermo Mann F. of the Instituto Pedolégico, Santiago, who
offered helpful suggestions and analyzed urine samples of my cap-
tive grison.

I am deeply indebted to Guy and Carrie Cannon of Midland, Michigan,
without whose support and enthusiastic interest this project would
have never been attempted or completed.

I will always remember the many hours spent with Dr. Dillman S.
Bullock, a keen observer, student, and scientist who related quan-
tities of information about the fauna and flora of south central
Chile where he has lived for the past 50 years. My association with
him and his wife has been a privilege, and the success of the pro-
ject was due largely to them.

I wish to thank Rollin H. Baker of The Museum at Michigan State
University for use of the facilities of The Museum and for his ad-
vice and encouragement in the completion of this report. His fore-
sight prior to the field undertakings and his adept surveillance of
the entire project were invaluable. I also wish to thank John E.
Cantlon, Roland L. Fischer, and George J. Wallace, of Michigan
State University for their interest in the project and comments on
the manuscript.

Finally, I will thank my wife, Marjorie, not just for help in
tabulation of data and for typing the manuscript, but also for the
encouragement and patience and companionship in all phases of the

field undertakings in Chile.

iii

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION. . . . . . . . . . .

METHODS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

GAZETTEER OF LOCALITIES. . . . . . . . .

BIOGEOGRAPHICAL CONSIDERATIONS. . . . . . . .
Physiography and Geology. . . . . . . . . . .

Physiography. . . . . . . . .

Geology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Climate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vegetation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. . . .

Central Valley. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . .

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAMMALIAN FAUNA. . . . .

Composition and Derivation. . . . . . . .

Geographic Variation. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Species Diversity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mammal-Habitat Relationships in the Andes. . . .

iv

10
13
16
21
25
29
31

h3
h3
he
51
5h

Page
Population Studies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. . . . . .. . . . . . . . 61
Central Valley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Summary of Plot Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Conservation. . . . . . ..... . . . . . . . . . . 67
CHECK-LIST or THE RECENT moms. . . . . . . . . . . . 7h
ACOUNTSOFSPECIES................... 7?
ADDITIONAL RECORDS or moms IN MALIECO. . . . . . . . 1h8
surmriw

LITERATURECITED ..... ................152

Table

1.

3.

9.

10.

11.

LIST OF TABLES

Page
Rainfall at the Laguna Malleco, 1956 through 1961. . . . 20
Geographic classification of native mammalian genera . . h5

Occurrence of subspecies of native Mallecan mammals
in adjacent provinces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . h9

Comparisons of species densities of rodents in
Malleco, Chile, and western'Washington (east to
crest of the Cascade Mountains). . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Summary of the occurrence of wild mammals in
relation to habitat from trapping records. . . . . . . . 56

Distribution and numbers of small mammals trapped
on Andean slopes west of Paso Pino Hachado. . . . . . . . 57

Estimated densities per hectare of small mammals taken
in the Central Valley based on quadrate studies. . . . . 68

Average and extreme measurements of Dromiciops
australis O O O C O O O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O I O O 78

 

Measurements of Eligmondontia typus from Chile and
Argentina. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Measurements of female Chilean Felis concolor. . . . . . 139

Measurements of skulls of Pudu pudu.Molina from
,Malleco Province, Chile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1h?

vi

Figure

1.

2.

LIST OF FIGURES

Map of Malleco Province, Chile, showing localities
that are listed in the Gazetteer and the principal
rivers O 0 I O c 0 O o O O o O o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 8

Transect across South America at 380 south latitude
(1) Chile and Argentina, (2) Malleco Province, Chile. . 12

Distribution of soil types in Malleco Province, Chile. . 15

Distribution of vegetation types in Malleco Province,
Chile 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 21‘

Rate of weight gain and external growth in a Chilean
Forest Puma from Malleco Province, Chile. . . . . . . . . lh2

vii

LIST OF PLATES

Plate Page

1a. Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) forest in the Parque
Nacional de Nahuelbuta. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3S

 

1b. Long of Araucaria pine (Araucaria araucana) in
the Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

 

2a. Cleared lands in the southern sector of the Cordillera
de Nahuelbuta. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

2b. A small farm in the Central Valley. . . . . . . . . . . 36
3a. An agricultural area in the Central Valley. . . . . . . 37
3b. Pasture and pine plantations in the Central Valley. . . 37

ha. Valley of the Rio Renaico in the foothills of the
Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

hb. Paso de las Raices in the front range of the
Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

5a. Paso de las Raices in the front range of the
Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

5b. Valley of the Rio Bio Bio in the Cordillera de los
Andes. . O . . O . . . O . . . . O . O . O C . O . . . . 39

6a. Rirre (Nothofagus antarctice)-grasslands at Lago
Icalma, headwaters ofitheiRio Bio Bio. . . . . . . . . . hO

 

6b. A skeleton forest of coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) near
Volcan Tolhuaca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hO

 

7a. Dromiciops australis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hl

 

7b. A stand of coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) in the foothills
of the Cordillera de los Andes. . . . . . . . . . . . . bl

 

8a. Rocky pasture land in the Central Valley. . . . . . . . h2

8b. Feces of Aconaemys fuscus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . h2

 

viii

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix Page

1. Analyses of samples of soil from different localities
in Malleco Province, Chile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

2. Hunting questionaire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

INTRODUCTION

Field study of mammals in.Malleco Province, Chile, sponsored by
Michigan State University with funds provided by the Dillman S.
Bullock Fellowship and a Grant-inpAid from the Society of Sigma Xi,
was carried out from November, 1960, to May, 1962. Various aspects
of the ecology of mammals of this little studied part of south-
central Chile were investigated for the purpose of contributing to
the knowledge of the natural history of this region.

The first major work on the fauna of Chile, Molina's "Saggio
sulla storia naturale del Chile" published in 1882 (see Osgood,
19h3212), lists 36 species of mammals living in Chile. Since then,
collectors, including Darwin, Bridges, Gay, and Philippi, have
added to our knowledge of Chilean mammals. Osgood (191:3) succeeded
in untangling some of the confused taxonomy of Chilean mammals and
this outstanding report remains a most useful work today, both as
a laboratory and a field guide to the mammals of Chile. Mann's
"Maniferos de Tarapaca“ (l9h5) was the first time a major study of
mammals was limited to a particular area of the country; Recently,
Cabrera (1958 and 1961) listed all of the recognized species and
subspecies of mammals living in Chile.

A study confined to a political boundary may be less useful to
the scientist than a study limited by the natural boundaries of an
ecological zone. However, an investigation of the mammals in Malleco

Province, in south-central Chile, gives a useful cross-section of

2

one major animal assemblage occurring in a highly varied land where
a thorough knowledge of fauna living there is lacking.

The objectives of this report are to present the accumulated
records of the kinds of extant mammals and their habits within
the confines of Malleco Province, and to define the habitats where
the mammals occur. It is hoped that this study may form a basis
for more detailed investigations of the mammals and associated
fauna and flora, and that it will encourage students of mammalogy
to seek out and study the rarer mammals. This must be accomplished
soon because many of the natural habitats in south-central Chile are

being destroyed by present agricultural and lumbering practices.

METHODS

Mere than 1,350 mammals were taken between November 1960 and May'
1962 in Malleco; these are deposited in the research collection at
The Museum, Michigan State University.

Field trips were planned so that most of the localities chosen
for study were accessible by Jeep. Poor road conditions prevented
travel in some parts of Malleco in.winter. Pack animals were neces-
sary to reach at least one remote area in the Andes. Dr. Dillman S.
Bullock provided information on the recent history of some mammals,
and residents in many localities were questioned as to the occur-
rence and abundance of game, carnivores, and small mammals. Ques-
tionaires were sent to members of the Angol Hunting Club to deter-
mine the utilization of mammals for sport, food, and other purposes;
the same questionaire was used as a guide to question residents of
rural areas.

Mammals were collected by various means to determine their kinds,
distributions, and relationships to the environment. Museum Special
snap traps, baited usually with chewed rolled oats, were used to
sample populations of small rodents in selected habitats throughout
the province. Live traps made of wood and baited with dry rolled
oats were placed in grids. These traps were used to capture small
mammals alive for marking, releasing, and subsequent recapturing in
order to study the areas occupied, movements, and population densi-

ties of the species involved. Mice captured in live traps were

A
marked by clipping toes and released at the station of capture.
The area occupied by each marked animal was calculated by including
the spaces between each trap station where the animal was caught
(see explanation in Drake, 1958:121). When live-trapping projects
were completed, the study plots were then snap-trapped for 2 to 3
days. Density estimates were made using the Lincoln Index (Lincoln,
1930). Density was also determined by the removal method described
by Hayne (19h9:h07) in which the number of animals previously re-
moved by snap-trapping is plotted against the catch per day.

A 16 gauge shotgun was used to obtain larger mammals, and mist
nets were stretched over water sources and in wooded areas to snare
bats. Mammals occasionally were maintained in captivity for various
lengths of time; these were the following: Dromiciops australis,
Mygcastor £21225, Oryzomys longicaudatus, Akodon olivaceus, Akodon

longipilis, Felis concolor, and Galictis cuja.

 

The arrangement of orders and genera in this report follows that
of Simpson (19h5); most species names are those of Cabrera (1958 and
1961) and for convenience are arranged alphabetically under the
genus. Common names mostly follow Mann (1957) or Simpson (l9h1).
Both regional Spanish and Indian names are listed by Bullock (1932).
Specimens examined are listed under appropriate species and gener-
ally are by locality from north to south. Measurements of specimens
are given in millimeters and grams. Distances are given in kilome-
ters and elevations in meters. Maps showing the distribution of
most mammals in Chile may be found in Osgood's (19h3) work.

The vegetation in Malleco Province was studied to determine its

relation to the distribution of mammals. More than 1,800 collections

S
of plants from 113 localities were obtained. The most useful re-
ferences for identifying plants were descriptions by Urban (l93h)
and Reiche (1907), and keys by Munoz (1959) and Robinson and Fernald
(1908). Some plants were identified by personnel in the Department
of Botany of the University of Concepcion, Concepcion, Chile.
Different vegetation types were photographed to illustrate the

different habitats available to the fauna.

GAZETTEER 0F LOCAIJTIES

Place names ianalleco Province used in text are listed below
and are shown on the map in Figure 1. These names appear on the
American Geographical Society of New York map No. S. J. - l9
(Concepcion), scale 131,000,000; or on the following maps of the
Instituto Geograffico Militar, Santiago, Chile, Carta Preliminar,
soale 1:250,000: No. 3775 (Arauco-Lebu); No. 3773 (Los Angeles-
Angol); No. 3771 (Laguna de Laja); No. 3871; (Puerta Saavedra);
No. 3873 (Temuco); No. 3871 (Lonquimay). Each place name is fol-
lowed by its approximate location in degrees and minutes of south

latitude and west longitude.

s. Latitude N. Longitude

Angol 72° h3' 37° 117'
Bafios Rio Blanco 71O hO' 38° 33'
Capita'n Pastene 73° 00' 38° 11'
Contulmo 73° llu 38° 00'
Collipulli 72° 26' 37° 57'
Curacautin 71° 52' 38° 26'
Galvarino 72° h7' 38° 21;!
El Vergel 72° hl' 37° h9'
Jauja 71° 55' 380 Oh'
Lego Icalma 71° 17' 38° h8'

Lonquimay
Lumaco
Manzanar.
Parque Nacional
Parque Turismo
Paso Las Raices
Paso Pino Hachado
Puréh

Relun

Temuco

Troyo

Victoria

71° 22'
72° 55'
719 hzt
73
73

00.
10'
27'
70° Sh'
73 05 '
73
72° 36'

10'

71° 18'

72° 20'

38° 27'
38° 10'
38° 28'
37° hs'
38° 00'
38° 26'
38° ho'
38° 01'
38° 15'
38° uu'
38° lh'
38° lh'

 

 

 

     
    

 
  

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

73 72 71
I l I
-—37
it
o
P %
arque .e~~ —
Nacional J9 \""‘ B
H) An3013
J“. "V °°E1 Vergel 'V'
Parque a? ‘\‘ Collipulli <
38_ Co tulmo Turismo ‘3 4%; \7 . —-38
koPur en 736 1‘70”: V a Jauj 7 .
ggL LumacoP
.Pasteneek . --s l g /»
lunk —- . onctoria P- so '
r639 \i Los oTroyo
( Galvarinp‘gJ P LCuracautig Raices \ l
-~_.._ '4 p, M o¢5Lonquihn§y
. anzanarqp
P pngio Blanco aso
KI , Pino
i I " Hachado
.\ , Temuco L Icalmaqao ,
_ ?\ _ -' 39
_ I f _ scale
' 0 50 100 kilometers
l 1° 1 l I

 

 

72 71

 

Figure 1 . Map of Malleco Province, Chile, showing localities that
are listed in the Gazetteer and the principal rivers.

 

BIOGEOGRAPHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Physiography and Geology

Chile is a strip of land of 7hl,767 square kilometers in the
southwestern part of the South American continent. It lies between
17°30' and 55°59' south latitudes, a distance of h,183 kilometers,
and between 66°3o' and 75°h0"west longitudes. It is 356 kilome-
ters at its widest near Antofagasta, and 1h kilometers at its nar-
nowest in the south, and averages about 175 kilometers in width.

The Central (Nucleo Central) and South Central Regions (Concepcion
y'la Frontera) are the most inhabitable parts of Chile and extend
from the southern edge of the Atacama Desert to the fjords of the
south (Bohan and Pomeranz, 1960:31). For three and one-half cenp
turies, central Chile was a battle ground for the war between the
Spanish and Araucanian.(Mapuche) Indians, with the Rio Bio Bio form-
ing the frontier between that part of Chile-conquered by the Spanish
and the territory still held by the Indians. Today, the area is di-
vided into many large country estates, as well as some small farms
acquired by soldiers late in the 19th Century.

The South Central Region comprises 7.3 per cent of the total_
area of Chile, and contains one-third of the arable land. In 1960,
twenty per cent of the population of Chile lived there. One-third
of the cattle population, and more than.one-third of the cereal and
lumber industries were established there. Fifteen to twenty per

cent of all manufactured products were produced in the cities of

10

this area

Malleco Province, the area of the present study, is in the South
Central Region and is composed of lh,277 square kilometers of 1.9
per cent of the total land mass of Chile. The province lies between
37°15 . and 38°55 . south latitudes and is approximately 210 kilome-
ters wide east to west. Its western border meets Arauco Province
at the sunlnit of the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and the continental
divide in the Cordillera de los Andes forms the border between the
province and Argentina. Its northern border in the Central Valley
is formed by the Rio Renaico, and its southern border by the Rio

Cautin and Rio Quille’n.

Physiography

Cordillera de los Andes.-- The Andes, the longest and second
highest mountain chain in the world, form the boundary between
Chile and Argentina. These mountains are non-volcanic in the north
and central regions of Chile where there are 15 mountains more than
6,000 meters in elevation; in the South Central Region, the Andes
are volcanic with many cone-shaped peaks rising to more than 3,000
meters. The highest mountains forming the front range of the Andes
in South Central Chile are (from north to south) Volca’n Callaquén,
3,079 meters (in Bio Bio Province); Volcan Tolhuaca, 2.780 meters;
Volca’n Lonquimay, 2,889 meters; Sierra Nevada, 2,560 meters; and
Volcan Llaima, 3,060 meters (in Cautfn Province). The continental
divide between Malleco and Argentina is bridged by passes of about
1,800 meters in elevation and may be crossed by motor vehicles in

smer e

lOa

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta.-- Coastal mountains extend the length
of Chile, generally as well defined features. Between 270 south
and 330 south latitudes, spurs of the Andes run to the coast and
are almost inseparable from the coastal mountains. In the South
Central Region, the coastal range is established as a series of
moderate hills, except in Malleco where the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta
is a well defined range. These mountains rise to 1,3hl meters ele-
vation; however, all field studies made in this high country were
conducted below 1,200 meters elevation. After an abrupt rise from
the Central Valley, most of the Nahuelbuta is more than 600 meters
in elevation.

Central Valley3- The Central Valley or "Longitudinal", between
the Cordillera de los Andes and the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta, is
approximately 25 kilometers wide and lies mostly between 60 and
300 meters above sea level. It has been.described by Butler (in
Bohan.and Pomeranz, 1960330) as being 'a great central valley,
poorly defined in the north, of decisive precision in the center,
and drowned by the ocean in the south". The Central Valley is an
area of intensive agriculture, but south of the Rio Bio Bio low
hills break up the landscape and the river valleys are deep.

The highest parts in the Andes and the Nahuelbuta are acces-
sible by ox cart in summer by way of the canyons that face the
Central Valley, but generally are inaccessible in winter. Bridges
span the rivers crossed by the principal north-south highway passing
through Malleco, while only ferries or fords are provided for the,

secondary roads. Some of the latter may be usable only in summer.

ll
Inhabited areas in the mountains often are accessible only by
horse or by foot.

A topographic transect (see Figure 2) across Chile and Argentina
at the 38th parallel serves to illustrate the location and eleva-
tions of the mountains and Central Valley in.Malleco and their re-
lationship to Argentina. There is a gradual slope to the conti-
nental divide in Argentina and the western slopes in Chile are re-
latively steep. The north-south direction of the Rio Bio Bio cre-
ates the broad valley between the front range in Malleco and the
continental divide.

Rivers.-- There are two major drainage systems in Malleco, the
larger Rio Bio Bio in the north and the Rio Imperial in the south.
The Rio Bio Bio courses in a north-south direction east of the
front range in Malleco, and drains all parts in the interior of the
Andes on.the Chilean side of the continental divide. This river
crosses the Central Valley in the Bio Bio Province (north of Malleco)
and enters the ocean at Concepcidn.2h0 kilometers north of the mouth
of the Rio Imperial. Drainage for much of the Central.Valley in
Malleco, as well as for most of the eastern slope of the Cordillera
de Nahuelbuta, is toward the northwestern corner of the province
where the land is about 60 meters above sea level. The Rio Vergara
receives waters directly from the front range of the Andes via the
Rio Malleco and Rio Renaico, and from the Nahuelbuta via the Rio
Picaiquén. The Rio Huequén and Rib Rehue receive tributaries from
the Nahuelbuta and high areas of the Central Valley and join also
the Rio Vergara near Angol. North of Malleco the Rio Vergara one

ters the Rio Bio Bio which eventually'flows into the Pacific Ocean

..a‘n,\

W‘u.‘

12

 

 

    

 

 

I
5
‘na
(1)
0’)
:4
CD ‘—
4.3
.3
“a
3
t
m 2
U)
8‘
£1
“..Centra1 Valley'me
- “:59..- . W was w::25:=r3:‘-:':23532-=:aés:2.53; r
ilometers 0 100 150 200

Figure 2. Transect across South America at 38° south latitude:
(1) Chile and Argentina; (2) Malleco Province, Chile.

13
near Concepcidn. The Rio Rehue and the Rio Huequén which drain
much of the Valley are muddy and slowbmoving compared to the clear,
rapidly flowing rivers, such as the Rio Malleco, which originate in
the front range of the Andes.

‘Drainage of the southern parts of the front range of the Andes
in Malleco is toward the southwest via the Rio Cautin; high areas
at the southeastern edge of the Nahuelbuta drain toward the south-
east via the Rio Quillen and Rio Chol Chol. These rivers join the
Rio Imperial (in Cautin Province) which.empties into the Pacific

Ocean.

Geology

The Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and the Cordillera de los Andes
have deposits of Andean diorite of the Middle Cretaceous. The
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta shows extensive areas of Pre-Cambrian
metamorphic sediments, whereas the Andes are composed mainly of
younger Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous sediments.. The foothills of
the Andes are composed of andesites and balsites. The adjacent
Central‘Valley is composed mostly of glacial sediments. The head
waters of the Rio Bio Bio arise from areas of continental sediments
and from Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic Quartaphyritic and
Porphyritic sediments of the Andean geosyncline. In the Central
Valley, river sediments parallel the river valleys in areas of
glacial sediments (Christi and Williams, 1950).

At the headwaters of the Rio Bio Bio, two lakes, Lago Icalma

and Lago Gallatué, are formed by the snow melting on the eastern

in
slope of the Cordillera de Litrancura and front range of the Andes.
Lego Icalma was reported not to freeze in the winter regardless of
the low temperatures and plentiful snow. The temperature of the
water flowing from the lake as it formed the Rio Bio Bio was 15°C.
in.February; it may be that thermal springs which are common in the
Chilean Andes contribute to the warmth of the lakes.

Soils.-- The distribution of major soil types in the Central
Valley in Malleco Province is diagrammed in.Figure 3. The data
for this map were obtained from records in the office of the agri-
cultural engineers of Angol, Chile. Brief descriptions of these
soils follow.

Nahuelbuta soils: Chains of hills in the Cordillera de
Nahuelbuta with slopes of more than 30%; colluvial origin;
top soil, clayey, dark brown, granular structure, rich in
organic material; useful only for forests, danger of erosion.

Mirador soils: Descriptive information unavailable.

Trintre soils: High hills in the Central Valley, more than.
15% slope; sandy clay, brownish-yellow, hard but friable;
poor soils in upper layers; useful for eucalyptus and pine,
erodible with poor land use.

Collipulli Lomos soils: Rounded hills, slopes greater than
15%, good drainage; glacial origin with sub-stratum semi-
consolidated; clayey with gravel, reddish, hard when dry
but friable; suitable for cultivation, erosion a problem.

Collipulli Cerros soils: Descriptive information unavailable.

Santa Barbara soils: Gentle hills, slopes h-10%, moderate ero-

sion with gullies on the greatest slopes, drainage good, no

 

71

 

   
      

:7 "7 20.110 5

'i Ce --rros
SLrta Barbara
' lictoria

Sclessific—d, on 1, J3 riaol e

i i unclassil led

 

 

 

scale
0 50 100 kilometers

I J I

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

'72 71

 

Figure 3. Distribution of soil types in Malleco Province, Chile.

 

16
alkalinity; volcanic origin, secondarily alluvial; yel-
lowishsbrown, muddy and fine, pH 6.2, top layer rich in
humus; suitable for cultivation. i
Victoria soils: Slightly undulating plain, erosion on slopes
along rivers; blackish, somewhat sandy, porous texture.
Angol soils: Alluvial plains by the Rio Malleco with slopes
of 2-3%, no alkalinity, good drainage; alluvial origin;
yellowish-brown, black when wet, muddy and granular, not
calcareous, rich in organic material; well-suited for cul-
tivation.

No information was available concerning the distribution of soil
types in the Andes. Soil samples taken from selected localities
also were analyzed by the Soil Testing Laboratory at Michigan State
University in 1963 (see Appendix 1).

Climate

The post-glacial climate in Chile reached its maximum warmth be-
tween 6,000 and h,ooo years ago (see Dunbar, 19u9:h57) and the last
dry period may have been as recent as 100 years ago (Auer, 1960:
533). Counterparts of the three main post-glacial periods in New
Zealand may have occurred in southern Chile (Godley, 1960:h65).

The first period had a severe climate allowing for grasslands in
the dying stages of glaciation; then followed a wet, probably warm
climate which accomodated a podocarp forest; and finally a period of

cooling when the present Nothofagus forest-grassland came into

 

ibBing. The distribution of relict islands of southern vegetation

17
such as the forest of Fray Jorge in Coquimbo Province, severed.
hundred kilometers north of the present northern border of the
southern forests, suggests that the climate in central Chile in the
recent past was colder and wetter than at present (Goodspeed, 19h5:
lh8). Today, a temperate climate prevails except in alpine regions.

The climate of the central regions of Chile may be classified as
Mediterranean, characterized by dry sunmers and rainy winters, with
the vegetation typically composed of small trees with coriaceous
leaves, and lacking epiphytes. The major factor influencing the
climate of Chile is, of course, the proximity of the Pacific Ocean.
Mean temperatures decline from north to south in Chile, and the
summers in the Central and South Central Regions are mild and the
‘winters are not cold, due to the moderating effects of the cold
Humboldt Current which parallels the coast of Chile from near ho°
south latitude northward. The characteristic cool, moist inland
breeze creates a 365-day growing season for much of the Central
Valley, The Rio Bio Bio appears as a natural boundary separating
the area characterized by warm dry summers and mild winters north
of the river from.the region of cool, wet summers and stormier‘winr
ters south of the river. 'Malleco Province has mild summers and
stormy'winters.

In.Malleco, the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta (between the Central
Valley and the Pacific Ocean) functions as a rain-shield against
the inland breezes, creating conditions in parts of the Central
'Valley in which rainfall and humidity are consistently lower than
on.the coast in.Arauco Province. Rain.forest conditions are ob-

served in the Nahuelbuta as clouds form and cool mist circulates

18
through the forests on the summit and western edge of this nouns
tain range.

The "front range" of the Cordillera de los Andes acts as a rains
shield to the parts of Malleco east of the front range. 'Winds car-
rying moisture from the Pacific Ocean deposit this moisture as snow
during winter months or as rain in summer, on the western face of
the front range. As seen from.the Central Valley, the Andes appears
as a solid wall of snow in winter and as a broken snowy skyline in
summer, with snow remaining the year around on the high volcanos
and protected high areas in the Andes. The eastern side of the
frontirange has little snow in summer except on the high and pro-
tected slopes. The lower limit of snowline in summer in Malleco
was estimated to be at 1,800 meters elevation on southern exposures.

In.the Central Valley, the prevailing wind during winter blows
from.the northwest bringing in moist air and resulting in the rainy
season. Occasionally, during winter, the winds shift and then
southerly Antarctic winds bring freezing temperatures and clear, dry
days to the Central Valley.

‘Weather observations were made at El Vergel between May lb and
July 2h, 1961. There were 33 days of rain, 15 of which were consecu-
tive, causing a moderate flood in the region. During this rainy
period, the wind came predominantly from.the north and/or west. Gen-
erally, the winds blew less than ho kilometers per hour, but on at
least four occasions, the winds gusted to an estimated 80 kilometers
per hour. Frequently, during these northern storms the sun shone
through the low, thin clouds. Heusser (1960:56h) reported similar

occurrences of storm winds ("frontal passages") from the north.

19
Following several days of steady northerly winds, there were periods
of calm when the winds shifted 180 degrees; on these clear days
there is an impressive sight of new snow glittering on the front
range of the Andes.

Between May 1).; and July 21;, 1961, there were 32 days which were
mostly cloudy with little wind when the sun appeared at least for a
short duration, and there were 7 days which were completely cloud-
less. On these clear days the average morning low temperature 6
meters above ground was ~2°C.; the coldest recorded was -7°C.

Frost stayed on the ground in the shadows until late in the morn-
ing at these times. During rainy periods, on the other hand, the
lowest morning temperature was 7°C.

At E1 Vergel, the maximum daytime temperature in winter generally
reached 11°C, and in summer occasionally reached 33°C.

Infomation about rainfall at the Laguna Malleco from 1956 to
1961 revealed that the driest months of the Andean area are December
and February and that May, June, and July have the most precipita-
tion (Table 1). The forest ranger at the reserve provided this in-
formation in 1961.

In summary, the climate in Malleco is affected by the moderating
influence of the Pacific Ocean. Winds generally blow from the coast
---from the northwest in winter, and southwest in summer-«creating
temperate conditions. There is a rain-shadow effect created on the
eastern slopes of the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and the Cordillera de
los Andes. Nearly all of the rainfall occurs in winter,.but snow

9

persists at higher elevations in the Andes in summertime.

20

Table l. Rainfall in millimeters at the Laguna Malleco, 25 kilometers
north of Curacautin, 980 meters elevation, 1956 through 1961.

 

 

Year Driest and wettest Amount per Total for Average per month

 

months month year (12 month basis)
1956 December 1h 2756 215
February h3
May th
July' 606
1957 February 0 3572 310
March 3h
July 777
August 76h
1958 December 0 3681 306
March 25
May 929
June 792
1959 ‘December h h118 3h3
November 26
April 772
July' 772
1960 February 2 2731 227
Nevember 75
June 725
July 161
1961 December 18 h12h 3hh
Feb. and Nov. 29
June 971

July 605

 

21
Vegetation

The derivation of the Chilean flora is not as clearly defined
as is the derivation of the mammals. According to Kuschel (1960:
550), the flora and some associated fauna (mostly insects) show a
close relationship (affinity) with flora and fauna in New Zealand,
Tasmania, Australia, New Guinea, South Africa, and the subantarctic
islands, suggesting that Antarctica has been an important center of
dispersion especially during the Cretaceous. Couper (l960:h99) has
suggested the existence of a land bridge between South America,
Antarctica, and the Australia-Malasia Region, but that the flora
may have dispersed £322.50uth.America to the other regions (from
evidence of past stratigraphic and geographic distribution of
Nethofagug and some groups of Podocarpaceae). On the other hand,
Good (196h:267) has suggested continental drift as‘a possible solup
tion to the distribution of southern hemisphere flora.

Vegetation zones in Chile have been described by various authors.
Mann (1960) divided Chile into climax.community types with moisture
gradients determining pre- and post-climaxes. Oberdorfer (1960)
used the floristic composition basis of the ZurichAMontpellier sys-
tem emphasizing the ecological-pedological-climatic factors to de-
termine the association. He pointed out that south of the Rio Bio
Bio and‘Rio Renaico which form the northern boundary of Malleco in
the Central'Valley there is a rapid change from.xerophilic to mesic
vegetation, but with the xerophilic forms persisting south of the
rivers in areas of low precipitation. Osgood (19h3) classified

Chile, excluding the Puna, as south temperate based on its climate

22
and fauna. He stated that in the transitional zone (which includes
Malleco Province) the southern (Valdivian) forests are represented
in some areas in the Cordillera de los Andes and Cordillera de
Nahuelbuta where humidity is high. Osgood.described the Puna Zone
in the Andes as excessively arid, high in altitude (above timber-
1ine), having greatly reduced fauna, and, between 360 south latitude
and the southernmost reaches of the continent, limited to isolated
peaks. None of the above authors described in detail the vegetation
of the transition region from the central xerophilic vegetation to
the southern humid vegetation.

Areas of the transitional zone and the southern zone now under
heavy land use once were covered by primeval forests (Oberdorfer,
1960 and Goodspeed, 1961:307) which stretched from the sea to the
Andean timberline. 0n the other hand, Stein (1956:156) suggested
that the forests that once covered the Central Valley may have de-
'veloped subsequent to the Spanish invasion.

Roble (Nethofagus obliqua) is the most characteristic tree of

 

Malleco Province, and occurs singly and in small stands throughout
the Central Valley; as scrub cover in some of the more arid regions,
such as on the eastern slopes of the Nahuelbuta; and in dense stands
in the higher, moist areas of the Nahuelbuta and Andes. Mann (1960)
considered pockets of this species north of 380 south latitude as
relicts of the northward migration of forests during the glacial
advances; normally this region is too arid to support the southern
forest types. I found, as did Oberdorfer (1960), that roble occurs

with broadleafed evergreen.trees typical of the southern forests,

23
as well as in almost pure stands in the drier regions of the Central
Valley north of 38° south latitude.
The distribution map of major vegetation types in Malleco (see
Figure h) was constructed from observations made in the field in
1960, 1961, and 1962. The vegetation types with corresponding

plates showing typical aspects are as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

Vegetation Type Plate
Araucaria-Nothofagus dombeyi lb
Araucaria-N. dombeyi / N. Eumili 11b
Nethofagus antarctica-grassland 6a
Nothofagus EEEEEETH' obligua ha
Nothofagus EEEEEEEE' dombezi 6b, 7b
Nethofagus obliqua la
Central Valley agriculture 2b, 3a, 3b, 8b
Broadleaf evergreen 2a
Rio Bio Bio Valley 5b

Alpine 5a

2h

 

73

72 71

 

V A

   
 

///'/}'/i/||' =7"i

38“ imuhmil

  

llllllllllllll
Illllllllllll

llllllllllllll
llllllllllllll
llllllllllllll
I],

////}'llllw//mmmuu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

l l
Araucaria-Nothofagus dombeyi~
Araucaria-N.dombeyi/N.pumilio
Nothofagus antarctica-grassland
Nothofagus alpina-N.ob1iqua
Nolthofagus alpine-N.donbeyi
IMI lflflm Nothofagus obliqua
""m"tnfl Central Valley agriculture
dlzgm Broadleaf evergreen

Rio Bio Bio valley
.... Alpine

     
 
 

   
   

 

scale
50

100 kilometers

.1

38

39

 

 

 

‘72 71

 

 

Figure h. Distribution of vegetation types in Malleco Province, Chile.

25

Cordillera d2 Nahuelbuta

 

 

There are three distinct vegetation associations in the
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta; their specific characteristics depend on
temperature, humidity, and other factors governed by altitude, to-
pography, rainfall, and land use.

The Eastern Slopes.-- The eastern slopes are in the rainrshadow
of the coastal range and are the driest areas in the mountains.
They are covered sparsely with low trees and shrubs, and exhibit
the effects of heavy grazing. Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) takes the
form of scrubby trees on these slopes at low (below 152 meters)
elevations; this tree gradually increases in size with higher ele-
vations, and is larger where land use is less. Other prominent
trees and shrubs on the dry slopes include: Baccharis sp., Colletia
sp., Lithraea caustics, Lomatia hirsute, Peumms boldus, Sophora sp.,
and‘gggi,molinae.

The dry eastern slopes are interrupted by streams, moist ravines,
and marshy areas in which are found the following: [233523 winteri,

Guevina avellana, Lomatia dentata, Nothofagus alpine, and Persea

 

 

lingue of southern forest origin. Cane (Chusquea sp.) is prominent

in the shrub level, and there are woody vines, including Boguila

 

trifoliata, Lapageria rosea, and Lardizabala biternata. In low,

marshy areas formed where streams meander through flat lands,

 

Myrceugenia spp. usually are dominant, with associated plants,
such as Cyperus sp., Eguisetum sp., and Juncus sp.
The National Park.- Due largely to the efforts of Dillman S.

Bullock and Elbert Reed, both of E1 Vergel, the Chilean government

26
in 1939 Purchased and set aside a 5,000 hectare portion of the
highest area of the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta as the "Parque Nacional
de Nahuelbuta". The land surrounding this area was "parceled" into
small farms. Since 1939, the vegetation in the park has remained
relatively undisturbed, except for a few cattle and occasional il-
legal cutting of trees. There, Araucarian pine (Araucaria araucana)

and Chilean beech forests of roble (Nothofagus obliqua)and coihue

 

(N. dombefl) are thought to be primeval, or nearly so. The park
provides a unique opportunity to carry out studies of vegetation
and animals in an environment relatively unmolested by man.

Roble draped with Spanish moss (Tillandsia sp.) is found through-

 

out the park (see Plate la) and species of Berberis are outstanding
in the shrub layer in the roble woods. The rodents m
longipilis and AconaemE 91293.5 , were trapped where Berberis
buxifolia (about 30 centimeters high) was abundant; it was thought
to be a source of food for Aconaem.

Trees and other shrubs associated with roble forests are the
following: £55.33 spp., PIER winteri, Embothrium coccineum,

Lomatia hirsute, Nothofagus a1 ina, N. dombeE, Ovidia sp.,

 

Pernettya sp. (or Gaultheria?) .

The higher areas in the park where collections of plants were
obtained and mammals were trapped are marked by evergreen forests
of Araucarian pine and large coihue similar in phy'siognomr to the
forests in the Andes (see Plate lb). These Araucarian forests are
often enshrouded in mist. Araucarian pine forms the uppermost can-
opy and coihue forms a tall (25 to 28 meters high) sub-canopy. The

trees are widely spaced and there is little stratification between

27
the canopy and the shrub level. Few saplings or small trees of
either species are present. There is a dense shrub cover of
Parnettye sp., and to a lesser extent Berberis spp. In these for-
ests, where the air is charged with moisture, Spanish moss grows
on the shrubs and roble, and more rarely on the branches of the
Araucarian pine.

Southern Sector.-- Tongues of southern forests extend into the
southern sector of the Nahuelbuta (south of about 380 south latitude)
in areas which have escaped clearing. A forest reserve, "Parque
Turismo", located near the h60 meter high roadway pass between the
Central Valley in Malleco and the coastal plains of Arauco, is
thought to be one of these pockets of southern forest. There is
a dense shrub cover of the cane (Chusquea sp.) and of a large fern

(Lophosoria quadripinnata), both reaching a height of four meters.

 

Only by cutting a path through the stocks of the plants can one
pass through.this dense vegetation. An herb layer is lacking and
the ground is covered with.litter.

The tallest trees (reaching 30 meters) in.the reserve are the
following: Aextoxicon punctatum, Daimyg winteri, Eucryphia

cordifolia, Laurelia spp., Nothofagus obliqua, Persea lin e,

 

and'Weinmannia trichosperma. Smaller trees, also in open areas

 

on the periphery of the reserve, include these: Aristotelia
chilensis, Caldcluvia paniculata, Guevina avellana, Lomatia

ferruginea, Myrceugenia planipes, Nothofagus dombeyi, and

 

Rhaphithamus spinosum. Other woody plants are the following:

Azara lanceolata, Baccharis sp., Fuchsia sp., Lomatia dentata,

 

Pernettza rigida, Ribes sp., and Ugni molinae.

28

Land use.-- In 1961, intensive lumbering of Araucarian pine and
coihue was being carried out on the western slopes of the Cordillera
de Nahuelbuta in Arauco Province. On the Eastern slopes and in the
southern sector, much of the original forest has been removed and
the land is utilized heavily for agriculture or grazing.

Wheat and corn are cultivated on slopes too steep for the use of
tractors for plowing; these areas are worked with oxen. At eleva-
tions of 610 meters and higher there‘are occasional plantations of
Monterrey pine (Ping radiata syn. P. insignis), as well as small
fruit orchards and truck gardens. There is some clearedcr thinly
wooded land where livestock, mainly cattle, are pastured. Roads
that pass through cleared and often burned-over lands in the south-
ern sector of the Nahuelbuta. often are lined with massive hedge
rows of blackberry (m sp.) and sometimes gorse (E135 europaeus)
and rose (R933 sp.) . These thickets harbor high populations of
rice rats (M longicaudatus) .

A long-time resident reported that his farm at Reltfn (see

Plate 2a) was covered with roble forests twenty years ago, and
that coihue, avellano (Guevina avellana) , ulmo (Eumhia

cordifolia), and pale santo (Weinmannia trichosperma) still were

 

being removed from the higher areas of his farm. Here in cleared
or otherwise disturbed areas the original vegetation was replaced
with blackberry, wild rose, cane, maqui (Aristotelia chilensis),

and lingue (£213.93 lingue), and, where there was sufficient, mois-
ture, canelo, or "Winter's bark" (m winteri) .A The most com-
mon rodents in these cleared areas were m loggicaudatus and

Akodon longipilis . ,

 

29
A study of a forested area and of an adjacent two-year old
burned-over area 7 kilometers southwest of Contulmo indicated the
early invaders of old fields in the region. Common as early in-
vaders of old fields were cane (prominent as a shrub level species

in mature southern forests), Muehlenbeckia sp., Plantago sp., Ribes

 

sp., Senecio sp., Ugni molinae, and a species of Cruciferae. The

 

copihue (Lapageria rosea) was found growing on the ground in the

 

open field and as an arboreal vine in the woods.

Central Valley

 

The Central Valley, averaging 25 kilometers in width in.Malleco,
lies between the Cordillera de los Andes and the Cordillera de
Nahuelbuta. The preponderance of cultivated fields (see Plate 2b),
pastures, and plantations of nonenative trees reflects the exten-
sive utilization of the land by man.

Central Valley Agriculture.-- A large portion of the land in the
Central Valley has been cleared and turned into large farm estates
where wheat and other grains, such as oats and corn, are cultivated
extensively, and fruit orchards are widely evident. Other important
crops are beans, beets, potatoes, lentils, and chick peas. live-
stock, mainly cattle and sheep, are raised throughout the Valley,
some in managed pastures. There are plantations of‘Monterrey pine
used for lumber locally or for the expanding pulp industry, and

groves of eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) used primarily for fuel.

 

These two imported species exhibit especially rapid growth in this

region which has a long growing season.

30

An obvious result of over-use of the land is extensive erosion
of the hills (see Plate 3a). Clearing and cultivation have been
carried out with little regard to good land use practices and hill-
sides have been worked or grazed to the extent that little vegeta-
tion remains to prevent formation of gullies. An increase in use
of land for pine plantations and eucalyptus groves is an encourag-
ing sign.

Open, untended, and usually overgrazed grasslands support scat-
tered shrubs, such as wild rose and pelfi (Sophora sp.), besides
various grasses and weeds. These areas (see Plate 3b) often are
rocky with boulders scattered throughout.

Few large tracts of natural forests remain in the Central Valley,

Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) the dominant tree in wooded areas, often

 

is mixed with other species of Nothofagus (135., rauli, N. alpine,
and the evergreen coihue, N. dombeyi) or with broadleafed ever-
greens, many of which are species common to southern forests. In

marshy areas species of’Myrceugenia are prominent trees.

 

 

Trees found in the Nothofagus forest associations include:

Aextoxicon punctatum, Aristotelia chilensis,‘Drimy§ winteri,

 

Eucryphia cordifolia, Guevina avellana, Laurelia spp., Lithraea

 

 

caustics, Lomatia dentata, L. hirsute, Myrceugenia spp., Ovidia

 

sp., Persea 132539, and Peumus boldus. The shrubs are: Azara

 

spp., Berberis spp., Cestrum.parqui, Colletia sp., Leptocarpha
rivularis, Rosa sp., Rubus sp., and Sophora sp. Prominent woody

vines are: Boquila trifoliata, Cissus striata, Hydrangea interrima,

and Lapageria rosea.

31

Cordilleraldeilg§.Andes

 

Due to differences in topography, elevation, and exposure, a
variety of vegetational aspects characterizes the Andean region.

In this portion of Chile forests of Nothofagus (alpine, obligua,

 

and dombeyi) characterize the Andean foothills (see Plate ha). The
front range is higher than 1,800 meters in elevation and has an at-
mosphere of moisture laden air from the Pacific Ocean creating con-
ditions suitable for the Araucaria-Nothofagus forests (see Plates
1b and hb). Black, sandy flats are characteristic of the high
passes (see Plate 5a). More xeric conditions exist along the Rio
Bio Bib and its tributaries (see Plate 5b) due to the rainshadow

effect of the front range. Nirre (Nothofagus antarctica)-grasslands

 

occur on the western slope of the continental divide above 1,060
meters elevation (see Plate 6a).

Andean Forests.- The Andean foothills (about 300 to 900 meters
elevation) east of the Central Valley, receive relatively heavy
rainfall and support luxuriant forests of the deciduous roble
(Nothofagus obliqua) and rauli (N. glpigg) in northern areas (such
as near Termas Pemehue, 20 kilometers east of Jauja, see Plate ha),

and rauli and the evergreen coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) in southern

 

areas (such as near Bafios Rio Blanco). These Nothofagus species are

 

mixed with a variety of broadleafed evergreens characteristic of
southern forests. There is generally a dense shrub layer including
cane, a woody, grasslike bamboo (Chusquea sp.) and barberry

(Berberis spp.).

32
Among the understory trees are these: Aristotelia chilensis,

Cryptocaria alba, Qgigye winteri, Guevina avellana, Lomatia dentata,

 

Myrceugenella epiculata, Persea lin e, Pseudopanax sp., and

 

'Weinmannia trichosperma. Shrubs include: Azara lanceolata,

 

 

Berberis spp. (heteriphylla, tri ona, and buxifolia), Colletia

 

sp., Pernettyg sp., and Ribes sp. WCody vines are: Boguila

trifoliata, Cissus striata, Elytropus chilensis, and Hydgangea

 

intergerrima.

0n the western exposures of the front range at 1,200 meters
elevation a few Araucarian pines are evident, becoming more prone
inent at higher elevations and climaxing in vast forests in the
altitudinal zone between 1,550 and 1,850 meters near the summit of
the front range (see Plate hb). Lenga (Nethofagus pumilio), ab-
sent from the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta, is a common forest assof
ciate of the Araucaria in the Andes. Chusquea sp., Berberis sp.,
Pernettya sp., and R3223 sp., are prominent shrubby species and
Spanish moss clings to the tree branches. Various grasses, herbs,
and ferns, along with ample litter, form a ground cover. Mammals
trapped in pine forests were Dromiciops australis, Akpdgg longipilis,
Netiomyg macrogyx, and Phyllotis micropus. Parrots are common and
feed on the pine fruit in late summer, and the striking Magellanic
woodpecker (Ipocrantor magellanicus) in found in some areas.

Stretches of dark volcanic sand separate forest stands on the
passes in the front range (see Plates hb and 5a). The vegetation
on these sandy flats consists of sparse grasses and herbs. Ctenomys
maulinus was trapped in sandy areas and denuded grassy slopes in a

manner similar to that reported for g. opinus in Peru (Pearson, 1959).

33

Coihue grows at lower elevations on the western slopes of the
front range than on the eastern slopes; roble and rauli (both
slightly xerophilic) grow at higher elevations in the raineshadow
on the eastern slopes than.on the western side.

The vegetation in the valleys of the Rib Bio Bio (see Plate 5b)
and its tributaries is similar to that of the western side of the
front range at 500 to 600 meters elevation. .552222 olivaceus, gen-
erally a rodent characteristic of dry areas, was taken in both
regions.

Nethofagus antarctica-grasslands.-- The roble forests in the

 

Rio Bio Bio valley and the Araucaria-Nothofagus (dombeyi and/or
pumilio) forests gradually give way to the filrre-grassland asso-
ciations (see Plate 6a) at higher elevations (generally above
1,200 meters). These relatively open areas extend north to south
along the broad slopes of the Andes to about 1,800 meters eleva-
tion (see Figure h). Windy exposures near the passes into Argentina
are covered mostly with grass. Local residents reported that the
high areas are used as pasture for cattle in summer.

Chusguea sp. and other grasses, and various herbs are common in
the‘fiirre-grasslands. Shrubs, besides hirre, include: Baccharis
ma ellanica, Berberis (buxifolia, heteriphylla, empetrifolia),

Colletia sp., Escallonia vergata, Ribes sp., and‘Wendtia gracilis.

 

Some‘fiirre-grassland stands at lower elevations appear to be the
result of heavy lumbering rather than of natural conditions. South-
east of Lego Icalma at about 1,300 meters elevation near the

Argentine border, pine forests are being cut by lumbering companies,

BA
and the cleared areas are invaded by'fiirre and grass. Individual
or groves of Araucarian pine are scattered throughout the fiirre-
grassland.

The Alpine zone is so rough, rocky, and steep that little life
exists there above the upper limit of the trees. This zone in
Malleco is discontinuous in that it is located only on the menus
tain tops. The mountain.vizcacha (Lagidium viscacia) is an inter-
esting inhabitant of the region.

Land use.-- (See also Conservation) During my travels into
various forested regions in the Andes I was disturbed at the cons
stant sight of smoke curling up from the landscape. I learned that
fire, generally out of control, was consuming the rejects of lums
baring operations. Uncut timber often is consumed before fires are
under control. One such area (see Plate 6b) was visited approxi—
mately three years after it had been razed by fire. Cane (Chusquea
sp.) was well-established in this area and Akgdgg longipilis was

common 0

35

Plate la. Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) forest in the Parque Nacional

 

de Nahuelbuta. Barberry (Berberis app.) is prominent in the shrub

layer, and Spanish moss (Tillandsia sp.) is common in the branches

 

of the trees. Dromiciops australis, 95232213 longicaudatus,

 

 

Akodon longipilis and Aconaemys fuscus are characteristic small

 

mammals. 27 kilometers west-northwest of Angol, 1110 meters

elevation.

Plate lb. Logs of Araucaria pine (Araucaria araucana) in the
Cordillera de los Andes. These are hauled by oxen.to roads
where diesel trucks transport the logs to lumber mills in
Chile or Argentina. 21 kilometers south of Lonquimay, 1,280

meters elevation.

PLATE 1

 

36

Plate 2a. Cleared lands in the southern sector of the

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) forests

 

once covered this area and, reportedly, coihue (Nothofagus

dombezi), ulmo (Eucryphia cordifolia), and pale santo

 

(Weinmannia trichosperma) still are being logged from higher

 

areas nearby. Common rodents in the brush in cleared areas

are szggmyg longicaudatus and Akodon longipilis. Relun, 152

 

 

meters elevation.

Plate 2b. A small farm in the Central Valley; This farm be-
longing to Araucarian.(Mapuchi) Indians living on the Rib Rehue
is characteristic of small landholdings in the Central Valley.

Nothofagus obligga may have dominated the original vegetation

 

where willow, poplar, and eucalyptus now are common. 6 kilo-

meters southwest of Angol, 75 meters elevation.

PLATE 2

.v‘
”5

”e" ‘M‘Iik

 

37

Plate 3a. An agricultural area in the Central Valley. Roble

(Nothofagus obliqua) forests formerly'covered these now eroded

 

hills in Malleco. Oryzomys longicaudatus is common in omnipre-

 

sent blackberry hedgerows. Near Los Sauces, about 100 meters

elevation.

Plate 3b. Pasture and pine plantations in the Central Valley.
These areas often are cleared of rocks for cultivation, and
rows of Monterrey pine act as windbreaks for the crops. The
original vegetation on this land likely was dominated by

Nothofagus obligua. El Vergel, 5 kilometers south of Angol,

 

150 meters elevation.

PLATE 3

 

38

Plate ha. Valley of the Rib Renaico in the foothills of the
Cordillera de los Andes. Blackberry and wild rose are visible
as brush on the overgrazed terrain and much of the land has been

cleared of the native forests. Pinus radiata and Populus gigs:

 

are growing where Nothofagus obliqua and fl. alpine in the past

 

were abundant. Jauja, hBS meters elevation.

Plate hb. Paso de las Raices in the front range of the
Cordillera de los Andes. The Araucaria pines (Araucaria araucana)

are taller and darker than the evergreen lenga (Nothofagus pumilig).

 

This forest growing at the edge of an old lava flow does not sup-
port a high density of rodents. 11.3 kilometers west of Lonquimay,

1,650 meters elevation.

PLATE h

 

39

Plate 5a. Paso de las Raices in the front range of the Cordillera
de los Andes. Ctenomys maulinus inhabits the deep, black sands on

flats, as well as adjacent slopes. Dromiciops australis, Akodon

 

longipilis, Notiomyg macronyg, and Phyllotis micropus live in the

Araucaria (Araucaria araucana) forests. 11.3 kilometers west of

Lonquimay, 1,650 meters elevation.

Plate Sb. Valley of the Rio Bio Bio in the Cordillera de los
Andes. Ctenomys maulinus lives in the deep alluvial soils;

Akodon olivaceus, Akodon longipilis, and Oryzomys longicaudatus

 

inhabit brushy habitats above ground. 20 kilometers southeast

of Lonquimay, 980 meters elevation.

PLATE 5

 

ho

Plate 6a. fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica)- grasslands at Lago

 

Icalma, headwaters of the Rio Bio Bio. A few Araucarian pine
(Araucaria araucana) are present, but the Antarctic beech, or
fiirre, a low shrub-like tree, is the prominent plant form.
Oryzomys longicaudatus, ékgdgn longipilis, and Phyllotis micropus
are found in the grass at the bases of the flirre, and Notiong

macronzz and Ctenomys maulinus inhabit burrows in open areas.

 

Lago Icalma, 1,190 meters elevation.

Plate 6b. A skeleton forest of coihue (Nothofagus dombezi) near
Voicéh Tolhuaca. A recent burn in this forest stand shows that
cane (Chusquea sp.) is an early invader of such disturbed areas,

along with the rodents 23122223 longicaudatus, Akodon lon i 1118,

 

and Akodon olivaceus. 9 kilometers north of Manzanar, 1,155

meters elevation.

PLATE 6

 

Plate 7a. Dromiciops australis. This marsupial becomes torpid

 

and attains a flexed position when exposed to temperatures below

5°C. for periods to six hours.

Plate 7b. A stand of coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) in the foot-

 

hills of the Cordillera de los Andes. Chusquea sp., a cane, is

abundant as forest underbrush where Dromiciops australis, 93252315

 

longicaudatus, and Akodon longipilis and Irenomys tarsalis were

 

 

trapped; Notiomzs valdivianus and Aconaemzs fuscus were taken in

 

underground burrows in the open grassy areas. Trails made by
Myocastor‘ggypug crisscross the marshy area. 25 kilometers north

of Curacautin, 980 meters elevation.

PLATE 7

 

ha

Plate 8a. Rocky pasture land in the Central Valley. Phyllotis
darwini was trapped under these rocks. Fundo Itraque, 5 kilo-

meters south of Angol, 152 meters elevation.

Plate 8b. Feces of Aconaemys fuscus. The winter accumulation

 

of feces at the entrance of a burrow of this fossorial rodent
exceeded 28 quarts. 27 kilometers west-northwest of Angol,

1,155 meters elevation.

TE 8

FLA

 

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAMMALIAN FAUNA
Composition and Derivation

Zoogeographically, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and parts of
Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador are located in the Patagonian Subregion
(Chilean subregion of Wallace, 1876) of the Neotropical Region.

For an overall view of the Patagonian mammalian assemblage, Simpson
(1950) and Hershkovitz (1963) may be referred to for an historical
approach~-Hershkovitz (1958) for zoogeographic affinities, and
Osgood (19h3) for the distribution of Chilean.mammals.

The living mammals of the Patagonian plateau and southern.Andes‘
(including Malleco Province) are descendants of early Tertiary mar-
supial, edentate, and caviomorph rodent fauna and progressive ele-
ments of Pliocene-Pleistocene carnivores, cricetine rodents and
artiodactyls (Hershkovitz, 1P633h2). The Andean highlands were,
and remain, a principal route for the dispersal of mammals, at
least in temperate South America. ‘An important ecological factor
in adaptive radiation, speciation, and extinction among recent
Neotropical mammals is the establishment of new temperate zone
habitats in the wake of melting glaciers (22.2}3.). 'The transition
between southern moist forests and more northern xerophilic savannah
which exists at present slightly north of Malleco, probably existed
considerably northward at the time of maximum glaciation. It may
be that there was a more varied mammalian assemblage in.Malleco
before the advance of the Pleistocene ice sheets. ‘For example,

cavies,'which occur commonly in the pampas of Argentina today,

h3

hh
may have crossed the low passes in the southern.Andes into Chile
(including Malleco) during a drier and warmer period, and may have
dispersed at least as far north as Coquimbo where there is a re-
lict of the southern forest (Forest of Fray Jorge), evidence of
the extent of the cool, moist climate of the past.

Genera.-- The mammalian fauna of South America was derived from
North.America by way of the Isthmms of Panama.over a long geologic
interval (Simpson, ‘gpflgit.). Following these introductions, a
great diversification in many of the immigrant groups resulted in
the evolvement of endemic mammals, while some others diversified
to a lesser extent and maintained closer genetic ties to their
northern Holarctic relatives. Accordingly, the Recent mammals
found in.Ma11eco include many strictly endemic Neotropical genera
and only a few which are also Nearctic. Twentyafour native gene
are (listed in Table 2) can'be arranged (according to Hershkovitz,
1958) as follows: h genera (2 of which are bats) as cosmopolites
(because they occur both in Neotropica and in Palearctica); 2

genera as Nearctic-Neotropical varicants (because they occur in

 

both areas but their exact geographic derivations are unknown);

2 genera as exourrent Neotropical regionalites (because they are

 

native to Neotropica but also have spread into Nearctica); and 16

genera as endemic Neotropical regionalites (because they have not

 

spread into Nearctica). Sixteen (67 per cent) of the Mallecan
genera are endemic in Neotropica while only 8 (33 per cent) occur
elsewhere. Of these 16, 11 are endemic to the Patagonian Subregion.
This high percentage is to be expected since this subregion has

the largest number of endemics of any subregion in Neotropica

(see Hershkovitz, gp._c_i_t.) .

1:5

Table 2. Geographic classification of native mammalian genera
in.Malleco Province, Chile.

 

 

Genera Cosmopolites Nearctic- Neotropical Neotropical
(no. of species Neotropical Regionalites Regionalites
in parentheses) Varicants (excurrent) (endemic)

 

MARSUPIALIA )
Dromicio (1 x*
Marmosa (1) x

CHIROPTERA

Mygtis (1) x

Histiotus (1)

Lasiurus (2) x
Tadarida ( 1) x

N

RODENTIA

1
1%???5 ) "

Notiom (2)
igmodontia (1)

Phyllotis (2)
Irenom (1)
Efifieomys (1)
Lagidium (1))
M castor 1
Octodon (l)
Aconaemyg (1)
Ctenomys (l)

CARNIVORA
Dusigygn (2)
Galictis (1)
Cone atus (2) x
utra 1 ‘ x
felis (2) x

 

iifififiiflfifii”

NH

ARTIODACTYLA
Pudu (1) x

TOTALS h 2 2 16

 

'* endemic to the Patagonian Subregion

1:6

Species.- There are 31 species of native mammals recorded in
Malleco Province, Chile. These species may have entered.Malleco
from the north via the coastal lowlands and the Central Valley or
via the Cordillera de los Andes; from the south via the Andes or
the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta; or from the east via low passes
in the Andes. Several species of mammals reach their southernr
most limits, or their northernmost limits (at least in Chile)
in Malleco Province. Seven species (23 per cent) of mammals
that reach their northernmost limits in mountainous regions in

Malleco are the following:

 

 

Dromiciops australis Aconaemyg fuscus
Netiomys valdivianus =‘ Conepatus humboldti
Phyllotis micropus Pudu pudu

 

Irenomys tarsalis

 

All are forest-dwelling species and are distributed in both
the Andes and the Nahuelbuta, but are absent from the open areas
in the Central Valley which separates these mountainous regions.
Hewever, the forested, hilly country in the Central Valley south
of Malleco in Cautin and Valdivia provinces seems to be suitable
habitat for the animals and possibly acts as a bridge between the
two mountain ranges.

Four (13 per cent) mammals that reach their southernmost limits

of distribution in.Malleco are the following:

 

Marmosa elegans Phyilotis darwini
Lasiurus borealis Octodon bridgesi

 

Of these species, Marmosa elegans seemingly is restricted to.

matorral (shrub) type of vegetation (see Mann, 1955:159-160)3

h?
Phyllotis darwini shows geographic variation within the province
in two widely diverse habitats; Octodon bridgesi appears rare,

occurring in pockets in the Andes only; and Lasiurus borealis is

 

volant. In addition, 11. elegans and Q. bridgesi reach their eastern
limits in Malleco ($3., seem barred from Argentina). Two species
of Mallecan manuals which have an extensive range in Argentina and

enter the eastern edges of Malleco via low passes are Eligmodontia

 

typus and Euneomys chinchilloides. In all, 29 (914 per cent) of

 

the 31 Mallecan species occur east of the Cordillera de los Andes
in Argentina (Neuquen Province); thus it appears that the Andes
in thisregion only slightly impedes the east-west movement of
mammals.

Climatic factors may be of greater importance than physical
factors in the dispersal of mammals in Malleco. Progressing
southward through Malleco and across the 38th parallel, there is
a transition from a warm, dry climate to a cool, moist one, while
the Central Valley becomes progressively more hilly and forested
with roble (Nothofags obliqua) except where cleared by man. Mam-
mals having their northernmost limits in Malleco once may have
had a wider distribution in the Central Valley before the clearing
of the forested hills. At least Marmosa elegans may have ex-
tended its range southward. into Malleco as the clearing of the
original forest took place. Twenty (65 per cent) of the maxmnalian
species which occur in Malleco occupy areas both to the north and
south of this province, while 11 (35 per cent) which occur in

Malleco are found either to the north or to the south. Based on

he
these figures, it would appear that climatic factors and, to a
lesser extent, physiographic factors, operating principally on
vegetation have influenced north-south distribution more than

eastdwest distribution.

Geographic Variation

0f the 31 native mammalian species found in Malleco Province,
6 are monotypic and 25 polytypic. Three of the polytypic species
demonstrate sufficient geographic variation to have more than one
named subspecies in Malleco. Populations of 11.(hh per cent) of
the Mallecan species belong to subspecies which occur in adjacent
Chilean provinces both to the north and south (see Table 3).
Eight (32 per cent) of the polytypic species belong to subspecies
different from those in the provinces north of Malleco, and thus
they are identified with more southern populations. Six (2h per
cent) have different subspecies in.provinces to the south, and
thus are closely identified with more northern populations. Four
of the latter 6 species are large, wide-ranging mammals while
all of the former 8 species are small animals and more restricted
in distribution.

Eight (32 per cent) species in the Andes of Malleco are sub-
specifically distinguishable from more eastern populations of
these species (in Neuquen, Argentina); on the other hand, 17
(68 per cent) are indistinguishable (Table 3). This relationship
corresponds with previously mentioned species distribution in

which there appears to be greater affinities between.Malleco and

 

NH HH w o
R N
H un
un . un
K H
um
N H
N H
N H
um um
N N
N N
an an
H
uh N
un
N
N
N
N an
N N
N K
N N
an
. N
H N

mndaoa
mamwmm momamm mafia“

sameness AoHoosoo mfiHMh
memoooos mmwaso mopmaoooo
ammo ammo maPoHHmc
mommoxhosoo mommwmw cohowmsn
msommHso cascades oohwfimmm

mfioagm mfimmfiwe MEOQGWE
0 00

noon: seesaw so
as oo mmmNoo_aopmmomnm
canon mfiomoma>.ssaofimmu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

amomnopom mooHOHHHSomHno mhsooqmm

 

mHHmmnsp mfiammnmp mNsomohH

Basses 2E3 homemade?”
mdmNp mmmNp mflvmooQEMfiHm

 

 

msnmfibamwmb mommasa > thOH 0
massages? machete aompmm
mammocom mmocsbaao mooomm

mama mHHHQHmeo co 0
ammfiafinm mspmosmowwmoa wmmoshho
msEHmmHmOHHH> monomfio mmhdflmmm

fidunhwb. mfl_w0HOD. mgfimm_

mommvcos mommwoos movoa mam
mflamoflso mflmooodho 3W La
caseonm mammoao mmoshmm
mfiamppmmm maamnpmom mmoHOfisonn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amsavcowmdv pmmo ..£psom one some: spoon on» o» sphom cap 09
one on mocabonm £909 0% moosa>onm hHmo moomwbomm .hflmo moomfi>omm

uoaooampsu ssooaamz

 

 

.noooflbopa someones as mamssmscooooaaoz obese: Ho mofioommnom mo oomoahsooo .m canoe

h9

SO
Neuquen than between Malleco and provinces in Chile to the north
and south.

There are but 3 species which show geographic variation within
Malleco Province: (1) Phyilotis darwini darwini Waterhouse lives
among rocks in the cleared lowlands in the Central Valley, whereas
'3. d. fulvescens Osgood occurs in the Araucaria forest of the

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta; (2) Akodon longipilis apta Osgood is

 

characteristic of the roble (Nothofagus obliqua) forests in the

 

Nahuelbuta and is geographically separated by the open lands of
the Central Valley from A.'l. suffussus Thomas living in the semi-

open fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica)—grassland of the Andes;

 

(3) Conepatus ghigga is separable into recognizable subspecies in
Malleco, but I know little of the differences in habitat prefer~
ences of the Andean form, g. g. mendosus Thomas, and the Nahuelbuta
form, 2. 3. china Molina.

A factor affecting subspeciation of these latter two species
is the Central Valley which appears to bar gene flow between the
populations of the species living in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta
and the Cordillera de los Andes. Also, the Central Valley, by
virtue of its different climate and vegetation, has allowed for
the development of a population of Phyllotis darwini distinct
from that of the Nahuelbuta forests of Araucaria pine.

The fact that populations of 1h (56 per cent) of the species
demonstrate geographic variation and are distinguishable either
from those to the north or to the south of Malleco suggests that

the area may be important in the speciation of mammals. This

51
distributional pattern seems to relate closely to the transitional
characteristics of the vegetation, 3.3., the northern xerophilic
vegetation in the drier climate interdigitating with the southern
mesic vegetation where greater rainfall occurs. In addition, the
Rio Bio Bio crosses Chile in Bio Bio and Concepcion Provinces
(averaging 50 kilometers north of Malleco) and may constitute
a barrier to the movement of some fauna living in the coastal
ranges and the Central Valley in South Central Chile, but not

to movement of fauna living in the Andes.

Species Diversity

The Neotropical Region has nearly twice the number of mammalian
species as has the Nearctic Subregion (see Hershkovitz, 1963).
However, the Patagonian Subregion (of which the Chilean Province
is a part) is the sector of Neotropica most impoverished in name
malian fauna. Malleco Province, as well as the entire western
coast of the temperate part of Chile, has a much less diverse
mammalian fauna than that of the Pacific Coast of North America
which has a somewhat similar climate and topography. For example,
the species density in Chile (including approximately'38o of
latitude, from 18° 5. to 55° 5.) is 63 native, nonmarine mammals
(Osgood, 19h3:h2-h3) while in the western part (east to the crest
of the Cascade Mountains) of the state of Washington (including
5° of latitude, from h5° N. to h9° N.), there are 6h native, non-
marine mammals (Dalquest, l9h8).

As a comparison, Malleco has 13 species of rodents and western

‘Washington has 22. Differences in the distribution of these rodents

52
in the coastal ranges (Nahuelbuta in Malleco, Olympic Mountains
in'Washington), the "central valleys", and the "high ranges" (the
Andes in Malleco; Cascade Mountains in Washington) are apparent
in Table h.

Factors which may have a bearing on the low species density
of Chilean mammals are as follows:

(1) The temperate region of Neotropica (including Argentina
and Chile) is not extensive and becomes progressively smaller
southward due to the shape of the South American Continent.

(2) The entrance of many mammals into Chile was probably by
‘way of low passes in the southern Andes since the higher northern
Andes and the northern Atacaman.Desert very likely formed effec-
tive barriers to many Recent silvan and pastoral species.

(3) Pleistocene glaciation on several occasions disrupted
resident mammals, especially in southern Chile, and probably con-
tributed to local extermination of many forms and prevented long-
continued colonization of the area, especially from the south.
The establishment of present day temperate habitats in southern
Chile (including Malleco) is fairly recent, and thus probably
there has not been enough time for extensive speciation.

(h) Chile, although not a true peninsula, is similar to one
in being narrow because of the Andean.barrier on one side and the
Pacific Ocean on.the other. In comparing the species density on
each side of the Andean backbone of southern South America, the
narrow space occupied by Chile on the west side supports only 63

species of native, nonmarine mammals while the broad space occupied

53

Table h. Comparison of species densities of rodents in.Malleco,
Chile, and western Washington (east to the crest of
the Cascade Mountains)

 

 

Location Total Distribution of species

number
Coastal Mountains Central Valleys High Ranges

 

Malleco 13 8 3 13
‘Washington 22 16 1h 17

Sh
by Argentina on the east side supports approximately 160 species
(extracted from Cabrera, 1958-61). Perhaps the low density of
mammalian species in Chile (and in.Malleco Province) may be partly
the result of the peninsula effect, as pointed out by Simpson
(196h:73), who found species densities on North American penin—
sulas lower than those for nonspeninsular areas of similar lati-

tudes and reliefs.

Mammal-Habitat Relationships in the Andes

More species of mammals occur in the mountainous regions (Andes
or Nahuelbuta) than in the Central Valley, and the Andean.fauna is
the richest, harboring at least five more kinds of mammals than
live in the Central Valley or Nahuelbuta (see Table 5). My'trap-
ping records show that the most ubiquitous mammal in Malleco was
93122513 longicaudatus and that the most restricted in distribu-

tion were Eligmodontia typus, Euneong chinchilloides, and Octodon

 

 

bridgesi.

Akodon.olivaceus was common in grassy areas throughout'Malleco.
Akodon longipilis, the most abundant species in mountainous regions,

preferred partiallyecut Nothofagus forests or brush-grasslands to

 

the virgin forests (see Population Studies).

Notiomys valdivianus, E. macronyx, Aconaemys fuscus, Octodon

 

 

 

bridgesi, and Ctenomys maulinus were restricted to habitats with
deep soils; of these only 9. maulinus was found in the extensive
open areas of the black sands of the high front range passes in

the Andes (see Plate 58).

Table 5. Summary of the occurrence-It of small mammals in relation

55

to habitat from trapping records

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cordillera Cordillera Central
de los de Valley
Andes Nahuelbuta
Species
U) U) (D
.0 o 8 +3 .c:
8 a w a a a
:3 H E a o
(7) I!) d (D (D O U) E)
w a a m a s ‘H '8
2? O to O :5 O f-‘a O E :3
m 3 -H o 3 h 3 m m m
H I G O Q) a H or!
I o o as u o .c: o o :4
o :4 h o e rs +9 #1 .p -p m
c: .0 h H c: .0 :1 .0 U) to O.
0H O ' O «'1 O O O (U (U or!
o. on: 22 :> a. on: to a: p. 3 a:
Dryzom longicaxfdatus x x x x x x x x I X
Akodon olivaceus x x x x x x I X x
Phyllotis darwini x x x x x x x x
Akodon longipilis x x X x X x
Dromiciops australis x x x x x x
Phyllotis microms x x x x x
Notiomyg valdivianus x x x x x
Aconaem fuscus x x
Irenongys tarsalis x x
Notiomys macrom x x x
Ctenomys maulinus x x
Octodon bridgesi x
Eligmodontia typus x
x

Euneom chinchilla ides

 

 

 

 

* I Abundant

x Present, but not abundant

56
To study the effect of altitude and vegetation on mammalian
distribution, mammals were investigated along a transect bordering
the road which winds from the Paso Pino Hachado on the Andean
slopes west of the continental divide downward to the floor of
the valley of the Rio Bio Bio. The treeless grasslands and rocky
soils at the 1,830 meter pass give way to fidrre (Nothofagus

antarctica) or cane (Chusquea sp.) thickets and bunch grass at

 

lower elevations. At approximately 1,650 meters, the soils be-
come deep and sandy. Below this, deep ravines are lined with
species of Berberis and Ribes and an occasional grove of Araucarian
pine breaks up the rolling landscape.

The investigation was carried out for two nights, using 30
snap traps at each of 7 localities separated by altitudinal inter-
vals of 90 meters (see Table 6). Eighty-three rodents (9 species)
were trapped in h80 trap-nights. In.general, the rodents were
well-distributed, although somewhat less numerous at the highest
and lowest stations. I have no explanation for the lack of catches
at the 1,650 meter trapping-station. Ctenomys maulinus was taken
in underground tunnel-sets of WMacabee" traps at all localities
studied, but is not figured into the totals since its "trap-night"
dinsity relative to other mammals taken in snap traps, is not
suitable for comparison.

Based on the snap-trapping records, Akodon longipilis was the

 

most widely distributed and most abundant species, totaling 52 per

cent of the catch. This animal was captured in grass or close to

clumps of Barre or cane. Most Phyilotis micropgg and 92222223

longicaudatus taken were trapped at the lower elevations.

 

57

Table 6. Distribution and numbers of small mammals trapped on.Andean
slopes west of Paso Pino Hachado, Malleco Province, Chile

 

 

Kilometers west of Paso Pino Hachado Per-

1.7 3.5 6.0 9.h 15.2 16.7 17.6 20.? cent

Species of
Elevation in.meters catch
1830 17ho 1650 1555 lh6o 1370 1280 1190

 

Akodon longipilis 3 6 - 8 1h 9 3 - 52.0

thiiotis micropus - - - 2 2 2 - 8.5

1
Oryzomys longicaudatus l - - - - 2 2 - 6.0
l

 

Notiomys valdivianus 5 - - 2 - - - 9.6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P'Euneomyg chinchilloides - 3 - 1 - - - - h,7
thiomys macronyx - - - 2 2 - - - h.7
Dromiciops australis - - - - 1 - - - 1.2
Eligmodontia_typus - - - - - - 3 2 6.0
Akodon olivaceus - - - - - - 3 3 7.3

TOTALS 6 1h 0 11 21 13 13 5
Ctenomysfmaulinus* 2 2 l 2 3 l l 2

 

 

*-Taken in underground tunnel sets of Macabee traps

58
Notiomyg valdivianus and E. macron , burrowers of similar habits,
were caught in the same trapline at the l,h60 meter elevation.
Euneomys chinchilloides seemingly preferred the higher elevations.

Eligmodontia_typus and Akodon olivaceus were found at lower ele-

 

 

vations where soils generally were dry; Eligmodontia was taken in

 

a sandy arroyo at 1,280 meters and on a dry, rocky hillock at

1,190 meters; Akodon olivaceus was taken on bare ground under the

 

shrubbery of Colletia sp., in the broad flat lands of the river
valley; and the Dromiciops australis was trapped in luxuriant veg-

etation near a spring.

Population.Studies

In.the course of field work, grids of traps were set in mea-
sured plots in various habitats in Malleco to determine (1) the
species of mammals present, (2) the relative abundance of these‘
mammals, and (3) the preferred habitats of the observed species.
Either Museum Special snap traps or live traps made of wood were
used; one trap was placed at each station with stations set 6.h
meters apart (a square 6.h meters, or 20.9 feet, on each side
squalsooh hectares or .01 acres). Densities of the sampled mam-
malian populations were calculated using the trap-removal method
(Hayne, 19h9) when snap traps only were employed, and by the
LincOln IndeX'method (Lincoln, 1930) when live traps were used
initially,followed by'snap traps. By using live traps to catch
mammals for marking, releasing, and recapturing, data on move-'
ments of individuals also were obtained (see Species Accounts). A

sumnary of the findings for the 19 plots studied follows.

59

Cordillera d_e_ 123 Andes

 

Plot l.-- An uncut coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) forest, h kilo-
meters west of Bafios Rio Blanco, 1050 meters elevation. In 5 days

(28 February to h.March) 5 Akodon longipilis were captured in a

 

grid of 30 live trap stations in a 0.12 hectare quadrat. All 5
animals were caught two or more times in live traps (set for 3
days), and released and recaught in the first 2h hours in snap
traps set terminally for h8 hours. In similar studies in other
Andean areas, 811.552922 longipilis captured also were taken in
the first two days of trapping. This suggests that all trappable
individuals of this species in a given area may be accounted for
'within h8 hours. In plot 1, the trap-removal method of Hayne and
the Lincoln Index method to determine rodent density are unsuita-
ble; the former method may show too high an estimate, while the
failure to take unmarked individuals in the snap-trapping period
rules out the use of the latter method. The trapping results
suggest that the entire population was caught. Therefore, the
total catch of 5 animals is the basis for making the estimate that
this area supported bl animals per hectare.

Plot 2.- A coihue forest area (about 600 meters from Plot 1)
from.which the largest trees had been removed permitting the .
growth of saplings and associated shrubs, such as Berberis sp.
The catch in a 0.12 hectare quadrat containing a grid of 30 snap

traps was 7 Akodon longipilis. All were taken in the first 2 days

 

of a 3-day trapping period (28 February to 2 March). The esti-

mated number of animals, based on the trap-removal method was 123

60
animals per hectare. However, if all resident mice had been trapped
in the first 2 days (as suggested in Plot 1) then the estimate
based on Hayne's method may be as much as twice the actual popula-
tion number. If the population estimate is based on the total
catch (as in Plot 1), the density is calculated at 58 animals per
hectare. The true density per hectare may be between the two es-
timates of 58 and 123.

Plot 3.-- A wooded area having large Araucarian pine (Araucaria
araucana), a shrub cover composed mostly of cane (Chusquea sp.),
and a ground cover of litter and debris, 17 kilometers south of
Lonquimay, 13h0 meters elevation. In February'(9-ll), 7 552222

longipilis and one Notiomys macronyx were snap-trapped. The es-

 

timated density of A. longipilis was 113 animals per hectare cal-

 

culated using the trap-removal method of Hayne. However, as sug-

gested for Akodon longipilis in the coihue forest in Plot 1, the

 

7 animals taken in 2 days may represent all of the animals living
in the area of the grid. An estimate based on this total catch
would be 50 animals per hectare. The actual number of animals per
hectare is probably between 50 and 113. No estimate was made on,
the number of Notiomyg macrogz§.present because of the low catch.

Plot h.-— An open fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica)-grassland area
500 meters from the forested area of Plot 3. A catch of 9 Akodon
longipilis in the first 2 days of a 3-day snap-trapping period in
February (9-11) indicated the density estimate per hectare based
on the total catch would be 6h animals.

Plot 5.- An area of low (to 1 meter),'widelyaspaced‘nirre

shrubs on the grassy banks of the Rio Bio Bio where it flows

61
from.Lago Icalma, 1,190 meters elevation. A catch of h Akodon

longipilis, 1 female;A. olivaceus, and 1 male Mus musculus was

 

made in.February (12,13) in a 0.06 hectare plot (a grid of 16

traps). Since A. longipilis was not taken on the third day of

 

trapping, its population can be estimated, based on the total
catch, like those in Plots 1-h, and would be 62 animals per hec-
tare. No estimate of density was made for the Mug or A. olivaceus.
Plot 6.-- An area of tall (to h meters) fiirre about h00 meters
from the site of Plot 5 on the Rio Bio Bio. A catch made during
the same trapping period as for Plot 5 consisted of 1 male Akodon.

longipilis, 1 femaleJA. olivaceus, and 1 female Notiomys macronyx.

 

Due to the low numbers caught no estimate of density was made for

these species.

Cordillera ES Nahuelbuta

 

Plot 7.-- An Araucarian pine forest in the Parque Nacional con-
taining a dense cover of shrubs of Pernettza sp., 27 kilometers
west-northwest of Angol, 1,170 meters elevation. A 0.1h hectare
plot with a grid of 35 snap traps produced in 2 days in February

(18,19) a single Akodon longipili .

 

Plot 8.- A partly cut over roble (Nothofagus obliqua) woods

 

in the Parque Nacional about 300 meters from Plot 7. No animals
were taken in the 0.1h hectare plot, but in a similar habitat near

the periphery of the study area, Dromiciops australis, Akodon

 

longipilis, and A. olivaceus were trapped.

 

Plot 9.- A meadow sparsely covered with Berberis spp., located

near forested areas of coihue and roble in the Parque Nacional.

62
No animals were taken in.February (18,19) in a grid of 50 traps in
a 0.2 hectare plot, but Akgdgn olivaceus was trapped near the peri-
phery of the grid.

Plot 10.- A coihue woods adjacent to Plot 9 in the Parque
Nacional, having Pernettyg sp. as a shrub cover. No animals were
taken in November (17,18) in a 0.2 hectare plot of 50 snap trap
stations.

Plot 11. A roble woods of widely spaced, gnarled, old trees in
the Parque Nacional about 1 kilometer from Plot 9. A southern house

wren (Troglodytes musculus) was the only animal taken in November

 

(17,18) in the 50 traps in the 0.2 hectare quadrat. Traps placed

nearby and in similar habitat caught Aconaemys fuscus and Akodon

 

longipilis.

 

Plot 12.-- "Parque Turismo", a forested area having a variety of
southern tree species at 0.5 kilometers west of Puréh, h60 meters

elevation. A catch in January (22,23) of 1 Akodon longipilis and

 

1 ground bird (Scelochilus rubescens) was made in a 0.1h hectare

 

quadrat of 36 snap traps. No density estimates were made. Animals

taken nearby in similar habitats were Dromiciops australis and

 

Akodon olivaceus.

Central‘Valley

Plot 13.-- A grassy'area having widely spaced shrubs, such as
Sophora sp., rose, and thickets of blackberry on the banks of the
Rio Malleco flowing through the Fundo El Vergel, 5 kilometers south
of Angol, 76 meters elevation. A h-day catch in.January (29,30,

and 31) and February (1) of 23 Oryzomys longicaudatus and 8

 

 

63

Akodon olivaceus was made on a 0.3 hectare plot with 75 snap traps.

 

During the first 3 days of trapping, 1h Oryzomys longicaudatus

 

were taken: 6 on the first day, 6 on the second, and 2 on the third.
0n the fourth day of trapping, 9 were taken. The catch (1h indivi-
duals) for the first 3 days only was used to calculate the popula-
tion.density by the trap-removal method of Hayne (l9h9) which gave
an estimate of 60 animals per hectare. The high catch on the fourth
day suggests a rapid influx of rice rats into the area and the like-
lihood that there is keen competition, at least for space, among
members of this group of rodents. Many catches on the fourth day
were young animals.

The density of Akodon olivaceus'was estimated from the total
catch of 8 animals using the trap-removal method, at 30 per hectare.
This estimated population density is about one-half that of Q.

longicaudatus. I found this same ratio between the two species in

 

other trapping situations of mixed grass and blackberry cover through-

 

out the Central Valley; 9, longicaudatus favors the shrub cover and
‘A. olivaceus the grass. Consequently, wherever there is ample cover,

especially of blackberry, 2, longicaudatus outnumbers A, olivaceus,

 

the former occupying the shrubs and ecotone between the shrubs and
grassy areas, and the latter staying in the grass away from the
thickets.

Plot lh.- Near Plot 13 in grass and blackberry thickets adja-
cent to the Rio Malleco, on Fundo El Vergel. A 3-day catch in'win-
ter (June 23-25) in the 0.3 hectare plot produced 36 gryzgmys
longicaudatus and 27.552222 olivaceus. 0n the third day of trap-

ping, 23 Q, longicaudatus were caught, 10 more than the total taken

 

on
on the first and second days of trapping; probably many of these
were imigrants. Also, many of the catches on the third day were

‘young animals. The density of resident _0. longicaudatus based on

 

the catches in the first two days, is estimated by the trap-removal
method as 69 animals per hectare. This density in winter is about
the same as the density (60) in sumner (see Plot 13). The density
of resident A. olivaceus based on the Hayne trap-removal method is
estimated to be 115 animals per hectare. As noted during the summer
trapping in Plot 13, _A. olivaceus in winter were also taken chiefly

in grassy areas and Q. longicaudatus were mostly in brush.

 

Plot l5.-- A 0.12 hectare marshy area, part of an oxbow lake
formed by the Rio Malleco at E1 Vergel, containing a dense growth
of rush (Scirpus sp.) and surrounded by blackberry. A 9-day live-

trapping period in April in which 5 m longicaudatus, 19

 

Akodon olivaceus, and 5 Rattus rattus were caught, marked, and

 

released was followed by a 3-day snap—trapping period (April 23-25) .

 

In the snap-trapping period, there was a catch of 1).; O. longicaudatus
(including 1 of the 5 previously marked animals), 1).: _A_., olivaceus
(including 2 of the previously-marked individuals).

The density of 9. longicaudatus was determined by means of the

 

Lincoln Index to be 173 animals per hectare. No estimate was made
on its density by the trap-removal method of Hayne, since 7 animals
were caught on each of the first 2 days of trapping and only 2 on
the last day. The density of A. olivaceus was estimated by the
Lincoln Index to be at 23).; animals per hectare. The density of _R.
rattus was estimated by the Lincoln Index method as 1:1 individuals

per hectare.

65

The trapping sites of the 3 species caught in this plot of mixed
marsh vegetation and blackberry brush were separated into two sec-
tors. The S‘R.‘r§ttug occupied about one-half the plot (mostly the
wet area of rushes close to the cornfield) and the Q, longicaudatus
and A. olivaceus were taken together in overlapping ranges in the
other half of the plot (drier area with mostly mixed grass and
blackberry). For movement and range data for these 3 species, see
ACCOUNTS OF SPECIES.

Plot 16.- A cherry orchard at E1 Vergel. A catch in November
(19-21) in a 0.19 hectare quadrat (a grid of h8 traps) of 6 Akodon
olivaceus indicated a density of 36 animals per hectare by the trap-
removal method.

Plot 17.- An open, grassy hillside at E1 Vergel (Los Alpes sec-
tion, 152 meters elevation), with Monterrey pine seedlings as high
as 20 centimeters and spaced about 1% meters apart. A catch in

May (l9-2h) of h Oryzomys longicaudatus, 11 Akodon olivaceus, and

 

 

1 male Phyilotis darwini was made in a 0.19 hectare quadrat. Using
the trap-removal method, the density per hectare of Q, longicaudatus
was estimated to be 23 animals and of;A. olivaceus to be hh animals.
The absence of brushy cover (as in Plot 13) may be the reason for

the low number of g. longicaudatus present.

 

Plot 18.-- A steep, grassy slope of about 300 on the Fundo Itraque
approximately 5 kilometers south of Angol, 137 meters elevation.
Berberis sp., Sophora sp., Lithraea caustics, Peumus boldus, Hypericum

perforatum, and Plantago sp. were prominent plants in the grassy parts;

 

a rocky cliff formed a barrier on the rim on the hill. A catch in
Nevember (25-27) of 6 Akodon olivaceus was made in a 0.32 hectare

plot.

66
Using the trap-removal method, the density was determined to be 22
animals per hectare.

Plot 19.- A hillside dominated by olivillo (Aextoxicon punctatum),

 

but also having roble (Nothofagus obliqua), lingue (Persea lingue),

 

 

and maqui (Aristotelia chilensis), 10 kilometers west of Galvarino,

 

61 meters elevation. A catch in.December (5,6) of 2 Akodon longipilis,

 

1 A, olivaceus, and l Oryzomys longicaudatus was made in a 0.12 hec-

 

tare quadrat of 30 trapping stations. Density estimates were not
made.
Summaryvgf Plot Data

Rodents taken in 6 Andean plots were: Akodon longipilis, Akodon

olivaceus, Notiomys macromyx, and Mus musculus. Population density

 

 

 

estimates per hectare for A, longipilis were hl individuals in an

 

uncut coihue forest (Plot 1); 58 (estimated to be between 58 and 123)
individuals in a partlyhcut coihue forest (Plot 2); 50 (estimated
between 50 and 113) individuals in an Araucarian pine forest with
Chusquea undergrowth (Plot 3); and 6h (estimated between 6b and 176)
individuals in open fiirre-grassland (Plot h). Due to low numbers
taken, no density estimates were made on the other rodents. It

appears that Akodon longipilis is the principal trappable rodent

 

in the Andean area. It was trapped in most habitats, but was most
numerous in brushy, cutover areas.

Only'A. longipilis was caught in the 6 plots (nos. 7-12) in.the

 

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta, although 3 other species were taken nearby.

The small catch allowed for no population estimates.

67
The rodents trapped in plots in the Central Valley were: 93232223

longicaudatus, Akodon olivaceus, Akodon longipilis, and Rattus rattus.

 

Akodon longipilis was taken only in a southern forest situation

 

(Plot 19) dissimilar to the open, agricultural land generally found

in the Central Valley; erzgmyg longicaudatus and A, olivaceus were

 

taken together where grasslands were surrounded by blackberry thick-
ets (Plots 13, 1h) while a marshy area (Plot 15) surrounded in part
by blackberry bushes supported the greatest density of these two
rodents (see Table 7). The specific trap sites in Plots l3 and 1h

showed that Q, longicaudatus has a preference for brushy areas and

 

Akodon olivaceus for grassy situations. Akodon olivaceus appeared

 

able to live in either brushy or grassy situations, whereas 9.

longicaudatus was absent from grassy situations (Plots 16 and 18)

 

with no nearby brush.

Conservation

Soil, water, forests, grasses, and wildlife are renewable re-
sources which, with wise management, may be both used and conserved.
However, these resources are diminishing rapidly in Malleco. In
the Central.Valley, poor choice of land for agriculture, with sub-
sequent clearing for plowing and ultimate failure of crops has pro-
duced erosionpmarked hills which were once covered with roble

(Nothofagus obliqua) forests (see Plate 3a). Along with the loss

 

of trees and water-holding capacity of the soil is the loss of cover
and food to sustain wildlife.
In the mountainous areas of Malleco, forests of the unique and

beautiful Araucarian pine (Araucaria araucana) and the majectic

 

68

 

 

 

 

Table 7. Estimated densities per hectare of small mammals taken
in the Central Valley based on quadrat studies
Plot no. Habitat Date QEZEEEZE Akodon
, longicaudatus oITVEEEus

l3 grass & brush Jan. 30 60 30 1
1h " " June 2h 69 115

15 marsh April 2; 173 2 3h

16 orchard Nov. 20 0 36

17 grass May 22 23 hh

l8 grass,some brush Nev. 26 0 22

 

69

coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) are being removed by lumbering prac-

 

tices in which there is little attempt to cut selectively or to
replant trees. Uncontrolled fire often'burns the uncut trees and
leaves areas unsuitable for many kinds of wildlife. As the forests
disappear, the native forest animals, such as the Octodont rodents
that live only'under these great trees, also are disappearing. The
preservation of these interesting rodents may be of less interest
to the campesino attempting to eek a meager living from the land
or to the lumberman.than.to the student of natural history, but at
least the large lumbering firms exploiting the forests of Malleco
should consider the future generations of Chileans and try to pre-
serve a few wilderness tracts where one might glimpse a fleeting
form of a pudu, or find the track of a puma, or hear the hollow
clack of the Magellanic woodpecker resounding like a woodsman's

ax in the forest.

The constant hunting pressure on the chills and culpeo (Dusicyon
spp.) probably has contributed to the increase of the European rab-
bit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and European.hare (Lgpu§.europaeus),
to the detriment of crops. The otter (Lutra provocax) has disap-
peared from all the riverways in.its former range in Malleco, per-
haps within the past five years. Also, the Chilean pigeon, "torcaza"
(Columba araucana), a noted game bird, is all but extinct. The

huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) is extirpated from its former range

 

in the Malleco Andes and the guanaco (Lama guanicae) is gone from

 

its probable former range throughout the Province.
There is some evidence that the trend is changing. In a recent

article by Buchinger (1965:37), which reviewed the conservation

70
problem in.Latin America, Chile appeared to be one of the most ac-
tive countries in Latin America in developing a national park system.
In Chile, at-least 19 parks are proposed with the program orienta-
tion emphasizing scientific research and tourism. Malleco Province
has three national parks: Parque Nacional de Nahuelbuta (approxi-
mately 1,200 meters elevation), Parque Nacional de Tolhuaca (25 ki-
lometers north of Curacautin, 1,050 meters elevation), and Parque
Turismo (15 kilometers east of Purén, h60 meters elevation). ‘Each
of the former two parks has a resident forest ranger or administra-
tor. In addition, a proposed dam on the Rio Malleco at Collipulli
‘will create a lake for agricultural irrigation and recreation.

To make a preliminary inquiry about hunting and the use of wild-
life by'people living in Malleco, questionaires with stamped return
envelopes included, were mailed to 115 members of the Hunting Club
of Angol on 30 Nevember 1961. An additional 10 persons met during
several field trips in mountain areas were interrogated, using the
questionaire as a guide. I wished to learn which animals were hunted
most, of what commercial value was the kill, and what were the imr
pressions of the hunters regarding the change in abundance of cer-
tain game animals. Only 19 questionaires were returned by mail, an
insufficient number to give a good cross section of attitudes and
local philosophies with respect to wildlife, but some of the data
obtained were interesting.

The participants classified themselves in the following groups:
1 student, 1 doctor, 1 service man, 1 citybdwelling farmer, 2 tea-
chers, h merchants, h supervisors of laborers, 5 laborers, and 11

rural campesinos. The city people hunted an average of 5.2 hours

71

a day, 3.9 days a month, whereas the country people averaged 6.7
hours a day, and h.8 days a month hunting. Twelve of the 19 urban
people owned double-barreled shotguns, commonly .16 ga. (made dur-
ing the years 1930, 19h6, 1950, 19Sh, 1960), whereas of the rural
folks, 1 had a rifle, and another had a mussle—loading shotgun.
(It was common in the country to see muzzle-loaders.) Snares were
most commonly used by‘country'people to secure game, and dogs and
steel traps were also used. 0f the city people, h supervisors of
laborers spent the most money, a total of $30.00 (U. 8. equivalent)
per month on ammunition, while the 10 farmers spent the next high-
est total of $3.90 per month.

None of the rural campesinos hunted solely for sport, but sold
or otherwise used their catch, whereas 1h of the city people hunted
for sport only; none of the country people had hunting permits but
11 of the citybdwelling hunters had them. Nine of the townspeople
had dogs which were used exclusively for hunting, whereas all the
rural folks had dogs but none used them solely for hunting.

None of the city people sold the meat of animals hunted, but farmers
sold meat of the rabbit for $0.25 (U. S. equivalent) and the meat
of the hare for $0.50. Hides of nutria (Myocastorlggypus) and cul-
peo (Dusigyon culpaeus) were sold on occasion by farmers. (Current-
ly, there is no bounty on the culpeo.) Skins of hares were sold by
farmers to merchants in towns for $0.15 and $0.25 each; rabbit skins
sold for 80.09 and $0.10 each.

Some birds sought by hunters in Chile are not known in the United
States as game animals. The following list includes the total catch
in the 3 months prior to distribution of the questionaire (disregard-

ing hunting season) and is followed by the number (in parentheses)

72
of hunters who reported making kills: Chilean robins (Turdus

falklandii), hOh (10); eared doves (Zenaidura auriculata), 336

 

 

(9); parrots (Enicognathus leptorhynchus), 160 (3); tinamous

 

(Nothoprocta perdicaria), 205 (10); introduced California quail

 

(Lophortyx californica), 15 (3); snipe (Capella paraquaiae), 20

 

 

(1); and various ducks, no (5). The following mammals were taken:
European hare, 75 (7); European rabbit 2&6 (5); culpeo, 5 (2).

Observations and impressions of hunters indicated the following
changes in abundance of certain animals during the past 15 years.
Everyone agreed that the Chilean pigeon was nearly extirpated; 2
people reported a decrease by 50 per cent in the dove and 5 reported
an increase of from 1 to 2 times; for quail, between 50 per cent
decrease and 2 times increase was reported; all agreed on a decrease
of from 50 to 25 per cent in parrots; a decrease of from 50 to 25
per cent was reported for snipe; an increase of from 1 to 3 times
was reported for the tinamou; the red-breasted meadowlark was re-
ported to have increased 3 times; the European rabbit was reported
to have increased from 2 to 5 times; for European hare a decrease
of from 50 to 25 per cent was reported by 9 hunters, while 3 re-
ported an increase of up to 2 times; and 7 reported an increase in
the culpeo.

From the preceeding statements it appears that the game sought
by Chilean hunters does not resemble the big game such as bear or
moose of North American hunters. The largest wild animal in.Malleco
is the small puma weighing about 25 kilograms. The pudu, a poten-
tial game animal, is too rare to be sought actively. Rabbits and

hares are the only game mammals in Malleco which can be taken in

73
large numbers. The tinamou is the game bird most actively sought,
'with robins, doves,quail, and parrots taken in lesser numbers.
Lakes harboring duck in Malleco are relatively inaccessible to the
game hunter.

The tinamou will probably continue to be the favorite game spe-
cies. Agricultural practices create waste areas adjacent to crop-
lands, providing cover near a food supply for rabbits and hares,
thus helping maintain high populations of these game animals.
,-1Th3 problem of conservation of resources is a matter of education
7 and law enforcement, the goal of which could be championed by the

popular "Club de Caza" in many of the towns throughout Malleco.

CHECK-LIST OF THE RECENT MAMMALS

The following is a list of 39 kinds (species and subspecies) of
wild mammals belonging to 36 species, 28 genera of 1b families of
6 orders living today in.Malleco Province, Chile. These include
31 native species and 5 introduced species (each marked with an
asterisk). Six other species that have not been reported from

Malleco but may occur there are listed following the ACCOUNTS OF

SPECIES.

Order MARSUPIALIA--marsupials

Family“Didelphidae---opossums

 

Dromicio s australis australis monito del monte
(P1511111E ppiT
Marmosa ele ans soricina mouse opossum; llaca
ilippi

Order CHIROPTERA~--bats

Family Vespertilionidae--common bats

 

Igotis chiloensis chiloensis Chiloe’ bat; murcie’lago oreja
(waterhouse) de rat6n
Histiotus montanus montanus murciélago orejudo

 

(Philippi and Landbeck)

Lasiurus borealis varius (Poeppig) red hat; murciélago colorado

 

Lasiurus cinereus villosissimus hoary bat; murciélago gris

(Ceoffroy)
Family Molossidae---free-tailed bats

Tadarida brasiliensis (Geoffroy) free-tailed bat; murciélago comun

 

7h

75

Order LAGOMDRPHA~--hares, rabbits and pikas

Family Leporidae--hares and rabbits

Lepus europaeus Linnaeus*
Oryctolagus cuniculus Linnaeus*

 

European hare; liebre

European rabbit; conejo

Order RODENTIA---rodents

Oryzomys longicaudatus philippi
(Landbeck)

 

Akodon longipilis apta Osgood

 

Akodon longipilis suffusus Thomas

 

Akodon olivaceus_pencanus
(Philippi)

Netio macron
(Thomas

Notio valdivianus valdivianus
(PfigippiT

Eligmodontia typus typus Cuvier

 

vestitus

 

 

Phyllotis darwini darwini
Waterhouse

Ph llotis darwini fulvescens
Osgood

Phyllotis micropus Waterhouse

Irenom tarsalis tarsalis
(FEE-113131)

Euneomys chinchilloides_petersoni

 

 

 

 

J.A. Allen

Mus musculus Linnaeus*

 

Rattus rattus (Linnaeus)*

 

Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout)*

 

Family Cricetidae---native rats and mice

lauchita de los espinos

ratoncito lanoso

ratoncito lanoso

ratoncito olivaceo

mole mouse; rat6n topo,
tunduco

mole mouse; ratdn topo de la
selva, tunduco

laucha sedosa

/
leaf-eared mouse; lauchon
orejudo

leaf-eared mouse; lauchdn
orejudo

lauchon de pie chico

laucha arborea

rata sedosa

Family Muridae---intr0duced rats and mice

I .
laucha domestics

black rat; rata de las casas,
ratdn

./
Norway rat; raton, rata de
acequias

76

Family Chinchillidae---vizcacha and chinchilla

 

Lagidium viscacia sarae mountain vizcacha; vizcacha
Thomas and St. Leger

Family Capromyidae---nutrias
Mygcastor coypus coypus (Molina) coipu, coypu, coipo
Family‘0ctodontidae---degus

Octodon bridgesi Waterhouse Bridges' octodon; degi de
los matorrales

Aconaemys fuscus fuscus waterhouse rock rat; tunduco
Family Ctenomyidae---tucu tucu

Ctenomys maulinus brunneus Osgood tunduco, tuco-tuco del Maule

 

Order CARNIVORA---carnivores
Family Canidae---wolves, coyotes and foxes
Dusicyon culpaeus culpaeus (Molina) Andean wolf; culpeo

Dusicyon griseus domeykoanus pampa fox; chilla
(Philippi)

 

Family’Mustelidae---weasels, skunks and allies
Galictis cuja cuja (Molina) grison; quique, hurdn

Conepatus chinga chinga (Molina) Chilean skunk; chingue comun

 

Conepatus chinga mendosus (Molina) Chilean skunk; chingue 00min

 

 

Conepatus humboldti Thomas Patagonian skunk; chingue de
Magallanes
Lutra provocaszhomas otter; huillin

Family'Felidae---cats

 

Felis concolor araucana 05good Chilean forest puma; puma, ledn
Felis guigna guigna.Molina guifia, gato montéz

 

Order ARTIODACTYLA---even-toed ungulates
Family'Cervidae---deer

Pudu pudu (Molina) pudu, venado

ACCOUNTS OF SPECIES

Rata, Monito del monte

Dromiciops australis australis (F. Philippi)

 

Distribution.-- Forested areas in the Cordillera de la Nahuelbuta
and Cordillera de los Andes, above 360 meters in elevation and be-
low tree line.

Remarks.-- Osgood (l9h3:h8) considered this subspecies restricted
to the 'Valdivian.Forest Districtu from the higher parts of the
Cordillera de la Nahuelbuta west to, and beyond, the Argentine-
Chilean border in the Andes. Moist, forested areas, at least in
Malleco Province, appear to be the preferred habitat of this small
opossum, although it is not confined to this habitat. This marsu-
pial was found in.Araucaria-NOthofagus dombeyi forests, N. obliqua
woods, N. obliquafifl. dombeyi forests, as well as in localized
wooded areas having evergreens, such as m m, Guevina

avellana, Persea lingue, Myrceugenia spp., and Drimys winteri,

 

 

 

which are characteristic of southern forest. Cane (Chusquea sp.)
thickets in these forested areas are likely places to trap Q.
australis.

Adults caught in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta average slightly
larger in several measurements, especially in length of tail ver-
tebrae and in condylobasal length, but somewhat smaller in length
of head and body, than specimens of similar age taken in the
Cordillera de los Andes (Table 8). There are no significant color

differences between skins from these two mountainous areas.

77

 

as.emus.oav m.mw
AH.m-a.s~ a.;
Am.maum.aav o.ma
As.oaus.sav o.mH
Am.sw-6.mmv e.mm
Aom-aav s.me
AoN-oHV m.aa
Amaa-oev ~.ee

Amaaummv m.aoa
aueHsoo oNJMHV

mooc< moa on mmoHHHonoo

Aa.mm-m.amv H.sm
aa.e-m.sv e.e
Ae.ma-e.aav H.NH
Ae.ee-o.sav o.me
Aa.e~-m.mmv s.om
Aom-mav o.ee
Aom-eav e.ma
Aoaa-aoav a.eoe

8263 m .81..
7~usaseo ow

oesoaossoz so ehoaaeoeoo

eases:

opossum Hmpwnhopopmw swoon
snowman ofiopmmz

:powonn ofipmsomhn

newcoa Hmmmpoahomou

sopo: Scum use no pnmflom
pooo seas mo season
omhpophob Hemp Mo zpwcon

hoop one been 90 npmcmn

 

D

 

oaflno aoofi>oam oooaamz_somm mflHmApmom mdofloflsoun mo mpmoeohsmmos eschews one smouo>< .m canoe

78

79
Based on the study of 27 skulls, and following Tate (1933)

with modification, 22 were judged to be adults (Mh present, P3
at least as high as P2); 3 were young adults (Mh unerupted, P3
at least emerging); and 2 were juveniles (Mh unerupted, M3 just
emerging, P3 deciduous). Of the total trapped, one-third were
females; one taken in summer (21 December 1960) had in its mar-
supium 2 young measuring 8.0 mm and 8.2 mm in length.

I found no nests in trees as reported by Mann (1958:209-213)
in his study of the life history of 2, australis, but I did find
a nest in a thicket of cane (Chusquea sp.) which had been bent to
the ground by a fallen tree. One animal was trapped in front of
a burrow which opened onto a dry slope next to a stump of an old

roble (Nothofagus obliqua). The burrow averaged 10 cm in diameter

 

and extended for 76 cm sloping downward slightly before dividing
into two separate smaller tunnels of undetermdned length. No
nests were found.

Mann (1955:159-160) hypothesized that when the southern forest
receded.postoglacially and was replaced by the bush-like 'mattoral'

which was inhabited by Marmosa elegans, there must have been a con-

 

sequent decrease in abundance of the previously established 2,
australis. My trapping results indicated that the latter marsu-
pial may be more abundant in Malleco now than when Osgood and
Sanborn traveled there in.1923-2h and in 1939, and, based on all

reports which I received, there is more open land in the area to-

 

day than previously. I trapped no Marmosa elegans in Malleco

whereas 33 2, australis were obtained. Dromiciops were trapped in

 

association with other small mammals, such as Oryzomys longicaudatus,

 

80

Akodon longipilis, A. olivaceus, Notiomys macronyx, N. valdivianus,

 

 

 

 

Phyllotis micropus, Irenomys tarsalis, and Octodon bridgesi. Near

 

 

Troyo, two marsupials were captured on the third day of trapping on

a steep, rocky, moist slope among the roots of a cedar tree in

 

traps which on the first two days caught only'Oryzomys longicaudatus.
A similar sequence was obtained at 15.2 kilometers west of Paso Pino

Hachado and 19 kilometers south of Lonquimay where two A, longipilis

 

were trapped before 2. australis was finally snared. Perhaps D.
australis was shy of foreign objects placed within its home range,
or perhaps the other animals were more aggressive in their search
for food.

Mann (gg.git.:l63) found that these marsupials hibernate when
cold temperatures prevail and food is scant. Animals which I cap-
tured and kept alive in cages and exposed to the nighttime cold
temperatures in the same region in which they were trapped, would
attain a flexed position (see Plate 7a). If early morning temper-
atures dropped to h.5°C or lower, the animals' bodies became stiff,
and quite cool to the touch. After being placed in my shirt pock-
et, they emerged from their torpor, finally crawling out of my
pocket and becoming quite active.

I did not notice a disagreeable odor when the live animals were
disturbed by handling as reported by Mann (gp.git.:l66), nor did
handling livetrapped animals provoke aggressive behavior. At
night, or when left unmolested for a period of time, some indivi-
duals made soft buzzing noises.

Specimens trapped with Museum Special traps often showed a

81

great capacity for survival by not being killed instantly by the
snap traps. Each of three animals with damaged backs lived for
two days before being sacrificed. Another animal withstood at
least 30 hours with its head and neck held in a trap. The same
animal also survived an ocean trip back to Michigan.

Cabrera and Yepes (19h0:h6) reported interesting and fearful
superstitions which natives have concerning this marsupial, but I
found that in Malleco Province, it is generally unknown to local
residents. Those who did know it were unafraid of it. "Rate"
(cf: “laucha", mouse; and "raton', rat) was the name used locally
for the animal.

Three live animals were brought via ship to the United States
in the confines of a small, covered basket. Food given these an-
imals during the voyage consisted of oatmeal, potato, powdered
milk mixed with canned peach syrup (the animals either lapped this
mixture from a dish or were fed the concoction with an eye dropper),
plum, pear, watermelon, applesauce, blackberry, and hamburger. In
nature, these animals prefer larvae of Arthropods and eat whenever
food is available (Mann, 1955:163). After arriving in Michigan in
late July, one of the animals weighing 26.5 grams was given known
quantities of ham and weighed each day for 5 days. It ate an aver-
age of h.l grams of ham daily and consumed an average of 6 cc of

water. Its weight increased by 3 grams during the 5 days.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 33, from: 27 Km. NW Angol, 1110 m.,
2; 27 Km. NW Angol, 1170 m., 1; 9 Km. W Angol, 685 m., 3; 7 Km.'w

Angol, 53h m., 1; 13 Km. SE Contulmo, h27 m., 1; 11. Km. E Jauja,

82
610 m., 3; Laguna Malleco, 1050 m., 1; 17 Km. N Curacautin, 1035 m.,
1; Rio Ranquil, 1370 m., 1; h Km. NE Troyo, 1370 m., l; Troyo,
980 m., h; 20 Km. N Lonquimay, 915 m., 2; 10.3 Km. W Lonquimay,
1520 m., 1; h Km. W Bafios Rio Blanco, 980 m., h; 19 Km. S Lonquimay,
13h0 m., 2; 15.2 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1h60 m., l; 10 Km. NW
Selva Oscura, 305 m., 1. Other records: Curacautin, 2 (Wolffsohn
and Porter, 1908, in Osgood, l9h3:h9); Rio Colorado 915 m., 6;

Sierra Nahuelbuta, h; Victoria, 1 (Osgood, l9h3:h9-50).

MOuse opossum; Llaca

Marmosa elegans soricina (Philippi)

 

Distribution.-- Its range, as listed by Cabrera (1961:29-30),
includes Malleco.

Remarks.-- Mann (1955:159-160) reported that the mouse opossum
inhabits "mattoral' vegetation. I neither captured nor received
reports of this mouse opossum in Malleco in 1960, 1961, or 1962.
A specimen obtained by D. S. Bullock in Angol (or vicinity) on
29 June 1937 (Winter) compares favorably with the descriptions of
‘M. g. soricina in Osgood (l9h3:h8).

Food preferences and behavior of M. elegans in captivity, as
reported by Housse (1953:90—91) and Gay (l8h7:8h and 95), were

similar to those of the Dromiciops australis which I retained in

 

captivity for several months.

Specimens examined.-- One from Angol (collected by D. S. Bullock).

Other record: Angol (Tate, 1933:217).

83

Chiloé bat; Murciélago de ratdn

Myotis chiloensis chiloensis (Waterhouse)

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco.

Remarks.-- These bats are uncommon but are widely distributed,
especially where there are wooded areas. A Menterrey pine planta-
tion adjacent to a large marsh on the Rio Purén was used by these
bats as a foraging site. The bats flew low while feeding in the
plantation, but high while feeding in the open above the marshy
land.

Mygtis g. chiloensis, according to Osgood (19h3:5h-55), is

 

more sooty in coloration and has less contrast between the tips
and bases of the hairs of the underparts than M. g. arescens from
northern Chile. He suggested that specimens be obtained from
Curacautin may be intermediate since there is greater contrast in
the hairs of the underparts than in other specimens of M. g.

chiloensis. Two skins of specimens which I took from near Puréh

 

also seem to show considerable contrast and perhaps are inter-
grades as well. These two bats were taken, along with one Histiotis
montanus, in a mist net stretched between the trunks of Monterrey
pine trees near a marshy area.

'Measurements of 2 adult Myotis chiloensis collected at 15 kilo-

 

meters east of Purén are: total length, 8b and 86; length of tail
vertebrae, 35, 35; length of hind foot, 11, 9; height of ear from

notch, 16, 16; weight, 6.0, 8.2.

Specimens examined.-- Total, h, from: Fdo. El Cisne, Mulchen,

8h
Bio Bio Prov., l; 15 Km. E Puréh, 61 m., 2; Collipulli, 1. Other

records: Curacautin, 2 (Osgood, 123.313.).

Murciélago orejudo

Histiotus montanus montanus (Philippi and Landbeck)

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco Province at elevations up to
at least 1,220 meters.

Remarks.-- Forested lands where open areas are interspersed for
foraging seemed to be the preferred habitat. Osgood (l9h3:60)
remarked that the species probably is common, although it is known
from only three localities in the province. A mist net stretched
at ground level between tree trunks in a Monterrey pine plantation
near Puréh snared one of this species, along with a Mygtig

chiloensis, just at dark on 2 December (early summer). At the

 

same locality on b December 1961, I found 17 more H. montanus in
a hole in a tree (species of Myrtaceae), which was part of a grove
growing in the midst of a large marsh (part of the Rio Purén).

Of a total of 17 bats, 6 were immatures (3 males and 3 females)
and 11 were adult females, h of which were lactating; none was

pregnant.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 18, from: 15 Km. E Purén, 61 m.
Other records: Curacautin, Malleco, 2; Lake Galletué; Cautin

(Malleco), l (Osgood, 19h3:60).

85

Red bat; Murciélago colorado

Lasiurus borealis varius (Poeppig)

 

Distribution.-- In the Central Valley and Cordillera de
Nahuelbuta 0

Remarks.-- Red bats were found roosting in a maqui (Aristotelia

 

chilensis) tree in a tract of southern forest vegetation, in
cherry trees in orchards, and in an apple tree in an orchard.

One was shot at dusk as it flew over a stream in a flat area
at the Fundo Copihues (15 kilometers northwest of Angol, h73 m.
elevation). Another specimen, along with L. cinereus, was ob-
tained at Fundo Los Alpes (2h kilometers northwest of Angol at
h73 m. elevation) in a mist net stretched across a fast-flowing
stream.

Local residents in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta did not know
the red bat, but fruit pickers on the farms in the Central Valley
were well-acquainted with the colorful species.

Females having 2 young attached were collected on December h, 5,
7, and 18. In one case, the combined weight of both young (10.7 gms)
was more than the weight of the mother (10.5 gms). This female was

able to maneuver well while flying with the two young.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 22, from: 21; Km. NW Angol, 1.72 m.,
‘1; 15 Km. NW Angol, h72 m., 1; Angol, 9; 5 Km. 5 Angol, 76 m., 7;
10 Km. W Galvarino, 61 m., 3. Other records: Angol, 6 (Osgood,

l9h3:53).

86

Hoary bat; Murcielago gris

Lasiurus cinereus villosissimus Geoffroy

Distribution.-- The Central Valley and Cordillera de Nahuelbuta.

Remarks.-- The hoary bat occurs mostly in forested regions and
in orchards in the Central Valley. In February, a male, along with
one 2, borealis, was taken after dark in a mist net stretched across
a fast-flowing stream 2h kilometers northwest of Angol at h72 meters
elevation. A male was taken in September at 76 meters elevation.
Females were obtained in.March at 800 meters-elevation and in April
at 76 meters elevation. The sexes and the dates of capture of these
bats correspond generally to those for hoary bats studied by
Findley and Jones (196h). The elevations and dates do not appear to
support a seasonal altitudinal migration hypothesis, as proposed
by Sanborn and Crespo (in Findley and Jones, 22. 213,).

A female with two large young was found clinging to a branch
of an apple tree in an orchard near Santiago (Santiago Province)
in January. The young, one male and one female, measured in

total length, 108 and 115 mm, respectively, and the mother measured

119 mm.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 7, from: Isla de maipd',Santiago
Prov.,3 (2 young); 2h Km.NW Angol, A72 m.,l; Fdo.Chanleo,

Angol,800 m.,l; Angol,2,. Other records: Nahuelbuta, (Osgood,

l9h3:5h).

8?
Free-tailed bat; Murciélago comdn

Tadarida brasiliensis (Geoffroy)

 

Distribution.-- In the Central Valley and foothills of the
Cordillera de los Andes.

Remarks.- The free-tailed bat is perhaps the most abundant
bat in Chile (Osgood, 191:3:62) and is found commonly in dwellings.
Two were collected in September from storage barns at El Vergel.
A night watchman reported that the bats were common in these barns.
Dr. D. S. Bullock reported seeing many free-tailed bats in a barn
at the Fundo El Cisne, southeast of Mulchen. At Fundo Jauja,
residents reported that barns housed these bats. A vertical mine
shaft, four feet in diameter, about one kilometer southeast of
Huequén, reportedly contained bats in winter (June-August), but
up bats were observed in.December, nor were bats caught in a mist
net stretched across the entrance on two consecutive nights.

The specimens examined were obtained in.March, July, and October

(females) and July, September, and November (males).

Specimens examined.- Total, 7, from: El Cisne, Mulchdn, Bio

Bio Prov., 2; Angol, 3; 5 Km. S Angol, 76 m., 2.

88

European hare; Liebre

Lepus europaeus Linnaeus

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco Province from the Central
Valley to at least 1,830 meters elevation in the Cordillera de
los Andes.

Remarks.-- Open areas, such as grasslands, agricultural areas,
and pastures, surrounded by woodlands, are preferred habitats of
the hare. Blackberry, gorse, and.rose, as well as new growths of
trees, such as Guevina avellana, Aristotelia chilensis, and.§2£gga
'linggg, are used for cover in many areas.

The European hare, after its introduction into Malleco Province
from Argentina sometime before 1928, has proliferated and become
abundant and widespread and causes crop damage. Dr. D. S. Bullock
related to me in 1961 that the hare first arrived in the Central
Valley in.Malleco Province in 1928, and in the same year there were
unmistakable tracks as far west as Paicavai on the coast in Arauco
Province. Dr. Bullock attributed this rapid expansion of the hare
to the low fox population, low because of the high bounty on these
animals. He added that in 1933: the hares were a "plague" on the
Fundo E1 Vergel where 300 rauli (Nothofagus alpine) trees, planted
in a hilly section of the farm, had been.destroyed by the hares.
To combat this "plague", a hare ”roundeup' using dogs was conducted.
Ninetyhthree hares were killed with sticks wielded by the hunters.
The carcasses were distributed for food among the people on the
ranch. In l93h, 72 hares were taken.in the same manner.

Hares appeared to me to be more abundant in the Cordillera de

89
Nahuelbuta than in the Central Valley or in the Cordillera de los
Andes. Luis Schlindler, the forest ranger at the Laguna Malleco,
25 kilometers north of Curacautin, 980 meters elevation, reported
that the hare was present, but that the rabbit, Oryctolagus
cuniculus, was absent. He stated that the numbers of hares increased
markedly during 1959 and 1960. Hunting in this forest reserve had
been prohibited for several years. Heusse (1953:1h7) stated that
rabbits and hares in Chile do not occur in the same areas because
the hares drive the rabbits away. At least at E1 Vergel the two oc-
curred together. The Chilean government has recognized the problem
of overabundance of the hare and attempts are being made to admin?
ister-the best methods of control, according to Dr. Guillermo Mann
F. (personal communication in 1961).

A female obtained at El Vergel, 152 meters elevation, on 20
August 1961, had 2 embryos; another female obtained at 2h kilometers
northwest of Angol, A72 meters, 15 February 1961, was in lactatiOn.

OnfMarch l at El Vergel I flushed a large hare. As it ran away,
a Chilean spurwing lapwing (Belanopterus chilensis) immediately'
flew after the fast-moving animal, ultimately striking the hare on
the head. The same behavior between these two animals also was re-

ported to me by local residents.

Specimens examined.- Total, 12 from: 27 Km.‘W Angol, 1155 m., l;
20.h Km. WNW Angol, 1; 2h Km. NW Angol, A72 m., 3; 5 Km. 5 Angol,
76 m., 2; 12 Km. SE Angol, 122 m., 1; Laguna Malleco, 25 Km. N
Curacautin, 980 m., l; h Km. E Lonquimay, 980 m., l; 1 Km. W Paso

Pino Hachado, 1770 m., 1; 3.5 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 17h0 m., l.

90

European rabbit; Conejo

Oryctolagus cuniculus Linnaeus

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco Province, except at high
elevations in the Cordillera de los Andes.

Remarks.;r Open grasslands where there is ample cover in the
form of shrubby vegetation appeared to be the European rabbit's
preferred habitat, although it was abundant locally where there
‘were garden plots or cultivated fields. Their burrows and runways
were seen in the blackberry bush and gorse (U125 europaeus) which
line trails, oxen paths, roads, and riverbeds.

Since its introduction into Chile in the mid-18th century, the
European rabbit has spread throughout Chile, becoming-abundant and
a nuisance in many localities (Housse, 1953:150). As late as l9h3,
the animal was not recorded in central Chile (Osgood, 19h3x236),
but in 1960 it was present throughout Malleco Province, and was
abundant in some localities. A ranger at the forest reserve at
the Laguna.Malleco, 25 kilometers north of Curacautin at 980 meters
elevation, reported that the rabbit was absent in this location, but
it was seen commonly on the road at Fundo Bella Vista, 17 kilometers
north of Curacautin at 1,035 meters elevation, where there was a
considerable amount of grassland in extensively deforested areas.
The rabbit was reported to be established in the Cordillera de los
Andes, at least as high as 1,500 meters (Housse;llgg.git.).

Campesinos living in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta west of Angol
reported that rabbits dig up seeds and eat plants in vegetable gar-

dens. Examination of the stomach contents of a rabbit killed at

91
El Vergel, revealed that carrots and greens were part of its diet.
A rabbit shot at El Vergel had a diseased liver and a cysticercus
in the body cavity near the spleen. The remains of a rabbit were

found in the crop of a Harris' hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) killed

 

near Collipulli (Greer, 1965a). A rabbit skull was found on the
ground below where a pair of barn owls was nesting, west of Les
Sauces.

Man is increasing the habitat available to the rabbit by util-
izing more land each year for agriculture and livestock. Over-
grazed lands appear ideal for growth of the blackberry bush which
provides excellent cover for the rabbit (see Plate ha). Manfls

constant attempts to exterminate Felis guigna and the dog—like car-

 

nivores, Dusicyon culpaeus and D, iseus, have reduced the number

 

of natural enemies of the rabbit in many areas. Man hunts the rab-
bit for both food and fur, but seemingly not to a great enough axe
tent to reduce its populations (see Conservation).

Several underground burrows measured approximately 15 cm in di-
ameter, whereas the tunnels in the grass at the base of blackberry
thickets measured generally between 12 cm and 20 cm.

Adult females weighed 968.7 grams and 817.0 grams; adult males

weighed 1716.0 grams and 1568.0 grams.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 7, from: Angol, l; 5 Km. S Angol,
76 m., 2; h Km. W Los Sauces, 130 m., l; 10 Km. W Collipulli,
11.3 m., 1; Jauja, 50 Km. ESE Collipulli, h87 m., 1; 17 Km. N

Curacautin, 1035 m., l.

92

Rice rat; Lauchita de los espinos

Oryzomys longicaudatus philippi Landbeck

 

Distribution.-- In grassy'and brushy habitats throughout Malleco.

Remarks.-- The large series of this common Chilean rodent exp
amined from.different parts of Malleco, exhibits a wide variation
in size and coloration. Color differences between individual ani-
mals depend on the time of year, the color of the substrate of the
habitat, and the age of the animal. Older animals (with well-worn
teeth) are larger and generally are paler, especially around the
shoulder region, and are more mottled that younger animals (with
the teeth erupted, but not well-worn). Generally, animals taken
in winter (June-August) in the Central Valley were darker in color,
especially on the head, than animals trapped in summer (December-
February).

‘erggmy§_longicaudatus, along with Akodon olivaceus, was the

 

 

most frequently trapped and the most widely distributed rodent in
Malleco (Table 5). This rice rat was more numerous in brushy places
where the land had been cleared of trees in the Central Valley and
in shrubs surrounding grassy areas in mountainous regions in the
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. High populations existed in brushy oo-
ver, the animal's preferred habitat, in overgrazed pastures, and
it also was found with regularity, but in smaller numbers, in for-
ests located near water sources. Blackberry hedge rows in the
Central Valley adjacent to agricultural areas (see Plate 3a), and
bordering trails, oxcart paths, and roads leading into mountain—
ous areas provide excellent cover, food and, probably, avenues for

dispersal.

93

Oryzomys longicaudatus was absent from the high (1,520 meters

 

elevation and above) Araucarian pine forests on the Paso de las
Raices on the front range of the Andes (west of Lonquimay), but
was taken at the 1,830-meter pass, Paso Pino Hachado, near the

Malleco-Argentine border on a mossy'stream bank and in grass at

the bases of the shrubby fiirre (Nethofagus antarctica) where the

 

terrain would be buried under several meters of snow in winter.
Of 339 animals trapped, 316 had their teeth fully erupted; of
these lh8 (A7 per cent) were females; 53 (36 per cent of the fe-
males) were pregnant or lactating. The greatest percentages of
pregnant or lactating females were captured in.January, February,
November, and December. By month, the reproductive records of

trapped 9, longicaudatus are as follows: in.January, 15 of 18 fe-

 

males taken were pregnant or lactating; in February, 3 of 6; in
March, 10 of 28; in April, 15 of AS; in May, none of 7; in June,
none of 28; in July and August, no animals were taken; in September,
none of l; in October, no females were taken; in November, 3 of 6;
and in.December, 7 of 9. Forty-five females carried 3 to 9 embryos
each, averaging h.9. Young animals were trapped in the highest per-
centages in the months of January and February; 23 young animals
(teeth not fully erupted) were trapped by month as follows: in
January, 9 of a catch of 35; in February, 2 of 15; in March 3 of

81; in April, 7 of 108; in.May, 1 of 13; in June, none of 15; in
July and August, no animals were taken; in September, none of h; in
October, none of l; in November, none of 11; and in December, 1 of

20.

9h

Movement.-- A grid of 30 box traps was placed in a marshy area
which was part of an oxbow lake formed by the Rio Malleco, 5 kilo-
meters south of Angol, 76 meters elevation. Five (3 males and 2

females) Oryzomys longicaudatus were trapped, marked, released, and

 

recaptured 12 times (2 to h times each for the males and 2 times
each for the females, and at l to h stations each for the males and
2 stations each for females) over a 9-day trapping period (April
lh-22) in a 0.12 hectare plot. The average maximum.movement of
this mouse was determined to be 138 (30-2h0) meters and the average
area occupied as 15.1 (0 to 32.2) square meters. These estimates
may be somewhat low (see Negus, st 21., 1961:99)

The 9-day catch (between April 1h and 22) included, besides Q.

longicaudatus, Akodon olivaceus and Rattus rattus. _A_. olivaceus co-

 

 

existed in brush with Q, lon icaudatus, a relationship not usually
found in my trapping experiences in Malleco. Rattus rattus; was
trapped in another part of the study plot and the ranges of 5.
7333222 and the other two species overlapped slightly.

Snap-trapping for 3 days followed the 9-day movement study. Only
one of the 1h.9£yzgmy§ caught in snap traps had been previously

trapped, marked, and released (see Population Studies, Plot 15).

Specimens examined.-- Total, 33h, from: 15 Km. NW Angol, A72 m.,
2; 7 Km. ENE Angol, 122 m., 1; 9 Km. NE Angol, 122 m., S; 18 Km.
WNW Angol, 1007 m., h; 10 Km. WNW Angol, 718 m., h; 30 Km. W Angol,
1th m., l; 23 Km. W Angol, 830 m., 2; 2h Km. NW Angol, A72 m., 2;
5 Km. S Angol, 76 m., 138; 5 Km. S Angol, 152 m., 18; 6.6 Km. NE
Trintre, 152 m., h; 10 Km. NE Collipulli, 30.5 m., 2; 10 Km. W

Collipulli, hh2 m., 1; 5 Km. W Lumaco, 366 m., 9; 13 Km. SE Contulmo,

95
h27 m., 1; 15 Km. E Purén, 61 m., 9; Jauja, A87 m., 16; 1h Km. E
Jauja, 610 m., h; 25 Km. N Curacautin, 980 m., 1; 26 Km. SW Capitén
Pastene (Reldn), 152 m., 25; 16.6 Km. E Victoria, 366 m., 13; Troyo,
980 m., 11; 20 Km. N Lonquimay, 980 m., l; h Km. E Lonquimay, 980 m.,
1; 8 Km. NE Selva Oscura, 550 m., l; 10 Km. W Galvarino, 61 m., 6;
11 Km. E Curacautin, 73h m., 10; 17.6 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado,
1280 m., 2; 16.7 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1372 m., 2; 1.7 Km. W
Paso Pino Hachado, 183 m., 1. Other records: Angol, 2; Sierra

Nahuelbuta, 20; Curacautin, h (Osgood, l9h3:1h9-150).

Ratoncito lanoso

Akodon longipilis Thomas

 

Distribution.-- Forested areas or brushy grasslands in moun-
tainous regions.

Remarks.-- On geographic grounds, and following Osgood (19h3:
188-189), I assign all of the specimens I obtained in the Cordillera
de Nahuelbuta, including those taken in forested areas near

Galvarino, to Akodon longipilis apta Osgood. The fur on the backs

 

of these western specimens is dark reddish-brown and contrasts with

grayish sides. Akodon l. longipilis, which occurs in central Chile

 

north of Malleco, is paler and more uniform in color.

Animals taken in the eastern part of Malleco Province, on the
western slopes of the Continental Divide, as well as examples
trapped in the valley of the Rio Bio Bio and tributaries, are small-
er, grayer and paler, than the specimens 0f.£°.l°.2233 from the
Nahuelbuta. Based on the smaller size and paler coloration, I have

assigned these Andean specimens to the subspecies A. 1. suffusus

96

Thomas, after Osgood (32.2}t.:189, 192, 193). Animals taken in the
extreme eastern part of'Malleco, although assignable to A. 1.
suffusus, show some relationships to A. l!.2$§2§ Thomas in Argentina
in having broad crania, pale coloration, and prominently bicolored
tails.

Animals assigned to A. l. suffusus from the foothills of the
Andes are variable in color and size, some approaching the char-
acteristics of the coastal race, _A_. 1... 5123.3.

These heavy-bodied, dark-furred rodents, characteristic of for-
ested regions in South Central Chile, were not so abundant in the
virgin tracts of Araucarian pine as in areas where the trees had
been selectively removed allowing for the invasion of a dense
ground cover. These animals were trapped commonly in or near
rotted, hollow logs, and in the following places: grassy areas

at the bases of shrubs, such as fidrre (Nethofagus antarctica),

 

near Paso Pino Hachado and Lago Icalma (see Plate 6a); rocky areas,
such as a rock slide north of Manzanar (see Plate 6b) and rocky out-
croppings near Troyo; dense undergrowth of cane (Chusquea sp.) at
moderate elevations above h87 meters on the western slope of the
front range of the Andes (see Plate 7b).

Oryzomys longicaudatus and.A§gdgg olivaceus were frequently

caught withué. longipilis. For example, one trap set in a hollow

 

log in a moist habitat at Relun caught, at different times, all
three species. In forested areas, such as the Parque Turismo in

the Nahuelbuta, or west of Lonquimay in the Andes, Dromiciops

 

australis was trapped along with A. longipilis.

 

Of 232 Akodon longipilis trapped in.Malleco, 221 (95.2 per cent)

 

97
had their teeth fully erupted. Of these, 11h (h9 per cent) were

females, of which 12 (10.5 per cent of the females) were pregnant
or lactating. By month, the reproductive records of trapped A.

longipilis are as follows: in January, none of h females was preg-

 

nant or lactating; in February, 6 of h3; in.March, h of h9; in
April, none of 7; no females were trapped May through September;
in October, none of 2; in November, 1 of 3; and in December, 1 of
6. Nine females carried 2 to 5 embryos each, with an average of
3.7. Ybung animals (teeth not fully erupted) were trapped in the
highest percentages in February, March and December. Twelve young
animals were trapped by month as follows: In January, none of a
catch of 5; in February, 7 of 89; in March, 1 of 11; in April, none
of 11; ianay and June no animals were trapped; in July, none of 3;
in August and September no animals were trapped; in October, none
of 3; in November, none of 5; and in December, h of 12.
Movement.-- Two areas in the Andes provided information on the

movement of Akodon longipilis:

 

Plot 1 (see Population Studies). Thirty box traps were placed

in a 0.12 hectare grid under the cover of a virgin coihue (Nothofagus

 

dombeyi) forest, h kilometers west of Bahos Rio Blanco, 980 meters
elevation. Five animals (h males and 1 female) were trapped, marked,
released, and retrapped 2h times (21 times for males, or 3 to 7

times each, and 3 times for the female; at 3 to 6 stations each

for males and 3 stations for the female). The average maximum.move-
ment was determined to be 16.7 meters (17.8 for males and 12.5 for
the female). The average range was determined to be 175 (120 to 2hl)

square meters, 173 (150 to 2hl) for males and 120 for the female.

98
Plot h (see Population Studies). Twentyheight box traps were

placed in a 0.11 hectare grid among‘fifirre (Nothofagus antarctica)

 

and cane (Chusquea sp.) in a nirre-grassland habitat, 19 kilome-
ters south of Lonquimay, 1,3h0 meters elevation. Three males were
trapped a total of 10 times (2 to h times each at l to 2 stations
each). Three additional males were trapped only one time each.
The movements of the 3 animals trapped at least twice, were 7 me-
ters, 0 meters, and 15.6 meters; the average ranges were 118, ho,

and 162 square meters.

Specimens examined.-- Akodon longipilis apta Osgood, total, 35,

 

from: 27 Km. WNW Angol, 1170 meters, 1; 27 Km. WNW Angol, 1110 m.,
3; 10 Km. WNW Angol, 718 m., l; 131Km. w Put-en, 382 m., 2; 7 Km.
sw Contulmo, he? m., 3; 13 Km. SE 'Contulmo, h27 m., l; 15 Km. SE
Contulmo, l; 10 Km. w Collipulli, M3 m., l; Reldn, 152 m., 10;

10 Km. W Galvarino, 61 m., 5. Other records: Sierra Nahuelbuta,

36 (Osgood, 19h3:189).

Akodon longipilis suffusus Thomas, total, 197, from: Jauja,

 

h87 m., 2; 17 Km. N Curacautin, 1035 m., 2; 25 Km. N Curacautin,
980 m., 3; 11 Km. E Curacautin, 73h m., 1; 9 Km. N'Manzanar,
1155 m., 1; 16.6 Km. E Victoria, 366 m., 1; ho Km. NNE Lonquimay,
1220 m., 3; h Km. NE Troyo, 1372 m., 7; Troyo, 980 m., 11; 20 Km.
N Lonquimay, 915 m.,5;lOKm.WNW'Lonquimay, 1555 m., 2; 7.7 Km. W
Lonquimay, 1007 m., 3; Lonquimay, 980 m., 1; 19 Km. 5 Lonquimay
13140 m., 1:3; 2h Km. 3 Lonquimay, 1280 m., 3; h Km. w Ba‘r‘ios Rio
Blanco, 980 m., 50; 17.6 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1280 m., 2; 16.7

Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1372 m., 10; 15.2 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado,

99

lh65 m., 1h; 9.h Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1555 m., 8; 3.5 Km. W
Paso Pino Hachado, l7h0 m., 6; 1.7 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1830
m., 3; Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 8; % Km. E Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 6.
Other records: Curacautin, 5; Lonquimai, 12; west of Lonquimay, 3;
Rio Colorado, 16; Rio lole’n, Lonquimai Valley, 1; Tolhuaca, 16;
Lake Galletué, 9; Pino Hachado (in Neuquen, Argentina), 3 (Osgood,

122.21.12.0-

Ratoncito olivaceo

Akodon olivaceus pencanus Philippi

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco.

Remarks.-- The hair color of this common rodent is variable and
seems to be influenced by both time of year and color of the sub-
strate. In addition, there often is a considerable range of color
in any large series from one locality at any one time, and overlap-
ping of coloration occurs between series from different localities.
For example, the animals from El Vergel generally are pale colored,
but some blackish specimens match dark individuals from the volcanic
lava flow (see Plate 6b) north of Manzanar. Animals taken at El
Vergel tend to be darker in April, June, and September than animals
taken in the same location in January and February (summer months).
Animals trapped in blackish soils of the Parque Turismo in October
generally are darker than animals taken in.December in the lighter
colored, marshy area in the same river system (Rio Purén) 30 kilo-
meters to the east.

This ubiquitous oricetine is common in grassy and brushy areas

in the Central Valley and also in mountainous regions where forests

100

have been cleared for cropland and pasture. ‘Where Oryzomys

longicaudatus occurs with A. olivaceus in grassy areas surrounded

 

by brush, the latter is consistently taken in grass, and is ab-
sent from the brush. The remains of one of this species were

found in the stomach of a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) shot

 

near Collipulli (Greer, 1965a).

0f 3&5 animals trapped, 320 (92.7 per cent) had their teeth
fully erupted; of these, 162 (h6.9 per cent) were females, of which
27 (16.6 per cent of the females) were pregnant or lactating. The
greatest percentages of pregnant or lactating females were cap-
tured in the months of November, December, and February. By month,
the reproductive records of trapped A, olivaceus are as follows:
in January, none of 11 females taken was pregnant or lactating; in
February, 6 of 1h; in.March, 2 of 13; in April, 6 of 52; in May,
none of 21; in June, none of 19; in July, none of 1; in August,
there were no catches; in September, 1 of h; in October, none of
h; in November, h of 9; and in December, 5 of 1h. Eighteen females
carried from 3 to 8 embryos each, averaging 5.5. Young animals
were most conspicuous in the catches made in the months of January,
April, and September. Twentybfive young animals (teeth not fully
erupted) were trapped by month as follows: in January, h of a
catch of 28; in February, 2 of 23; in March, 1 of 30; in April, 11
of 108; in May, 1 of h2; in June, none of 39; in July, none of 3;
no animals were trapped in August; in September, 3 of 11; in October,
none of 9; in November, 1 of 17; and in December, 2 of 25.

Movement.-- Twenty (11 male and 9 female) Akodon olivaceus were

 

trapped, marked, and released between April 1h and 22 to study

101

their movement in a marshy area (0.12 hectares) of rush (Scirpus
sp.) and blackberry brush in an oxbow lake formed by the Rio Malleco,
5 kilometers south of Angol, 76 meters elevation (see also Plot 15,
Population Studies). Thirteen (8 males and 5 females) were caught
h2 times (2 to 8 times each for males and 2 to 3 times each for fe-
males). Seven (3 males and h females) others were captured only
once. The average maximum.movement of those trapped at least twice
was determined to be lh.l meters; 16.0 meters for males and 11.2
for females. The average range was determined to be 12.5 square
meters, 13.5 for males and 10.8 for females. The 3-day kill-
trapping period (April 22-25) following the live study produced

1h animals (8 males and 6 females) of which 10 (5 males and 5 fe-
males) had been marked during the live-trapping period.

Akodon olivaceus and Oryzomys longicaudatus were taken toge-

 

ther in the brushy area, but their range was separate from the

range of Rattus rattus which inhabited about half the area of the

 

study'plot.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 3&5, from: 27 Km. WNW Angol, 1110
m.,7; 2h Km. NW Angol, h72 mt, 6; 18 Km. WNW Angol, 1007 mt, 2;
15 Km. NW Angol, h72 m.,l; 10 Km. WNw Angol, 718 m., 11; 7 Km. ENE
Angol, 122 m., 2; 9 Km. W Angol, 685 m., 1; Angol, 70-600 m., 12;
5 Km. 5 Angol, 76-152 m., 216; 10 Km. W Purén, 61 m., 9; Jauja,
h87 m., 13; 1h Km. E Jauja, 610 m., 3; 5 Kmt'w Lumaco, 366 m., 6;
5 Km. WSW Capitan Pastene, 656 m., 2; Relfin, 152 m., 9; 25 Km. N
Curacautin, 980 m., 6; 17 Km. N Curacautin, 1155 m., 1; Troyo,
980 ms, 2; 20 Km. N Lonquimay, 915 m,, 2; 9 Km, N'Manzanar, 1155 m.,

1; h.5 Km, N Manzanar, 1035 m., 2; 10 Km. NE Selva Oscura, 610 m., l;

102
9 Km. NNE Selva Oscura, h60 m., 2; 10 Km. W Galvarino, 61 m., 9;
12 Km. NW Liacura, 1060 m., 3; 20.7 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1170
m., 2; 17.6 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1280 m., 3; Icalma, 1190 m.,
1; 20.7 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1170 m., l; 1 Km. N Liacura,
1100 m., 1. Other records: Sierra Nahuelbuta, 32; Angol, h;

Curacautin, Cautin (Malleco) h; Villa Portales, Cautin (=Malleco),

3 (Osgood, 19h3:l7l).

Mela mouse; Ratdh topo, Tunduco

Notiomys macronyx vestitus Thomas

 

Distribution.-- In the Cordillera de los Andes.

Remarks.-- Notiomys macronyx prefers deep soils in elevated lowh

 

lands in which it builds networks of tunnels. A specimen was
trapped near Lago Icalma (see Plate 6a) on a mound of dirt pushed
out of a burrow which had its entrance at the base of a medium-

sized fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica) with a trunk 15 centimeters in

 

diameter. The excavated burrow was 9 meters in length and resem-

bled that of Ctenomys maulinus. Other shrubs (Ribes sp. and

 

Berberis spp.) and cane (Chusquea sp.), besides'fiirre, were plants
with roots close to the burrow system.

One specimen was trapped beside a fallen Araucarian pine near a
stream west of Paso Pino Hachado; another was taken in leaf litter
at the base of a rock pile in a grove of roble (Nothofagus obliqua)
northeast of Troyo. No burrows were evident at the latter area,
so perhaps the animal lived among the rocks. Akodon longipilis and

Dromiciops australis were taken near rocks in the same trapline in

 

these woods.

103
One N. macrogyx was trapped during the daytime indicating di-
urnal activities; eight other specimens were caught at night. One
female trapped in February was lactating; others taken in February

and in.March showed no signs of sexual activity.

Specimens examined.-- Total 9, from: Pinares, Lonquimay, 1600
m., 2; 19 Km. 5 Lonquimay, lBhO m., 2; east end of Lago Icalma,
1190 m., 1; 15.2 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1165 m., 2; 9.1; Km. W
Paso Pino Hachado, 1555 m., 2. Other records: Lonquimay, 16; Rio
Colorado, 2; Lake Galletué, 2; Villa Portales, l (Osgood, 19h3:
165). Osgood erroneously ascribes the latter two localities to

I .
Cautin Prov1nce.

Mole mouse; Ratéh.topo de la selva, Tunduco

Notiomys valdivianus valdivianus Philippi

 

Distribution.-- Open or forested areas in mountainous regions.

Remarks.-- I obtained specimens only from the Andes between 915
meters and 1,830 meters elevation, but Osgood (l9h3:150) reported
the species also from the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta.

Notiomys valdivianus and N. macronyx were taken in the same

 

trapline at 15.2 kilometers west of Paso Pino Hachado at 1,h65 me-
ters elevation. Both.were caught in a row of shrubbery on the edge
of a narrow, wet arroyo. Nirre (thhofagus antarctica), cane
(Chusquea sp.) and bunch grass (Stipa sp.) comprised the prominent
vegetation in the vicinity of the trapping locations in most areas

where N. valdivianus was taken. One was trapped in cane among

 

large rocks at the edge of a coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) woods and

10h

another was caught in a burrow system in a bunch grass meadow ad-
jacent to a marshy area at the Laguna Malleco (see Plate 7b).
Burrow systems were found in grassy areas where gnarled, old

roble (Nothofagus obliqua) grew as remnants of the past forests

 

and where numerous roble saplings were scattered in the meadow at
17 kilometers north of Curacautin. The burrows found here were
long and sinuous and were about 5 centimeters in diameter, often
having dirt packed in the burrow about 20 to 25 centimeters from
the surface entrances. Dirt was piled outside the burrow entrances
in low mounds of about 15 to 25 centimeters in diameter and about
10 centimeters high. Also, there was evidence of burrow systems
under barberry (Berberis sp.). There was much dead barberry, the
stems of which had been out about one inch below the ground level.

Notiomys valdivianus was trapped also in a coihue woods near rotted

 

logs in the heavy undergrowth of cane at this location.

In the Araucarian pine forests on the west side of the Paso de
las Raices at 1,555 meters elevation Notiomys valdivianus was caught
from beneath a fallen log, amid a quantity of dugout soil in an
abandoned lumber camp where most of the undergrowth had been cut
away. Osgood (1925:117) also found this rodent in the Araucaria
forest habitat. Usually mounds of soil evident outside the burrows

of N} valdivianus were similar in appearance to, although not so

 

massive as, those made by Ctenomys maulinus (see also Budin in

Osgood, 19h3:152).

Notiomys valdivianus also was trapped in a small cane thicket

 

on a broad slope with shallow soil near the Rio Bio Bio, 20 kilo-

meters north of Lonquimay, 980 meters elevation. Digging was not

105
evident within 10 meters of where the trap was placed suggesting
that these animals leave their burrows to rove above ground.
Females trapped in February, March, and December were not preg-
nant. The sex ratio from trapping records was 10 males to 11
females.
Most animals were trapped at night, but 3 were trapped between

0800 and 1700, suggesting some diurnal activities.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 22, from: 25 Km. N Curacautin,
980 m., 6; 17 Km. N Curacautin at 1035 m., 2; h Km. NE Troyo, 1372
m., 3; 20 Km. N Lonquimay, 915 m., l; 10 Km. WNW Lonquimay, 1555 m.,
1; lb.h Km. W Lonquimay, 1555 m., 1; 15.2 Km. w Paso Pino Hachado,
1h65 m., 2; 3.5 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, l7h0 m., 5; 1.7 Km. W Paso
Pino Hachado, 1830 m., 1. Other records: Curacautin, 1; Bit

Colorado, h; Tolhuaca, h; Sierra Nahuelbuta, 2 (Osgood, 19h3:15h).

Laucha sedosa

Eligmodontia typus typus Cuvier

Distribution.-- Grassy western slopes of the Andes at elevations
above 1,060 meters.

Remarks.-- Based on descriptions and measurements given in the
literature, I judge these Malleco animals to be E. t. typus, al-
though measurements of the Malleco specimens are somewhat smaller
than those from specimens in Argentina (see Table 9).

Five specimens from near Paso Pino Hachado constitute the se-
cond locality record of Eligmodontia typus typus in Chile,

Hershkovitz (1962:176) having recorded this race from Lake Sarmiento,

 

 

 

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30h snoop hamaafixms

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- m.m m.m s.m - m.m seasons Hessnaoaosns pesos

; m.HH u H.HH . m.HH onsoaasap do sposonm

I ©.HN I H.Hm I H.mm npmsoa Hmmmnoahpcoo

N Ab.ma-e.mav w.mH m.ma - m.ma . s.NH seasons osseaomaN

s Am.mmgm.mmv o.mm m.sm . o.sm ; «.mm Hanan to spaced phonemes

s Amausav m.sa o.mH . ea 6H ‘aH soson gone see so sensor

a Aom-mmv m.sm m.mm am mm NN mm room ones no spaces

a Aoaauomv moH ®.om ms mm or mm censored» Has» no season

m Ameummv om m.oe an we we om anon one one: no spaces
ommho>< Ho:~.os oo:~.oc mo:>.oa mmm~.os
b. mamsmm mamsmm onEmm mama

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nsnsg neg one Hess: nose 32.5m o.sa 3..sm s.om

mafiasmmn< noosfi>0hm zoswsoz

 

mafino soocfibohm oooaamz

 

 

mnflpcowh< use mafino EOAH msmhw mflvcoposmflam mo mpcmthdmmmz

.m manna

106

107

Magellanes Province, approximately'l,h00 kilometers to the south.
Hewever, this animal is known in Neuquen Province, Argentina
(Hershkovitz, 123.333.), approximately 60 kilometers east of the
collecting site in.Malleco. Apparently, it is characteristic of
the eastern slopes of the Andes, but extends its range westward to
the Andean slopes in Chile by using low passes.

Mice were trapped in rocky areas, moist arroyos with grass, and

flat areas where fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica) and cane (Chusquea

 

sp.) were abundant. One was captured in an arroyo which had on its
banks an abundant growth of barberry (Berberis sp.). A rocky hil—
lock, relatively dry, overgrazed, and with bare ground (approxi-
mately'hO-SO per cent cover) was the trapping site of another
specimen. I

Two females taken in March were pregnant, one had 6 embryos, the

other 8. Another female taken in.March was not pregnant.
Specimens examined.-- Total, 5, from: 20.7 Km. W Paso Pino

Hachado, 1170 m., 2; 17.6 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1280 m., 3.

Darwin's leaf-cared mouse; Lauchdn orejudo

Phyllotis darwini'Waterhouse

 

Distribution.-- Throughout the province.
Remarks.-- I follow Osgood (l9h3) and Hershkovitz (1962) in

Distinguishing two subspecies of Phyllotis darwini in.Malleco.

 

Phyllotis d. fulvescens Osgood from the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta

 

is grayish all over and lightly washed with fulvous and there is

a semblance of a pale orange lateral line and pectoral spot. The

108

tail is sharply bicolored. Phyllotis d. darwini Waterhouse from
parts of the Central Valley and the Andean foothills is richly
colored and lightly washed with buff on its sides, shoulders, face,
and around the base of the tail. A pale orange mid-ventral stripe
is noticeable in some specimens.

Phyllotis d. darwini was trapped in the Central Valley on well-
drained soils, often among large rocks in open, grassy areas or
pastures (see Plate 8a). Between Angol and Collipulli these mice
‘were trapped in rock piles made by man in preparing fields for
plowing. One such rock pile about 8 meters in diameter produced
5 mice in one night of trapping in.May, Eight months later in
January, 3 days of intensive trapping in the same rock pile pro-
duced no mice. The omnipresent chimingo carrion hawks (Milvago
chimingo) stole mice from traps placed in these rock piles. In
the foothills of the Andes, this mouse was trapped in shrubby cane

(Chusquea sp.), maqui (Aristotelia chilensis), and in forested

 

areas of Chilean beech (Nothofagus spp.) which line the rim.of the

 

canyon of the Rio oauti’n.

Phyllotis d. fulvescens has heretofore been reported only in

 

the Araucarian (Araucaria araucana) pine forest in the Nahuelbuta

 

(Osgood, l9h3:20h). Hewever, I took specimens in a semi-open area
in the mountains, at the edge of a marsh where vegetation such as
rushes (Juncus spp.) was common, and trees such as canelo (Drimys

winteri) and pitra (fiyrceugenia spp.) formed the bulk of the over—

 

story. Another was trapped in a thicket of cane in a partially

cleared woods of roble (Nothofagus obliqua) and coihue (Nothofagus

dombeyi).

 

 

109

Juveniles of P. darwini darwini were taken in.March, May, and

 

November; an adult female was pregnant and another was lactating

in.March.

Specimens examined.-- Phyllotis darwini darwini Waterhouse,

 

total, 39, from: Angol, 3; 5 Km. S Angol, 122 m., l; 5 Km. S
Angol, 152 m., 1h; 5 Km. 5 Angol, 168 m., 13; 1h Km. 5 Collipulli,
168 m., S; 7 Km. NW Collipulli, 198 m., 1; Jauja, h87 m., l; 11 Km.
E Curacautin, 721. m., l.

Phyllotis darwini fulvescens Osgood, total, 3, from: 18 Km.

 

WNW Angol, 1007 m., 1; 10 Km. WNW Angol, 718 m., l; Rellfn, 152 m.,

1. Other records for E. Q. fulvescens: Sierra Nahuelbuta, l;

 

Araucaria Forest, Nahuelbuta, l (Hershkovitz; 1962:325).

Lauchdn de pie chico

Phyllotis micropus Waterhouse

 

Distribution.-- Mountainous areas; absent from the Central
Valley.

Remarks.-- The Phyllotis micropus trapped in the Cordillera de

 

Nahuelbuta is washed slightly with buff on the undersides and is
somewhat grayer than those taken in the Andes. These rodents were
obtained in a variety of habitats, but were not found to be abun-
dant anywhere. I found, as did Hershkovitz (1962:199), that this
animal is essentially "a forest glade dweller“, but may also in-
habit grassy or bushy places in.deforested areas.

Phyllotis micropus was taken in the Andes where Araucarian pine

 

(Araucaria araucana), roble (Nothofagus obliqua), lenga (N. pumilio),

 

 

and coihue (N. dombeyi) were prominent trees and cane (Chusqueasuh)

110

was common as a shrubby growth. It was taken also near water sources.

Areas with fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica) six to ten feet high, were

 

also trapping sites of this animal at Lago Icalma (see Plate 6a)
and Paso Pino Hachado; and it was trapped by a rotted log in an
area of dense cane in a coihue forest in the same trapline with

Octodon degus and Irenomys tarsalis at Bahos Rio Blanco. A speci-

 

 

men was trapped in an Araucarian pine forest and another in a rel-
atively'open, bunch grass meadow adjacent to the forest in the
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta.

A female taken at Bafios Rio Blanco, 980 meters elevation, on 2
March carried 5 embryos, the largest measuring 12 millimeters in
crownrrump length. Another female taken near Paso Pino Hachado,
1,372 meters elevation, on.9 March had h embryos, the largest mea-
suring 1h millimeters in crownrrump length. Two other adult fe-
males taken in.February and March were lactating. Fifteen of the

26 Phyllotis micropus caught were females.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 26, from: 27 Km. WNW Angol, 1110
m., 2; hO Km. NNE Lonquimay, 1372 m., l; h Km. NE Troyo, 1372 m.,
3; Troyo, 980 m., 2; 20 Km. N Lonquimay, 915 m., 2; Pinares,
Lonquimay, 1600 m., 2; 10 Km. WNW Lonquimay, 1555 m., 1; 17.6 Km.
'W Paso Pino Hachado, 1520 m., 1; Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 2; h Km. W
Bafibs Rio Blanco, 980 m., 3. Other records: Araucaria forest,
Nahuelbuta, 3; Sierra de Nahuelbuta, 3; Pinares, Lonquimay, 1;
Araucaria forest west of Lonquimay, 1; Rio Loléh, 1 (Hershkovitz,

l962:h01).

111

Laucha arborea

Irenomys tarsalis tarsalis Philippi

 

Distribution.-- Malleco Province from widely scattered locali-
ties in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and Cordillera de los Andes.

Remarks.-- These mediuMFSized, long-tailed mice were found only
in forested regions, where cane (Chusquea sp.) was abundant.

Irenomys tarsalis was trapped in three localities with strik-

 

ingly similar vegetation and substrate. Each place was on a hill-
side on which thick patches of cane grew in soft, moist soil under

roble (Nothofagus obliqua), rauli (N. alpina) or coihue (N. dombeyi).

 

The ground beneath this vegetation often was covered with litter come
posed mostly of decaying cane leaves with a few herbs.

Dromiciops australis was taken in the same traplines as l.

 

tarsalis in the three localities in similar habitats and both
are reported to be arboreal (Osgood, l9h3zh9 and 219). Octodon
bridgesi was taken in similar habitat of heavy cane growing on
slopes near Bafios Rio Blanco. The animals living in cans may be
influenced by the occasional "bloomfi'when seed is produced which
seems to support a much greater abundance of rodents (Osgood,
19h3z218). Local residents in.Malleco told me about an occasion-
al increase in abundance of rodents coincident with the flowering
of the cane.

Evidence that E. tarsalis is either uncommon or trap-shy is
revealed by trapping results: near Jauja, 3 were taken in 160
trap night; west of Bafios Rio Blanco, one was caught in 125 trap

nights; north of Curacautin, one was caught in 219 trap nights.

112

Females (taken in December and March) showed no evidence of
pregnancy.

Average and extreme measurements of 2 adult females and 3
adult males having teeth equally worn: total length, 2h9.2 (22h-
290); length of tail vertebrae, lh8 (l3h—l72); length of hind foot,
28.8 (27-31); height of ear from notch, 22.6 (22-23); greatest
length of skull, 28.8 (27.3-30.0); condylobasal length, 2b.?
(23.8-27.1); breadth of brain case, 12.7 (l2.h—13.1); zygomatic
breadth, lh.2 (13.8-15.3); least interorbital breadth, 3.5 (3.2-
3.8); breadth of rostrum, h.3 (h.l-5.0); breadth of palate, 2.3
(2.1-2.7); length of diastema, 6.7 (6.1-7.7); alveolar length of
maxillary tooth row, 5.3 (5.1-5.h). The average weight was 32.h
(26.3-hl.7).

Specimens examined.-- Total, 5, from: 1h Km. E Jauja, 610 m.,
3; 25 Km. N Curacautin, 980 m., 1; h Km. w Bafios Rib Blanco, 980

m., 1. Other records: Sierra Nahuelbuta, l (Osgood, l9h3:219).

113

Rate sedosa

Euneomys chinchilloides petersoni J. A. Allen

 

Distribution.-- In the Andes at high elevation.

Remarks.-- Hershkovitz (1962:h92, fig. 121) mapped the widely
separated type localities of nominal species and subspecies of
Euneomyg. Apparently, the taxonomy of this rare rodent is still
somewhat clouded. Hershkovitz has suggested that Euneogys‘gggi
Mann (from Valle de la Junta, Canyon of the Rio Volcah, Santiago,
about 550 kilometers north of Malleco) may not be separable from
_E. 31.9323 Thomas (from San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina), and fur-
thermore, that the latter may' prove to be a subspecies of’gh

chinchilloides. I follow the diagnosis of the species by

 

Hershkovitz (22.213.) and assign the new records from Malleco

to Euneogzg chinchilloides_petersoni J. A. Allen; albeit I re-
cognize that the measurements of these new records are similar
also to those of _E_. _r_lo_e_i_ and N. m. I trapped this species

in the fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica)-grassland habitat which oc-

 

curs at high elevations throughout the western slopes of the Andes
in.Malleco (see Figurell). Specimens were taken on slightly slop-
ing ground under clumps (to 20 meters in diameter, and averaging
about 3 meters in height) of‘fiirre where the soil is deep and sandy.
Cane (Chusquea sp.) is interspersed throughout the fiirre and bunch
grass and occasional other shrubs (EEEEE sp. and Berberis spp.) are
common. Other small mammals taken in the same trapline with N.

chinchilloides were Akodon longipilis and Notiogys spp. (see

 

Table 6). '

11h

Measurements of 3 males (MSU #7h59, 7h60, 7h62) and 1 female
(MSU #7h61) are: total length, 199, 236, 230, 258; length of
tail vertebrae, 7h, 95, 87, 103; length of hind foot, 30, 33,

32, 33; height of ear from notch, 27, 25, 2h, 27; weight, 57.h,
87.5, 83.6, 122.5; greatest length of skull, —--, 32.3, 31.h,
-—-; condylobasal length, ---, 30.9, 30.0, --—; breadth of brain-
case, ---, lh.7, 1h.3, ---; zygomatic breadth, 18.0, 19.5, 19.5,
20.6; least interorbital breadth, 3.6, 1.5, n.6, h.h; breadth of
rostrum, 5.5, 6.8, 6.5, 7.0; alveolar length of maxillary tooth
row, 5.8, 6.h, 6.6, 6.8; length of diastema, 7.3, 8.3, 8.0, 9.6;

breadth of palate, 2.2, 2.0, 2.3, 3.1.
Specimens examined.-- Total, h, from: 9.h Km. W Paso Pino

Hachado, 1555 m., 1; 3.5 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, l7h0 m., 3.

/ .
House mouse; Laucha domestlca

Mus musculus Linnaeus

 

Distribution.-- Throughout the province.

Remarks.-- The house mouse is common, residing in or near habi-
tations of man, or feral and in competition with native rodents.
It was taken at Lago Icalma in bunch grass at the bases of the
shrub-like fiirre (Nothofagus antarctica) along with .QZXEEEZE
longicaudatus, Akodon olivaceus, and A, longipilis. One was

trapped with.9, longicaudatus on floating mate of fallen cattail

 

stems in a marshy area at the base of a watershed dam east of

Trintre. It was found with N. olivaceus in a grid of traps set

115

in an apple orchard at El Vergel and in a grove of Myrceugenia

 

sp. surrounded by a vast marshy area, 15 kilometers east of Purén.

Local residents confuse house mice with young 9, longicaudatus

 

because of a superficial resemblance.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 9, from: Angol, 2; 5 Km. S Angol,
76 m., h; 6.6 Km. NE Trintre, 152 m., l; 15 Km. E Puréh, 6l.m., l;

Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 1.

Black rat; Ratdn, Rata de las casas

Rattus rattus Linnaeus

 

Distribution.-- Throughout the province.

Remarks.-- Black rats, although common pests in human habita-
tions, also are abundant in fields and woods, seemingly competing
with the native rodents, and, according to my trapping records,
more successful at this competition than the Norway rat.

Generally, black rats were trapped in brush near moist areas,
such as marshes, streams, or irrigation canals. Native rodents,

for example, Oryzomys longicaudatus, often were trapped in the same

 

brushy areas near water as N. rattus. However, trapline records

indicated that N. rattus and 9. longicaudatus seem to maintain sep-

 

arate living places within the same general area. Black rats were

taken in association‘withng. longicaudatus in a grove of trees sur-

 

rounded by a marsh east of Purén, and six rats were taken in one
night of trapping in a half acre wooded area of arrayan (tree spe-

cies of Myrtaceae) in the middle of a wheat field northwest of

116

Collipulli. Black rats were the only rodents caught in cane

(Chusquea sp.) undergrowth of a cleared roble (Nothofagus

 

obliqua) woods along the edge of the Rio Lumaco, near Lumaco.
The remains of a rat were found in the stomach of a Harris' hawk

(Parabuteo unicinctus) shot near Collipulli (Greer, 1965a).

 

Movement.-- Thirty box traps were placed in a grid in a marshy
area, part of an oxbow lake formed by the Rio Malleco at El Vergel
(see Population Studies, Plot 15). Five.§§EEE§M£EEEE§ (3 males
and 2 females) were trapped, marked, released, and recaptured a
total of 26 times (5 to 9 times each for males and 2 to 3 times
each for females, and from 2 to 8 stations each for males and 2
to 3 stations each for females) during a 9-day live-trapping period
(April 1h-22) in a 0.12 hectare plot.

The average maximum.movement of N, 333333 was determined to be
22.2 meters; 23.7, 2h.8, and 29.8 meters for males, and 12.5 and
20.1 meters for females. The average area occupied bylfi'.£§£§3§
was determined to be 222 square meters: 2h0, 2h0, and 300 for
males, and 120 and 210 for females. The females consistently oc-
cupied smaller areas than the males.

The 9-day live-trapping catch also included 20 Akodon olivaceus

 

and 5 Oryzomys longicaudatus. Rattus rattus was caught in approxr

 

 

imately one-half of the area of the 0.12 hectare plot, its range

overlapping slightly with that of 9. longicaudatus and N. olivaceus,

 

which utilized the other half of the area.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 38, from: Angol, 9; 5 Km. 5 Angol,
76 m., 11;; 8 Km. NW Collipulli, 198 m., 7; 1 Km. W Lumaco, 106 m.,

3; Relfin, 152 m., l; Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 1.

117

Norway rat; Ratdn, Reta de las acequias

Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout)

 

Distribution.-- Throughout the province.

Remarks.-- 03good's remarks (l9h3:235) about the overabundance
of the pestiferous rodent in 19h3 still prevail. Norway rats
mostly inhabit human habitations, farm buildings, and environs,
although on occasion they were trapped in the field, seemingly in
competition with native cricetines. One was trapped along ‘with

93232525 longicaudatus and Akodon olivaceus in blackberry bushes

 

 

at Jauja. The rats show little fear of people walking along the
irrigation canals which harbor these pests. They were seen.fre-
quently running across country farm roads in front of oncoming ve-
hicles and pedestrians.

A rat kept in captivity was maintained on a diet of rose haws,
a source of food available naturally in many areas where the land

has been cleared for agriculture or pasture.
Specimens examined.-- Total, 12, from: Angol, h; 5 Km. S Angol,

76 m., 6; Jauja, h87 m., 1.

Mountain vizcacha; vizcacha

Lagidium viscacia sarae Thomas and St Leger

 

Distribution.-- High elevations in the Andes.

Remarks.—- The vizcacha lives near rocky cliffs and on boulder-
strewn slopes and is well-known to people living in the Andes. A
policeman at Lego Icalma reported that this animal is seldom hunted,

although its flesh reportedly is palatable. Another inhabitant at

118

Lego Icalma said that in recent years he had trapped several of
these animals alive, and that they were easy to find. However,
when I contracted with him to obtain some specimens, he reported
seeing only one after two days of searching in areas where pre-
viously he had seen many, My guide, in an area near the Andean
village of Troyo, pointed out a pile of large, exposed boulders
high on the side of the mountain overlooking the valley of the Rio
Bio Bio as a habitat of the vizcacha.

The only specimen I examined was brought to D. S. Bullock from
the Rio Ranguil, about 60 kilometers north-northwest of Paso Pino
Hachado (Neuquen Province, Argentina) where the type specimen was
collected by E. Budin (Thomas and St. Leger, 1926:6h0) and belongs
to the northern race of the five southern Argentinian forms of
Crespo (1963:63). The occurrence in Chile of this animal is not
remarkable since the vizcacha habitat exists all along the Conti-
nental Divide, the political division between Malleco and Argentina.

Measurements of an unsexed skeleton.(MSU #756h) taken in July
of 1962 are the following: (the external skin measurements and
weight were recorded by D. S. Bullock) weight, without viscera,

2 kilograms; total length, 8h0; length of tail vertebrae, 376;
length of hind foot, 10h; height of ear from notch, 66; the skull
measured: greatest length, 92.6; condylobasal length, 87.h;
zygomatic breadth, h9.0; breadth of braincase, 3h.6; least inter-
orbital breadth, 18.5; breadth of rostrum, 13.8; alveolar length of

maxillary tooth row, 22.8; length of diastema, 27.2.

119

Specimens examined.-- 1, from.Rio Ranguil. Other records:
Paso Pino Hachado, Neuquen Province, Argentina (Thomas and St.

Leger, 1926, 6&0).

Nutria; Coipu (coypu, coipo)

Nyocastor coypus coypus Molina

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco Province.

Remarks.-- The coipu is well-known in Malleco, and occurs in
waterways, rivers, lakes, and marshes, especially where there is
succulent vegetation along the banks or emergent from the water.

Gay in 18&7 (p. 126) remarked that coipus were distributed between
Coquimbo Province and Chiloé Island, and were somewhat more rare in
Chile than in Argentina. Coipus are chiefly Central Valley'lowb

land dwellers, but range as high as 1,190 meters in the Andes where
the snow attains the depth of one meter in winter. Perhaps the ans
imal is able to live there because many lakes and river do not freeze
in spite of sub-freezing temperatures (see discussion in Miller, 1962).

At El Vergel, coipus were trapped in a marshy area (part of an
oXbow lake of the Rio Malleco) in which emergent vegetation such as
"totora‘ (Scirpus sp.) grew. Coipus had chewed off the Scirpus a-
bout 15 centimeters above the water line in some places in this
marsh. It was reported by a resident at El Vergel that coipus also
feed on shell fish and leave piles of clam shells on sandbars of
the nearby Rio Huequén.

The forest ranger at Laguna Malleco estimated that between 20

and 25 coipus per hectare occurred in that lake. In areas of

120

rushes containing mostly "junquillo" (gggggg spp.), coipus ate
stems of the plants above the water line. Here, one could watch
the coipus forming trails by swimming, then crawling over the
matted, floating vegetation, and finally breaking through the
vegetation and again swimming. The crisscrossing trails were
between 20 and 50 centimeters wide, some showing more use than
others. Trails also were noted in a marshy area (see Plate 7b)
near Laguna Malleco.

The ranger at the Laguna Malleco reported that coipus did lit-
tle damage; however, this forest reserve was not used for crops.
In other areas crops serve as food for the coipus living near the
cultivated fields. Coipus are hunted in areas of the Central
Valley where they are especially plentiful in an attempt to control
the crop damage they cause. At 15 kilometers west of Pureh, dogs
‘were used to track and kill coipus in marshy areas which were being
drained for cropland.

At the time Gay wrote of the coipu (18&7), the fur was used as
felt for hate (on Chiloé Islands, especially) and for tobacco
pouches, and today the animals are still hunted for their skins.
Although the meat is palatable, many local residents would not eat
them since they believed they were "like large rats".

Gay remarked on the ease of taming coipus in captivity. An
adult male which I kept fer ten days, showed no sign of friend-
liness. 'While it was confined in a room, it made a peculiar
noise, a soft, screechy call lasting one to three seconds and
sounding not unlike a door slowly swinging on a rusty hinge. At

other times it made a low gutteral, growling noise both when

121

alone and while being handled.

This coipu (MSU #6399) was brought into the laboratory on 17
September 1961. Its weight at time of capture was 5,030 grams,
and in ten days in captivity it had lost 200 grams. Food con-
sumption averaged 1,520 grams of forage beets daily, or about
30 per cent of its body weight. There was nearly as much food
consumed during the daylight hours (707 grams on the average) as
there was during nighttime (813 grams on the average). Daily
weight changes varied between a 170 gram loss and a 220 gram in-
crease.

The ranger at the Laguna Malleco reported that young coipus
are seen in spring, summer, and autumn, but rarely in winter
(June, July, August). Of 8 specimens collected, one was a non-
pregnant female taken in December; the others were males.

External measurements of 3 adult males from E1 Vergel are the
following: total length, 865, 910, 9&2; length of tail vertebrae,
3h5, h03; 3793 length of hind foot, 135, 1h3, 190; height of ear
from notch, 30, 29, 35. 'Weight of one male was &,280 grams.
Average and extreme measurements of 6 skull from.Malleco Province
are as follows (number of skulls measured follows the correspond-
ing measurements): greatest length of skull, lll.& (lO&.5-1l6.0),
&; condylobasal length, 107.3 (102.5-113.0), 5; zygomatic breadth,
67.7 (61.2-72.h), 6; breadth of braincase, 33.7 (32.0-3h.h), h;
least interorbital breadth, 25.h (23.0—27.3), 6; breadth of ros-
trum, 21.6 (20.5-22.7), 6; length of diastema, 31.5 (28.h-3h.1),

6; alveolar length of maxillary tooth row, 28.& (27.2-30.3), 6.

122

Specimens examined.-- Total, 8, from: Fundo Maitenrehue (north-
west of Angol in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta), 61 m., 1; Angol, 2;
5 Km. 5 Angol, 76 m., 3; 15 Km. E Purén, 61 m., 2. Other records:
Lake Malleco (erroneously placed in Cautih Province by Osgood), 5

(Osgood, 1932:1h3).

Bridges' Octodon; Degu de los matorrales

Octodon bridgesi Waterhouse

 

Distribution.-- Western slopes of the Andes at moderate ele-
vations.

Remarks.-- Preserved specimens of this species are poorly re-
presented in museums; it appears difficult to trap. Yepes (i2
Osgood, l9&3:110) reocrded examples from Colchagua Province, and
Osgood took a specimen in O'Higgins Province; these localities are
about &00 kilometers north of Bafios Rio Blanco where I took one
specimen (MSU #63&5). This specimen was trapped in a streamside
thicket of cane (Chusquea sp.) by a rotten log on the western

slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Irenomys tarsalis, Dromiciops australis,

 

and Phyllotis micropus were caught in the same trapline. The ground

 

cover around where the trap was placed on the sloping bank consisted

of leaf litter from the cane and a few herbs. The trees in.the vi-

 

cinity were mostly coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi). There was little
evidence of burrows other than the diggings made by the ground bird,

"chucao" (Scelorchilus rubescula).

 

Measurements of the young male taken at the Bafios Rio Blanco,
980 meters elevation, are as follows: total length, 250; length

of tail vertebrae, 102; length of hind foot, 3&; height of ear

123

from notch, 23; greatest length of skull, 37.&; condylobasal length,
33.7; width of brain case, 15.9; interorbital constriction, 8.2;
breadth of rostrum, 8.6; alveolar length of maxillary tooth row,
9.1; length of diastema, 8.1; Ml width, 2.3; zygomatic width, 21.0;

weight, 92.5.
Specimens examined.-- One male from & Km. W Bahos Rio Blanco,
980 m.
Rock rat; Tunduco

Aconaemyg fuscus fuscus Waterhouse

Distribution.-- Mountainous areas.

Remarks.-- Tunducos were trapped in Nothofagus forests in bur-

 

rows under shrubs, especially barberry'(g.g., Berberis buxifolia).
These octodonts seemingly prefer granular, well-drained soils which
are found in elevated flats in the Cordillera de los Andes and the
Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. Osgood (l9&3:ll2) mistakenly believed
that these rodents were restricted to forests of Araucarian pine
and that they may have been abundant, or at least common, in the
Nahuelbuta. He further stated that in the Andes they were reduced
to small colonies and were disappearing "like the great trees un-
der which they make burrows". In 1960-62, I found this animal in
open, cleared areas, as well as in forested areas. Perhaps these
animals are able to adapt to the changing vegetation picture.

The 53.322222 burrow system is a network of interconnecting
tunnels close to the surface of the ground. Entrances to this

system from the surface may occur at intervals of up to one meter.

12h

Often, the burrow is merely a much used runway worn deep and covered
over, except in occasional clear areas, with a quantity of vegeta-
tion, reminiscent of Microtis runways in grassy places in Michigan.
Debris which appeared to have been pushed outside a burrow by its
inhabitant included: pieces of Berberis buxifolia stems (these
stems were up to 30 millimeters in diameter, showed teeth marks,

and were severed about 15 millimeters below the surface of the
ground), leaves Of.§' buxifolia, lichens, leaves and roots of

bunch grass, roble (Nothofagus obliqua) leaves; two sizes of feces

 

composed of wood cuttings and appearing to be from large and small
animals of the same species; and another pellet of feces having,
besides wood cuttings, the legs and mouth.parts of two unidenti-
fied beetles.

From the way in which the animals were caught, it is suspected
that this rodent accidently walked into traps placed in the run-
ways, rather than being attracted to the traps by the bait.

Gay (18&7:105) suggested that these animals may hibernate in
winter, but this is refuted by'Osgood (19h3:112), as well as by
my evidence. In late spring I found a large quantity of feces
scattered on the ground in front of a burrow (see Plate 8b). All
of this material was in approximately the same state of decompo-
sition. This suggested that the animals were active during win-
ter and deposited feces from time to time outside their burrows,
perhaps under the snow.

Osgood reported the capture of young animals in November, as

well as a female with two large fetuses. A female which I trapped

125

in November had 5 embryos, the longest being 50 millimeters in
head-crown length; another female trapped in February was not preg-
nant or lactating.

Measurements of an adult male (MSU #63&7) and 2 adult females,
(MSU #63&6, #63&8) from 27 kilometers west-northwest of Angol,
are as follows: total length, 22&, 250, 223; length of tail
vertebrae, 69, 78, 70; length of hind foot, 30, 33, 30; height of
ear from notch, 21, 18, 20; greatest length of skull, &0, --,
39; condylobasal length, 37.3, 38.8, 36.5; zygomatic breadth,
22.h, 22.9, 22.7; breadth of braincase, 15.7, 1&.9, 15.8; breadth
of rostrum, 8.3, 8.3, 8.3; length of diastema, 9.2, 9.9, 9.2;
alveolar length of maxillary tooth.row, 9.8, 9.9, 9.7; weight in

grams, 118.9, 135.3, 152.2 (pregnant).

Specimens examined.-- Total, & from: Parque Nacional de
Nahuelbuta, 27 Km. WNW Angol, 1110 m., 1 and at 1155 m., 2;
Laguna Malleco, 25 Km. N Curacautin, 9.5 m., 1. Other records:
Sierra Nahuelbuta, 1&; Pinares, Lonquimay (erroneously placed in

Cautih Province by Osgood), 1 (Osgood, l9h3:113).

Tunduco, Tucotuco del Maule

Ctenomyg maulinus brunneus Osgood

Distribution.-- Throughout the Andes.

Remarks.-- Following Osgood (l9h3:l27), I assign all of the
specimens of Ctenomys maulinus examined from Malleco to the sub-
species 9. g. brunneus. Most of my collections were made from
somewhat higher elevations than the vicinity of the Rio Colorado

from where the type specimen for the subspecies was obtained,

126

although in similarly forested areas.

Tunducos which I trapped in black, granular volcanic sands at
the Paso de las Raices (see Plate 5a) average darker than those
taken in the pale colored alluvial soils in the valleys of the
Rio Bio Bio (see Plate 5b) and the Rio Lonquimay, and areas near
the Paso Pino Hachado. Specimens trapped near the Paso Pino
Hachado (leading into Argentina) have reddish upperparts, while
those from lower elevations have brownish upperparts.

The range of the Chilean Ctenomyg, except for a species living
in the northern desert, is restricted to mountainous areas of the
Andes. In Malleco, g. maulinus lives in deep soils along the Rio
Bio Bio from near Lago Icalma downstream to the mouth of the Rio
Ranquil. Between the mouth of the Rio Ranquil and the Central
Valley, the Rio Bl/o Bio flows through steep canyons where the soil
is shallow and rocky, The absence of suitable soils for burrows
in these canyons appears to bar the movement of g. maulinus into
the Central Valley via the Rio Bio Bio valley. The western slopes
of the front range of the Andes in.Malleco are rocky and mostly'
of volcanic origin with evidence of recent lava flows. Some areas
at lower elevations in the Andean foothills seem suitable fer these
animals, but although abundant at higher elevations, they are
either unable to traverse the rocky slopes to these isolated areas,
or cannot adapt to the different enwironment. Except for the vol-

canic sands in.the Paso de las Raices, the‘fiirre (Nothofagus

 

antarctica)-grassland habitat seems to be preferred by these
burrowers.

Burrow systems were excavated at the Paso de las Raices and at

127

Lago Icalma. Their total lengths were &9 meters and 1& meters
respectively; their galleries averaged 20 centimeters (15-30) and
30 centimeters (l5—&5) below the ground surface. There was an
average of one entrance for each 1.8 meters of tunnel in the bur-
row system at the Paso de las Raices, and cut vegetation was not
found anywhere in this burrow. In contrast, in the burrow system
at Lago Icalma there were 3 entrances in 1& meters of tunnel and
there were cuttings of grass and herbs. Shrubs which commonly
have their root systems near burrows of g. maulinus are E1223 sp.,
Berberis spp., Chusquea sp., and species of Rhamnaceae. The sev-
ered tops of the following herbs were in one burrow: Senecio spp.,
Mulinum sp., 23223 sp., and Baccharis sp. Other herbs found in
close association.with the burrow locations were 3222; sp., Fragaria
sp., Eu horbia sp., Aggggg sp., and Trifolium sp.

Residents in the Andes did not know the animal by the name,
"tuco-tuco", used widely in scientific literature, but as "tunduco".
The people know the animal by its burrows, rather than by the ani-
mal itself.

A specimen was caught alive near its burrow after a chase across
a road in the early morning west of Paso Pino Hachado. This sug-
gests that the animals may move about on the surface, at least dur-
ing daylight. Pearson (l959:28,29) remarked on the prolonged di-
urnal activities of Q. gpiggs and Q. peruanus. The specimen.which
I caught alive ate potato while in captivity. I found the flesh
of the animals to be tasty, but local people did not use them for
food.

At Lago Icalma on 10 April a male and female were taken in the

128

same trap a few hours apart. Of &3 animals trapped, 25 were females,

and none was pregnant in February, March, April, July or December.

Specimens examined.-- Total, &&, from: &0 Km. NNE Lonquimay,
1220 m. (approx.), 1& (skins only); 10 Km. WNW Lonquimay, 1555 m.,
2; 11.3 Km. w Lonquimay, 1585 m., 5; 13.3 Km. w Lonquimay, 1650 m.,
3; 2 Km. E Lonquimay, 1007 m., 1; 20 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado,
1170 m., 2; 17.6 Km.'w Paso Pino Hachado, 1280 m., 1; 16.7 Km. W
Paso Pino Hachado, 1372 m., 1; 15.2 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1&65 m.,
3; 9.1; Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1555 m., 2; 6.0 Km. W Paso Pino
Hachado, 1650 m., 1; 3.5 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 17&0 m., l;
1.7 Km. W Paso Pino Hachado, 1830 m., 2; Lago Icalma, 1190 m., 6.
Other records: "west of Lonquimay", 2; Rio Colorado, 915 m., 2

(Osgood, l9&3:l25-127).

Culpeo

Dusicygn culpaeus culpaeus (Molina)

Distribution.-- Throughout the province.

Remarks.-- The culpeo is the most widespread and largest canid
in Malleco, and lives in open or cultivated lands and wooded areas
in the Central Valley, and rocky slopes in mountainous regions. A
comprehensive study by Crespo and DeCarlo (1963) of 257 culpeos
captured in Neuquen Province, Argentina (adjacent to the eastern
border of Malleco) has added much to our knowledge of this animal's
biology; many of Crespo's findings are applicable to culpeos in
‘Malleco.

Culpeos were sighted several times during field excursions.

One was observed at night on a steep, heavily grazed slope of the

129

Corddn Litrancura east of Lonquimay, an area also frequented by
European hares; two of these canids were seen at dusk running in
the road about 20 kilometers east of Collipulli in the Central
Valley, and another was seen at midday among rocks by a mountain
road near Contulmo.

Local people reported that the culpeo does little harm, except
for eating chickens occasionally. Generally, residents considered
that culpeos benefit the farmer by preying on the European hare
which causes widespread damage to their crops. The smaller chilla

(Dusicyon griseus) and the culpeo were reported by local people as

 

occurring in the same areas, the culpeo being the more abundant.
Average and extreme measurements are the following (the last
numeral indicates the number of specimens measured): total length,
1172.5 (1110-12&), 6; length of tail vertebrae, h39.5 (h22-h65), 6;
length of hind foot, 176.3 (l65u190) 6; height of ear from notch,
98.9 (95-103), 6; weight, 8600, 1. Greatest length of skull, 152.2
(1&3.6-l63.5), 8; zygomatic breadth, 8&.8 (79.1-90.7), 6; breadth
of braincase, &9.5 (&7.8-52.7), 8; alveolar length of maxillary
tooth row, 58.3 (5&.2-6&.5), 8; least interorbital breadth, 25.8
(20.8-29.2), 8; breadth of rostrum, 26.9 (25.2-29.5), 8; condylo-

basal length, 161.7 (15&.0-l73.l), 7.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 11, from: Nacimiento (Bio Bio
Province), &; Fundo Los Copihues, 15 Km. NW Angol, &72 m., 2;
10 Km. SE Angol, l; 15 Km. E. Purén, 61 m., l; Troyo, 980 m., 2

(skins only); east of Curacautin, 73& m., l.

130

Chilla

Dusicygn griseus griseus (Philippi)

Distribution.-- Throughout the province; absent from high eleva-
tions in the Andes.

Remarks.-- Osgood (l9h3z68) reported that before the time of his
study the chilla was abundant throughout its range, especially in
Argentina, but that by l9&3 their numbers were greatly reduced. He
remarked that the chilla's range was limited to open, grassy lands
and that this species rarely occurred in the Andes, even in the
foothills. Although none of my specimens was taken at above &70
meters elevation in the Andes, I did receive reports from local
residents that the chilla occurs at least as high as 1,220 meters.
The chilla is less abundant than the culpeo (Dusicygn culpaeus)
according to reports by residents of Malleco.

Two specimens brought to the Museo Dillman S. Bullock were taken
in bushy, hilly country; one was shot on a farm in the foothills of
the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta, and the other at the base of the foot-
hills of the Andes. The foreman at the Fundo Huitanlebu (in the
Central Valley near the Nahuelbuta) reported that the chilla gener-
ally remains in the hills (Nahuelbuta) because of the greater abun-
dance of small birds and other animals there, and, unlike the culpeo,
seldom causes damage on the farm.

External measurements of an adult male (MSU #629&) are as follows:
total length, 1030; length of tail vertebrae, 370; length of hind
foot, 160; height of ear from notch, 85; weight, 5&50. Cranial

measurements of two adult males (MSU #6290, #629&) are as follows:

131

total length, 1030; length of tail vertebrae, 370; length of hind
foot, 160; height of ear from.notch, 85; weight, 5&50. Cranial
measurements of two adult males (MSU #6290, #629h) are as follows:
greatest length of skull, ll7.h, 129.9; condylobasal length, 128.0,
1&l.3; zygomatic breadth, 67.7, 73.2; breadth of braincase, &&.l,
&6.0; alveolar length of maxillary tooth row, h5.l, 51.2; least
interorbital breadth, 22.5, 20.5; breadth of rostrum, 19.2, 22.9;
crown length of carnassial tooth, 12.9, 13.&; length of baculum

(MSU #629h), 59.2, and width, h.2.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 5, from: 22 Km. SE Mulchéh, &72 m.,
(Bio Bio Province to the north of Malleco), l; Nahuelbuta, Angol, l
(skull); Angol, 2 (skulls); Fundo Santa Abela, Les Sauces, 1.

Other records: Curacautin, Malleco, l (Osgood, l9&3:7l).

Grison; Quique, Huron

Galictis cuja cuja Molina

 

Distribution.-- Mountainous areas throughout Malleco.

Remarks.-- The grison, or quique as it is known by Chileans
(it is also called hurdn by Indians near the Argentine-Chilean
border), occurs in brushy areas below timberline in the Cordillera
de los Andes and in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. No reports were
obtained of its occurrence in the Central Valley.

A resident at Jauja in the foothills of the Andes reported
killing three of these animals as they hid together in a hollow
tree. A policeman gave me the skin of a quique which had been

killed by his dogs in the rocks near Lago Icalma. The animal also

132

was reported to live among rocks along the Rio Bio Bio north of
Lonquimay. At Troyo, it was seen near human habitation more come
monly in winter (June, July, August) than in summer. Residents in
mountainous areas reported that the quique does no appreciable dame
age to poultry or other stock.

I obtained a live quique in August from a cowboy who captured
it on the Fundo Los Copihues, 15 kilometers northwest of Angol,
762 meters elevation. Reportedly, a dog tracked this animal and
it was captured with a snare from a burrow among rocks and roots

of an avellano (Guevina avellana) on an incline (about 30° slope)

 

in a roble (Nothofagus obliqua) woods. Three other quiques were

 

reported killed at the same time and another was left alive in the
burrow. An inspection at a later date of the burrow system from
which the animal was taken revealed three adjacent entrances, one
of which measured 36 centimeters wide and 20 centimeters high.

One burrow was approximately 15 centimeters in diameter, one meter
from its entrance. The entrances to the burrow system were par-
tially obscured by leaves of a large bromelid (933253 sp.). Trees

in.the vicinity were peumo (Cryptocarya alba), lingue (Persea

 

liggge), and avellano.

Behavior in captivity.-- Between 25 August and 12 December 1961,
the captured male animal was kept in a specially designed cage
(Greer, 1965b) which permitted weighing, measuring food consump-
tion, and collecting urine and feces. Some results of the inves-
tigation follow. weight at time of capture was 1,225 grams; weight
while on unlimited food.rations 3 days after capture was l,&88

grams, showing a gain of 263 (21.5 per cent); the greatest amount

133

of meat eaten in one day was &&& grams (31.8 per cent of its body
weight). Its weight reached 1,700 grams on an unlimited supply
of meat; after 9 days of eating exactly 250 grams of meat per day,
it gained 90 grams. Its food consisted of heart, tongue, ox lung
and spleen, fox meat, spurwing lapwing and barn owl, a common snake
(Dromicus chamionis), and fish heads; during a forced fasting per—
iod, an apple was offered but not taken. The quantity of excreted
urine varied between 7& and 177 cc daily when on a meat diet, and
between 5 and 10 cc daily during a forced fasting period; the
weight of feces varied between 8 and 31 grams daily when on a meat
diet. ‘Weight loss after 6 days of forced fasting was 3&1 grams
(20.6 per cent of its body weight at the beginning of the fasting
period). Some normal values (in mEq X Lt) for cations in the
urine were determined by Dr. Guillermo Mann of Santiago, Chile, to
be for Na: 80.7, 89.0, 97.5; and for K: 27.0, 29.8, 16.0.

Dalquest and Roberts (1951:359-366) remarked on the docile be-
havior of a tamed grison (Galictis canaster) which was taken into
captivity as a young animal. Osgood (l9&3:93) noted that natives
used tamed grisons to drive chinchillas from their burrows in the
Andes. ‘Walker (196&:1199) reported that young grisons tame readily
and make affectionate pets. My captive animal, unlike the above,
‘was pugnacious. During 70 days in which I observed the behavior
of this adult male, it constantly emitted sharp, gutteral barking
noises while I was in the room where the cage was kept. This noise
intensified when the animal was weighed or fed.

During the final days of the animal's life, it was put on pub-

1ic display in the Museo Dillman S. Bullock at El Vergel in a cage

13h

which had a glass top and front. The animal was in a constant
frenzy and charged all observers. After eight days on display
it became sick and died. ‘

Measurements of two adults from the Nahuelbuta, the first a
male from 15 Km. NW Angol, the second an unsexed skull, are as
follows: greatest length of skull, 71.2, 63.0; condylobasal length,
77.5, 65.3; zygomatic breadth, h3.2, &0.0; least interorbital
breadth, 17.3, 15.6; breadth of brain case, 36.2, 33.5; length of
palate, 3&.7, 30.8; alveolar length of maxillary tooth row, 15.2,
l&.8; width of M3, 6.6, &.9. The external measurements of the male
were the following: total length, 601; length of tail vertebrae,
175; length of hind foot, 67; height of ear from notch, 30; length

of the baculum, &l.3.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 8, from: 15 Km. NW Angol, 610 m.,
l (skull); Angol, 2 (skins); Nahuelbuta, l (skull); &0 Km. NNE
Lonquimay, 1220 m., 2 (skins); Rio Lonquimay, 980 m., 1 (skin);

Lago Icalma, 1190 m., l.

Skunk; Chingue comun

Conepatus chinga Melina

 

Distribution.-- In the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and Cordillera
de los Andes.
Remarks.-- Specimens examined from the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta

are assigned to the race Conepatus chinga chinga Molina on the

 

basis of the terminal half of the tail being wholly white to the

roots of the hairs. A skin from the Nahuelbuta on display in the

135

Museo Dillman S. Bullock has the two white stripes joining across
the back of the head, and extending down the sides to the rump,

and the terminal half of the tail is white. A skunk found dead in
the road at 30 kilometers west of Curacautin, 590 meters elevation,
seems best referred to Q. g. mendosus Thomas on the basis of the
lateral stripes being interrupted on the back and appearing again
on the rump as two white patches.

Measurements for Conepatus chinga chinga Molina of 2 skulls

 

(MSU nos. 6303, 630&) from 27 kilometers west-northwest of Angol
and a skull (MSU no. 6305) from WAngol", are as follows: great-
est length, 6h.0, --, 65.2; condylobasal length, 68.3, ---,

70.8; breadth of brain case, 33.0, 31.2, 32.0; least interorbital
breadth, 19.7, --, 18.5; length of palate, ---, ---, 30.1; alveo-
lar length of maxillary tooth row, 15.2, ---, 15.7; width of crown
of M3, 7.1, ---, 7.1.

Measurements for Conepatus chinga mendosus Thomas of a skin and

 

broken skull (MSU no. 6307) from 30 Km. west of Curacautin, are the
following: length of hind foot (dry), 70; alveolar length of max-

illary tooth row, 16.1; width of M3, 7.h.

Specimens examined.-- Conepatus chinga mendosus Thomas, 1, from

 

30 kilometers west of Curacautin, 595 m.

Conepatus chinga chinga (Molina), total, &, from: 27 Km. W

 

Angol, 1110 m., 2; Angol, 2 (1 skin, immature); Nahuelbuta Angol,

1 (Museo Dillman S. Bullock).

136
Skunk; Chingue , Zorina

Conepatus humboldti Gray

 

Distribution.-- The Cordillera de los Andes.

Remarks.-- A skin of this skunk, stuffed with sawdust, was given
to me in Lonquimay by a butcher, who said it came from the valley
of the Rio Lonquimay. The skin, although slightly soiled, agrees
with the description by Osgood (19h3:95) for this species in that
the base color is blackish-brown, and two white stripes are united
on the head and well-separated on the back. The presence of this
skunk in the valley of the Rio Lonquimay, a tributary of the Rio
Bio Bio suggests a connection across the Andes with the forms in
Argentina. A specimen taken at Temuco in 1907 by D. S. Bullock is
similar to the above specimen, except that the blackish-brown color
is faded. Probably, there are connections between the Andean form,

and those in the Central Valley.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 2, from: Valley of Rio Lonquimay,

980 m., 1; Temuco (Cautin Province), 1.

River otter; Huillin

Lutra provocax Thomas

 

Distribution.-- Waterways in the Central Valley; however, the
animal may be entirely extirpated.

Remarks.-- None of these animals was seen alive or was collected
by me in Malleco Province. However, the otter may still exist along
some streams in the Cordillera de los Andes, Central Valley, and

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta which flow southward into the Rio Imperial

 

137

in Cautin Province.

Residents of various localities along some of the rivers in
Malleco were questioned about the presence of the animal. Near
Jauja, a resident reported seeing an otter in the Rio Renaico in
1960, and told me that one was hooked on fishing tackle. A former
student at the El Vergel agricultural school reported seeing an
otter in the Rio Malleco near E1 Vergel "many years ago". Mr.
Santiago Bachman, an agriculturist and lumberman from near Galvarino,
reported otters in the Rio Quillén in times past. The otter was
unknown to residents questioned at Lago Icalma at the headwaters of
the Rio Bio Bio in the Andes, but 12 kilometers downstream, local
residents reported having seen the animal in "past years". A store-
keeper at Troyo saw an otter at the junction of the Rib Ranquil and
Rio Bio Bio in 1961. A resident living 20 kilometers north of
Lonquimay at 1,190 meters reported a breeding pair in the Rio Bio Bio.

Some local observers may have confused the otter with the nutria

(Nyocastor coypus) which also occurs in many of these same rivers,

 

but the reports I received suggested that in past times the Rio Bio
Bio and its larger tributaries, and the Rio Imperial drainage in
Malleco harbored otter, at least until heavy hunting pressure all

but exterminated them.

Specimens examined.-- One, from Temuco (Cautin Province) taken
by D. S. Bullock, April 17, 1908 (MSU no. 965&, a mounted skin

without a skull).

138

Chilean forest puma; Le6n, Puma

Felis concolor araucana Osgood

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco except in flatlands in the
Central Valley.

Remarks.-- Forested areas in all parts of Malleco Province are
likely home sites of this largest of Chilean carnivores. Near
Tijeral, pine plantations are used for cover by'marauding lions
in search of farm animals. Local residents throughout the pro-
vince report the presence of the puma in areas that have been exten-
sively cleared of timber, as well as in forests of Araucarian pine

(Araucaria araucana), coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi), and rauli (N.

 

alpina) and the highland areas of the Cordillera de los Andes where

the low shrub-like nirre (Nothofagus antarctica) is the prominent

 

plant form.

Pumas of Malleco are small with an average weight of about 25
kilograms as adults. Measurements of & adults from the Cordillera
de Nahuelbuta are listed in Table 10. They were collected by D.

S. Bullock, and as untanned skins probably exhibit more natural
color than tanned specimens. Following the classification of
Sanborn (l95&:126-128), I note that 3 skins (MSU nos. 6321, 632&,
2325) are in the red phase and one (MSU no. 6322) is in the gray
phase. Measurements of animals from the same region are listed by
Sanborn (92.9113. :127) .

The puma was reputed to prey on domestic animals in every local-
ity where local residents reported its presence. Sheep, especially

stragglers, are the preferred food, according to reports, with

Table 10.

139

Measurements of female Chilean Felis concolor from the

Cordillera de Nahuelbuta, collected by D. S. Bullock

 

 

no.6321 no.6322 no.632& no.6325

 

Total length

Length of tail vertebrae
Length of hind foot

Height of ear from notch
Greatest length of skull
Condylobasal length
Zygomatic breadth

Least interorbital breadth
Post orbital breadth
Length of nasals

Mastoid breadth

Length of palate

Length of carnassial crown

Alveolar length of
maxillary tooth row

1580
575
220
82.

161.2
lh8.8

11h.0

35.7
h8.9
36.3
70.0
55.6
l9.h
39.7

1570

595
225

83

16h03
150.0

113.0

33.h
h3.3
38.3
68.h
66.5
20.h

h0.9

lhho
Sho

255
90

155.8
th.3

30.1

h7.7

63.8
65.3
21.1

39.6

1610

577
225
83 .
167.2
lash
113.0
33.7
1.1.7
37.2
69.1
69.5
20.6
h1.3

 

lhO
calves, colts, and goats also alleged victims of puma attacks.
Sheep remains were found in the stomach of a female puma killed
at the Fundo La Boyanco, 10 kilometers south of Angol. Seemingly,
there is a large number of pumas in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta.
For example, it was reported that 15 pumas were killed on the Fundo
Copihues, 15 kilometers northwest of Angol, 610 meters elevation,
in 1961. Reportedly, dogs used to hunt pumas often kill them.

A young male puma was kept in captivity at E1 Vergel between
5 September 1961 and 31 October 1961 and then caged at a neigh-
boring farm until its death in May in 1962. It was found as a
young kitten, with a broken leg, wandering in a road in the Andean.
foothills. Its age at time of capture was estimated to be 5 weeks.

While at E1 Vergel, the puma was raised as a pet in my apart-
ment where it was uncaged. However for two hours daily it was
kept on public display in a glass cage in the Museo Dillman S.
Bullock and occasionally it was taken outdoors for exercise.

A splint was applied to the broken leg, but would not stay in
place because of the puma's lively activities. The splint was re-
moved after the second week and at no time did the fracture appear .
to cause discomfort. Seemingly, it healed after a month had passed.
Between 2& September and 12 October the cat became ill and occa-
sionally vomited mucus and nematodes; nematodes also were in its
feces. Piperazine was administered in the puma's food and the ani-
mal's condition improved.

At first, the puma was hesitant to eat, but would take milk from
an eye dropper. It soon learned to eat from a saucer and its diet

included such foods as milk, oatmeal or farina, sugar, and, on

lhl
occasion, small amounts of meat. The meat content of its diet was
gradually increased until by the end of October, it was eating from
between 500 and 800 grams of meat daily, During to days in capti-
vity the cat gained 1,900 grams and grew in external dimensions
(see Figure 5).

The puma learned rapidly what freedoms it was permitted as a
pet in the confines of the apartment, and was disciplined by being
slapped with a newspaper or a thin wooden slat. It evidenced no
"remorse" when being punished and usually reacted by laying back
its ears, hissing, and trying to avoid the blows. It learned gener-
ally what was expected during its enforced domestication. Usually,
the only time it tended to be ferocious was when bothered while
eating.

Generally, the puma greatly disliked being restrained, but
thrived on rough play. It liked to be thrown on its back where
it could play at biting and at using its hind paws. Another game
was for it to stalk me as I would ascend the steps to my living
quarters. The puma would sit waiting by the doorway of the apart-
ment and pounce on my legs when I entered the room.

Occasionally it was released outdoors, but seemed afraid in the
new surroundings. It would pace uncertainly about, pawing at the
door of the museum, seemingly anxious to be back indoors. Vocal-
izing consisted of a high squeaking noise (see also, Rabb, 1959:
116-117), very similar to the noise made by'a Chilean spurwing
lapwing chick also kept in a cage in the apartment.

After sending the puma to a neighboring farm, the animal recog-

nized me on sight even though I visited it infrequently in its new

WEIGHT IN KILOGRAMS

b)
l

N
l

 

 

Figure 5. Rate of weight gain and external growth in a Chilean
Forest Puma from Malleco Province, Chile.

~7OO

~600

' -500

NI HIDMHW

#400

HIENITTIH

SH

-300

tail . , /

/ 200

hind foot 4/

 

#9‘--_ d.

‘ A i I
30 Sth 10 Oct 20 Oct 30 Oct 1 April
DATE

1&2

1143

home. It also recognized me by smell from a short distance, and as
I approached its cage, it would begin squeaking before it saw me
and then bound toward me in greeting. It would first grab my legs
with its front paws and nuzzle me with its head for about 30 se-
conds before beginning rough play in the old manner. The new owners
reported that the animal normally was "fierce" and did not behave
in a very tame manner toward anyone.

On April 2, the puma escaped from his cage and in the process
of being captured rebroke its leg. As before, there was apparently
no discomfort in the affected area as the puma remained quiet while
a plaster cast was applied to the leg. The puma eventually chewed
off the case and due to a subsequent infection in the leg had to

be destroyed.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 5, from: Angol, 1; Nahuelbuta,
Angol, 1; La Boyanco, 10 Km. S Angol, 3.

Other records: "Fdo. Maitenrehue", Sierra Nahuelbuta, west of
Angol, 5 (Osgood, l9h3:78); Angol, 2; Angol, Nahuelbuta, 2; Angol,
Vegas Blancas, 2; Angol, Chanleo, 2 (Phillip Hershkovitz, letter

to Rollin Baker, 25 Jan. 1965).

lhh

.~ '/
Guina, Gato montez

Felis guigna guigna Molina

 

Distribution.-- Throughout Malleco Province.

Remarks.-- The guifia is about the size of a housecat and occurs
in wooded and semi-open areas in the Central Valley, as well as in
forested regions in the Nahuelbuta and the Andes. It is locally
abundant and commonly found near human habitations.

Guifias frequently are melanistic. Two of 9 specimens which I
examined from.Malleco Province were dark. Philippi reported that
of h specimens in the museum at Valdivia, 2 were entirely black
(in Allen, 1919:362). The forest ranger at Laguna Malleco reported
two cats, a guifia and a "gato montéa“. It seemed from his descrip-
tions that both were guifias, and that one of these was melanistic.

In some places guihas attack livestock, especially the young of
goats, hence it is hunted when its presence is suspected. At 60
kilometers east of Los Angeles (Bio Bio Province north of Malleco),
a guifia was treed by dogs, knocked from the tree by boys using
sticks, and killed by the dogs. A female in lactation taken simi-
larly at El Vergel had the remains of two rodents (Egttug sp.) in
its stomach; the stomach of another guina contained a rat (523222
sp.) and unidentified feathers. Tapeworms were found in the small
intestines of both animals.

Measurements of 3 adults (1 male, 2 females) from El Vergel are
the following: total length, 706, 695, 690; length of tail verte-
brae, 226, 235, 220; length of hind foot, 10h, 106, 101; height of

ear from notch, h5, h9, h8; weight, 2500, 2121, 2083. Average and

11:5
extreme measurements of the skulls of 5 adults are the following
(final numeral indicates number of specimens measured): greatest
length, 85.9 (82.6-89.6) h; condylobasal length, 80.8 (77.h-8h.5)
h; zygomatic breadth, 55.2 (53.5-57.7) 5; mastoidal breadth, 35.1
(33.h—36.5) h; least interorbital breadth, 16.0 (15.0-16.6) 5;
postorbital constriction, 23.5 (22.1-2h.9) 5; length of palate,
30.8 (28.8-32.1) 5; length of nasals, 13.2 (ll.2-lh.6) 5; alveolar
length of maxillary tooth row, 16.0 (15.3-16.7) 5; length of upper

carnassial tooth (crown), 9.7 (9.6-10.0) 5.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 9, from: Nah elbuta, l; 5 Km. 5

Angol, 76 m., 3; Angol, h; Ercilla, l.

Pudu, Venado

Pudu pudu Molina

Distribution.-- In the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta and in the
Cordillera de los Andes at moderate elevations.

Remarks.-- The pudu occurs in forested areas where the terrain
is rough and undergrowth is thick. Local residents report that
this deer is present in most parts of the Andean foothills east of
the Central Valley, Osgood (l9h3:229) reported the pudu as "common
at lower levels" in the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta. It is now rare
in all parts of this mountainous area.

A local resident pointed out an area in the Nahuelbuta where he
had seen a pudu in January,l96l. This area was rocky and steep

with a dense growth of young roble (Nothofagus obliqua) and cans

 

(Chusquea sp.). The campesino reported that the pudus do not change

lh6
places of habitation and are in the area in equal numbers in all
seasons. Pudu, although reportedly shy, are seen by the forest
ranger at the Laguna Malleco near his house in winter. This area

is heavily forested with coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi), rauli (E.

 

alpina), and roble, along with dense patches of cane. A resident
from near Galvarino reported that the pudu forages on the fruit

of avellano (Guevina avellana) and a shrub of the Myrtaceae family

 

having succulent berries.

I saw two captive adults living in a garden of a residence in
Angol. They had been caught while young in the Cordillera de
Nahuelbuta. They seemed to be gentle and had been trained to
wear collars and be led by a leash. Gay (18h7:158) remarked that
pudu are easily domesticated and often are found in houses. The
captive animals ate apples principally. Measurements of five

Mallecan specimens are in Table 11.

Specimens examined.-- Total, 7, from: Angol, l; Nahuelbuta,
Angol, 5; 10 Km. W Galvarino, 61 m., 1. Other record, 1, from

Vega Blanca, Sierra Nahuelbuta (Osgood, l9&3:231).

1h?

Table 11. Measurements of skulls of Pudu pudu Molina from
Malleco Province, Chile.

 

 

 

 

Measurements no.7538 no.75h0 no.75h2 no.7539 no.75hl
male male male female female
Greatest length — 126.2 125.0 88.7 69.9
Zygomatic breadth - 6h.7 - 51.6 39.5
Least interorbital breadth 29.7 30.h 29.1 2h.3 19.5
Breadth of braincase h7.6 h9.h - hh.9 39.1
Alveolar length of u3.8 h6.o h2.6 29.9 23.2

maxillary tooth row

Antler length from frontal 60.0 51.3 70.8 - -
bone (right)

Antler length from frontal 70.5 73.3 6h.2 - -
bone (left)

 

No.75h2 is from 10 Km. W Galvarino; others from "Nahuelbuta, Angol".

ADDITIONAL RECORDS OF MAMMALS IN MALLECO

Additional records of mammals in Malleco will accumulate as more
field workers venture into the newly accessible parts of the Andes.

The following Species may in the future be found by investigators:

 

 

 

Desmodus rotundus Spalacopus cyanus
Histiotus macrotus Notiomys megalonyx
Zaedyus pichiy Felis pajeros

 

 

1’48

SUMMARY

Field study of mammals in.Malleco Province, Chile, sponsored
by The Museum, Michigan State University, and the Museo Dillman
S. Bullock, E1 Vergel, Angol, Chile, was carried out from November,
1960, to May, 1962. Various aspects of the distribution and ecology
of mammals of this little-studied part of south central Chile were
investigated for the purpose of contributing to the knowledge of
the natural history of this region.

Thirtybnine kinds (species and subspecies) of wild mammals be-
longing to 31 native species and 5 introduced species were collected

or reported in.Malleco. The 2h genera of native mammals may be ar-

 

 

ranged as follows: cosmopolites, h; Nearctic-Neotropical varicants,

2; excurrent Neotropical regionalites, 2; and endemic Neotropical

 

 

regionalites, 16; of the latter, 11 are endemic to the Patagonian

 

Subregion.

The relationship of the mammalian fauna to that of provinces
north and south of Malleco seems to be correlated with the trans
sitional characteristics of the vegetation, i.g., the northern
xerophilic vegetation and drier climate interdigitating with the
southern lush vegetation and greater rainfall. Twenty (65 per
cent) of the 31 species in Malleco occupy areas in the provinces
to both the north and south, whereas 11 (35 per cent) are identi-
fied with the mammalian fauna only to the north (h) or only to the

south (7) of Malleco. Of the 25 polytypic species in.Malleco, ll

lh9

150

are indistinguishable from subspecies in the provinces both to the
north and south of Malleco, whereas more than half (1h) are distin-
guishable from.the subspecies either to the north or south of Malleco.

Twentyhnine (9h per cent) of the 31 Mallecan species of mammals
occur east of the continental divide in Neuquen, Argentina; thus it
appears that the Cordillera de los Andes in this region only slight-
ly impedes the eastdwest movement of animals. Based on this infor-
mation, it would appear that climatic and, to a lesser extent, phys-
iographic factors, operating principally on vegetation have influ-
enced north-south distribution more than east-west distribution.

Of the Mallecan mammals, Oryzomys longicaudatus, Akodon.

 

 

longipilis, and Akodon olivaceus are the most comon and wide-

 

 

spread rodents. Oryzomys longicaudatus is the most ubiquitous

 

rodent, and prefers a shrubby habitat, especially blackberry thick-

ets, which are early invaders of cleared lands throughout Malleco.

 

Akodon olivaceus is the most commonly trapped rodent in the Central

Valley grasslands; Akodon longipilis, common in mountainous areas

 

and absent from the Central Valley, is most numerous in partially
cleared forests which have denser ground cover than the virgin forests.

Population densities per hectare of Akodon longipilis taken in

 

h Andean areas were: hl individuals in an uncut coihue (Nothofagus
dombeyi) forest and 58 (estimated to be between 58 and 123) indivi-
duals in a partly cut coihue forest, and 50 (estimated between 50

and 113) individuals in an Araucarian pine forest with cane (Chusquea)
undergrowth, and 6h (estimated between 6h and 176) individuals in
open fiirre-grassland. Due to low numbers taken, no density esti-

mates were made on the other rodents.

151

Population density per hectare for Oryzomys longicaudatus trapped

 

in the Central Valley was between 23 and 173, and for Akodon
olivaCeus, between 20 and 23h. Specific trapsites where these two

species were sympatric showed that Oryzomys longicaudatus preferred

 

brushy areas and Akodon olivaceus grassy situations.

 

Hunting questionaires answered by members of the Hunting Club
of Angol showed that robins, doves, parrots, tinamous, and quail
(in that order) were the most frequently killed birds and that the
European rabbit and European hare were the most frequently hunted
mammals. The wild pigeon is no longer abundant, and the otter

seems to be extirpated from its former range in Malleco.

LITURATURE CITED

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1960. General discussion of Botany. In A Discussion on the
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Bohan, Merwin L. and Morton Pomeranz
1960. Investment in Chile. Bureau of Foreign Commerce. U.S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. ix and
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Buchinger, Maria
1965. Conservation in Latin America. Bioscience, 15 (l):32-37.

Bullock, Dillman S.
1932. Los nombres cientificos de Molina. Extracto de la
Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, Afib xxxv1,pp.ll3-
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Cabrera, Angel
1958 and 1961. Catdlogo de los mamiferos de Amdrica del Sur.
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Cabrera, Angel and Jose Yepes
19h0. Historia Natural Ediar. Mamiferos Sud-Americanos (Vida,
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Christi, J. ummbr and H. F. Williams
1950. Mapa Bosquejo Geol6gico de Chile. Instituto Geogréphico
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Couper, R. A. _
1960. Southern Hemisphere-Mesozoic and Tertiary Podocarpaceae
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Crespo, J. A. *
1963. Dispersion del chinchilldn, Lagidium viscacia (Molina)
en el noreste de Patagonia y descripcién de una nueva
subspecie (Mammalia; Rodentia). Neotropica, 9 (29):6l-63.

 

Crespo, J. A. and J. M. DeCarlo
1963. Estudio ecoldgica de una poblacion de zorros colorados
Dusicyon culpaeus culpaeus (Molina) en el oeste de la
provincia de Neuquen. Revista de1.Museo Argentino de
Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia", Ecologia,
1(1):55 pp. Buenos Aires, Argentina.

 

152

153

Dalquest, W. W. and J. H. Roberts
1951. Behavior of young grisons in captivity. Am. Midland
Nat., ho (2):359-366.

Drake, J. J.
1958. The brush mouse Peromyscus baylii in southern Durango.
Mich. State Univ. Publ. Museum, Biol. Ser., 1 (3):97-l32.

 

Dunbar, Carl 0.
19h9. Historical Geology. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.
xii and 567 pp.

Findley, James S. and Clyde Jones '
l96h. Seasonal distribution of the Hoary Bat. J. Mamma1.,
h5 (3)2h61-h70-

Gay, Claudia ’
18h7. Historia fisica y politics de Chile. Zoologia, Tomo
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GOdley, E. J.
1960. The botany of southern Chile in relatibn to New Zealand
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B, Vol. lS2:hS7-h75.

Good, Ronald
l96h. The Gmography of the Flowering Plants. John Wiley &
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Goodspeed, T. Harper
l9h5. Notes on the vegetation and plant resources in Chile
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'Verdoorn, ed. Chronica Botanica, Waltham, Mass., p. 1h8.

1961. Plant hunters in.the Andes. University of California
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Greer, John Keever
1965a. Notes on Chilean birds of prey. Submdtted for publi-
cation to Auk.

1965b. A cage for intractable animals. Submitted for publi-
cation to J. Wildl. Mgmt.

Hayne, Do We
19h9. Two methods for estimating population from trapping
records. J. Mammal., 30:399-h11.

15h

Hershkovitz, Philip

1958. A geographical classification of Neotropical mammals.
Fieldiana: Zoology, 36(6):581—620. Chicago Natural
History'Museum.

1962. Evolution of Neotropical cricetine rodents (Muridae)
with special reference to the phyllotine group.
Fieldiana: Zoology, h6, 52h pp. Chicago Natural History
Museum.

1963. The Recent mammals of South America. Proc. XVI Inter-
national Congress of Zoology,‘Washington, D.C.

Heusser, C. J.
1960. Late-Pleistocene environments of the Laguna de San
Rafael Area, Chile. Geographical Review 50:555-577.

Housse, P. Rafael
1953. Animales salvajes de Chile en su clasificacidn moderna.
Su vida y costumbres. University of Chile Publ. 189 pp.
Santiago, Chile. -

Kuschel, G.
1960. Terrestrial zoology in southern Chile. In A discussion
on the biology of the southern cold temperate zone,
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Lincoln, F. C.
1930. Calculating waterfowl abundance on the basis of banding
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l9h5. Mamiferos de Tarapaca. Biologica, 2:23-13h. Santiago.

1955. Monito del monte, Dromiciops australis Philippi. Invest.

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155

Munoz P., Carlos
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156

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l93h. Botanica de los plantas endemicas de Chile. Soc. Imp.
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Appendix 1. Analysis of samples

of soil from different localities in Malleco Province

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I”?
52%

k Locality, .5 Pounds per Acre % Saturzition .8
7“ Elevation , ‘5' V Available 805: ' O 3
,3 Brief Description. ,4,3 fi'g m g
2 2e 53 £5
68 .3 5’) pH P K Ca Mg 5:3 63 K Ca "g a: 65'
81 27 Km.w Angol,3650'

flat meadow 3 h.9 .Olh DB 80 3 7.2 0.8 2.7 2.7 -
32 27 Km.w Angol,3650'

flat meadow 6 5.1 .01 280 L36 27 13.h 2.6 7.h 0.7 -
83 27 Km.:J Angol, 3650'

flat meadow 2h h.9 .008 152 56 3 10.2 1.8 0.9 - 1.9
Sh 27 Km.w Angol,3650'

"coihue" woods 1 8.9 .018 2hh h72 h6 18.5 1.6 5.9 0.5 8.1
$5 27 Km.w Angol,3650' ‘

"coihue-roble"woods 6 h.7 .Olh 128 6h 3 16.2 0.9 0.6 1.2 -
S6 27 Km.w Angol,3650'

"coihue-roble"woods 12 h.9 .009 96 hO 3 13.2 0.9 0.7 1.5 -
S7 27 Km.w Angol,3650'

"coihue-roble"woods 2h 5.0 .008 80 he 11 12.2 0.8 0.8 1.6 -
38 13 <ra.hi Angol, 1550'

.oole"woods on slope 2 5.5 .031 176 1200 61 l2.h 1.7 21.1 1.6 27.L
S9 1511231.?a .‘.ng01,1550'

gr easy area in flat 2 5.1 .028 2u0 728 61 11.3 2.6 15.9 1.7 20.
$10 2Km. E Tirua,50'

river valley 2 1‘09 0023 88 22‘“. 27 111.7 007 3024 0.6 L.7
811 2 Km. E Tirua,_0'

by river 2 h.8 .030 120 38h 96 -5.h 0.9 5.6 2.5 9.0
$12 7 Km.ESE Tirua,l350'

"souihern forest" 2 ).0 .011 2&8 hh8 138 19.9 1.5 5.5 2.5 9.5
813 50' (m. ESE Collipulli,

1600' ,"roble"slope 2 5.7 .Olh 196 th 32 10.h 2.h 10.5 0.9 13.h
Slh 2L m.ESE Collipulli,

_;00' ,flat area 2 5.6 .013 u2u 528 ho ll.9 8.5 10.9 0.8 15.9
815 u Km.w Banos Rio Blanco,

3230',"southern forest" * 2 5.u .011 160 12h8 u6 1h.h 1.3 21.5 0.6 23.6
816 11.5 Km;H Lonquimay,

5200',grassy area 2 5.8 1 4 88 62h h6 6.7 1.6 22.3 l.h 25.3
817 11.5 Km.N Lonquimay,

5200',Araucaria'woods 2 5.h - 6h 280 27 7.8 1.0 8.9 1.2 10.2
318 11.5 Km.N Lonquimay,

5200',volcanic sands 2 5.h - 35 6h 3 2.1 1.9 8.7 - h.7
"519 19 Km.S Lonquimay,hh00'

"lenga" woods 2 6.0 .016 100 h656 27h 28.8 0.h h6.7 b.h 51.6
820 19 Km.S Lonquimay,hh00'

;_auoaria woods . 2 5.3 .030 96 1920 93 21.2 0.5 22.6 l.h 2h.5
821 La; una de Icalma,3900'

grassy'flat 2 5.7 .019 88 3&8 3 7.8 0.7 10.2 - l0.
S22 Laguna de Icalma,3900'

grassy slope 2 5.8 .027 88 680 to 8.9 1.2 19.1 1.1 1.3

* Soil high in organic matter.

15?

 

Appendix 2. Hunting Questionaire.

Museo Dillman S. Bullock
El Vergel, Angol
Sr. Cazador:

Podria ayudarnos a aprender algo mas sobre los animales silvestres,
contentando lo mas que pueda acerca de las preguntas siguientes? No
se necesita su nombre y las respuestas coincideran con las de muchas
otras. Haga e1 favor de dar a cada respuesta 1a mayor precisidh que
sea posible o aunque sea calculo aproximado. Sfrvase contestar e1

/ .
mayor numero pOSlble.

Cual es su ocupacidh? .

Tiene Ud. una escopeta? Que tipo? De qué afio?

Cuéhto dinero gastd’por MUNICION durante los ultimos 30 dies?
Durante los filtimos 3 meses?

Usa Ud. otros medios de cazar? Trampas? Guachis? Otros?

Si Ud. usa trampas, en qué’ESTACION del afio las usa?
Cuahtas use a la vez? Cuantos animales caen durante un periodo
de 3 dies?

Si Ud. usa los guachis, cuahtos usa a la vez? Cuantos animales caen
durante un periodo de 3 dies?

Cuahtos DIAS sale a cazar cada mez?

Cuando caza, cuahtas HORAS al DIA lo hace?

Tiene Ud. un perro para cazar? Es este usado SOTO para cazar?

Cuahtos de los animales siguientes ha cazado Ud. durante los 3 meses

pasados? Liebre? Conejo? Coypu? Zorro? Otro? (de qué

tipo y nfimero).
158

159

Vende Ud. por 10 general LA CARNE de los animales que caza?
Conejo? Precio por cada una? Coypu? Precio? Liebre?
Precio? Zorro? Precio? Otro? Precio?

Si usa Ud. 1a piel, en que’forma 1a ocupa?

Guantos de los pajaros siguientes ha cazado Ud. durante 10s 3 meses
pasados? Zorzal? Tértola? Perdig? Cordonfz? Choroy?
Patos? Otros?

Vende Ud. por 10 general 105 pajeros que caza? Qué’péfiaro?
Que'precio cada pajaro? Zorzal? Tortola? Perdiz?
Cordorniz? Choroy? Otro?

Tiene Ud. un permiso de cazar?

Ha notado Ud. una DISMINUCION en la cantidad de algunos animales o
pajaros durante los filtimos 15 afios? Qué’animal y'en qué'pro-
porcidh? (i, }, etc.)

Ha notado Ud. un.AUMENTO en cantidad de algunos animales o pajaros
durante los ultimos 15 AMOS? Que’animal y'en que proporcidh?
(2 veces, 3 veces, etc.)

Caza Ud. para aprovechar 0 para deporte?