ABSTRACT
Body weight and vertical stratum utilization are important functional characteristics of species. Several studies have explored the capture success of different traps. These studies, however, did not explore how trappability is influenced by body weight. Here, we investigated the relationship between the weight of marsupial species caught in traps with trap type (wire cage and Sherman) and trap placement (ground and understory). For this we used data from Didelphis albiventris Lund, 1840 (n = 127; 75-958 g) and Gracilinanus agilis (Burmeister, 1854) (n = 327; 8.5-46 g) captured in semideciduous forest fragments in central Brazil. The results show that heaviest individuals of D. albiventris (391.01 ± 197.57 g) were captured more often by wire cage traps, regardless of trap placement. In contrast, G. agilis was trapped at similar rates regardless of weight, trap type or trap placement. We conclude that wire cage traps are more efficient at catching large marsupials weighing more than 300 g on average. Furthermore, the size of the individuals captured is not influenced by where the trap is placed (ground or understory). These findings contribute to a better understanding of the natural history and trappability of Neotropical marsupials.
KEY WORDS:
Ground; marsupials; sherman trap; understory; wire cage
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