Observations of unusual behavior in two invasive carnivores in the Dominican Republic: arboreal foraging in the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata) and semi-aquatic hunting in the Domestic Cat (Felis catus)

We report unusual foraging events in two of the most invasive terrestrial predators in the world that are well established in the Caribbean islands: the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata), locally known as jurón, and the Domestic Cat (Felis catus). The former is well known to be a ground-dwel...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Miguel A. Landestoy T., Francis O. Reyes, Isabela Hernández-Rodríguez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Museo Nacional de Historia Natural "Prof. Eugenio de Jesús Marcano" 2023-07-01
Series:Novitates Caribaea
Subjects:
Online Access:https://novitatescaribaea.do/index.php/novitates/article/view/344
Description
Summary:We report unusual foraging events in two of the most invasive terrestrial predators in the world that are well established in the Caribbean islands: the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata), locally known as jurón, and the Domestic Cat (Felis catus). The former is well known to be a ground-dwelling species, whereas the latter usually avoids water. We documented tree-climbing in the mongoose and semi-aquatic hunting in a domestic cat. The observations were recorded in southern Dominican Republic, on the island of Hispaniola.
ISSN:2071-9841
2079-0139