Beyond the color: the implications of pigmentation polymorphism in the activity behavior of a Neotropical squirrel

Pigmentation polymorphism occurs in many mammals but is considered rare in natural populations. Here, we report the first record of pigmentation polymorphism in a Neotropical squirrel, Guerlinguetus ingrami, at a private reserve in southern Brazil. The number of records for leucistic squirrels was approximately half that for brown squirrels. We also tested the differences in activity patterns between the leucistic and the brown squirrels. Both phenotypes were diurnal, but there was temporal segregation between the two. Further studies are needed to elucidate the occurrence of leucism in G. ingrami, and the possible ecological and behavioral outcomes.

A short review and worldwide list of wild albino rodents with the first report of albinism in Coendou rufescens (Rodentia: Erethizontidae)

Aberrant pelage color patterns such as albinism have been reported in some mammal groups including rodents, but in spite of the group’s richness, the phenomenon is relatively poorly documented in the literature. Albino specimens are reported in <2% of the species of rodents, four records of neotropical species were found (Delomys dorsalis, Heteromys anomalus, Octodon degus, Phyllotis andium). Of New World porcupines (Erethizontidae), albinism was documented only in the North American species Erethizon dorsatum. Here we report the first albino record from the Neotropics for this group, a stump-tailed porcupine (Coendou rufescens) in northern Ecuador.