Xenarthra richness and activity pattern in the Brazilian Amazon

The Amazon Forest comprises one of the richest biodiversities area on the planet, but is highly threatened from habitat fragmentation and loss. Among its inhabitants is the magna-order Xenarthra, which includes the armadillos, sloths and anteaters. Five protected areas within the Amazon forest of Brazil were surveyed with camera traps following the TEAM protocol between the years 2015 and 2019. A total of 4044 independent records were examined to identify the richness, detection rate and activity patterns of xenarthrans in Brazilian rainforest. A total of seven Xenarthra species were obtained during 57,805 camera-trap days. Two threatened xenarthrans, Myrmecophaga tridactyla and Priodontes maximus, were present in all surveyed sites. Activity patterns were similar to those found in other biomes, with most species being mainly nocturnal; however, M. tridactyla and Cabassous unicinctus exhibited marked diurnal activity. Data were obtained from species at risk of extinction, such as P. maximus, and species rarely seen in the region, such as C. unicinctus. This study provides one of the most important datasets for the magna-order Xenarthra in areas of predominantly primary vegetation and the first activity pattern and richness of xenarthras in different areas of the Amazon biome.