Uma avaliação refinada da população e ocupação de dois felinos ameaçados de extinção: o gato-tigre-do-norte (Leopardus tigrinus) e o gato-dos-campos (Leopardus colocola) nos cerrados do Brasil.

Abstract

The northern tiger cat (Leopardus tigrinus) is one of Brazil’s least studied felids, with no published population density estimates. A potential key conservation unit for the species is Mirador State Park (MSP) in NE Brazil, an area that also hosts humans and domestic dogs. Therefore, we assessed the park’s importance in terms of tiger cat conservation and whether domestic dogs present a threat to the survival of this species. We stablished 52 camera trap stations at three sites and monitored them for a total of 5,030 trap-days. We calculated population densities using spatial and nonspatial methods and relative abundances in MSP and extrapolated these results to the other protected areas and corridor that comprise the northern portion of the Cerrado Biosphere Reserve. We conducted a population viability analysis for tiger cats in the park and assessed the potential impact of domestic dogs. The tiger cat density estimates were 0.12 and 0.25 individuals/km2 (nonspatial) and 0.087 and 0.11 individuals/km2 (spatial), whereas the relative abundances ranged from 0.124-2.168 individuals/100 trap-nights. The tiger cat population was estimated at 287 individuals, with 0% extinction probability within the next 100 and 1,000 years, but only in scenarios of mild to no disease outbreaks. Large outbreaks or habitat loss will be detrimental to species survival in the area. Domestic dogs were detected at 80% of the stations where tiger cats were observed. The threat of disease transmission by domestic dogs potentially impacts 65% of the park and seems to be the primary threat for the species there. The northern tiger cat population was estimated at approximately 700 individuals in the entire protected area of the northern savannas, which together with the additional corridor of the Cerrado Biosphere Reserve could yield up to 2,000-3,000 individuals. Our results provide the first published density estimates of tiger cats and confirm the potential threat of domestic dogs to this felid in Mirador, thereby confirming the park’s importance as a key area for tiger cat conservation and the need for 15 conservation actions. Given its density and abundance of tiger cats, as well as 50 its area size, compared to other locations in the northern savannas, MSP may be the most important site for the worldwide, long-term conservation of Leopardus tigrinus