| Popis: |
We analyzed the diet of Amphisbaena heathi, a species with restricted geographic distribution in northeastern Brazil. We also present data on morphometric and meristic characters of the examined specimens and update the geographic distribution of the species. The diet analysis was based on the contents of the digestive tract of 21 specimens collected in two urban Atlantic Forest fragments in Natal municipality, Rio Grande do Norte state, from 2008–2010. We collected 80.1% of the specimens near the surface (depth of ca. 3–5 cm) in moist earth under the leaf litter and 19.9% underground (ca. 15 cm beneath the surface). In total, we identified 60 prey items in the digestive tracts of A. heathi. The most important prey categories were ants, insect larvae, and cockroach nymphs. Ants predominated in frequency and number, while insect larvae and cockroaches predominated in volume. Besides insects, A. heathi also consumed earthworms, leeches, and centipedes. Considering our sample (n = 34) and the type ... |
