The South American continent is composed of several biogeographical regions harbouring the highest biodiversity on the globe, encompassing five of the world’s biodiversity ‘hot spots’. Nonetheless, the patterns and processes responsible for shaping its astonishing species diversity are largely unknown. Here, we present a review of current South American phylogeographical knowledge based on published articles on this topic. An appraisal of the literature reveals emerging phylogeographical patterns in the biota of South America. The striking phylogeographical divergence observed among organism lineages in South American studies is suggestive of high levels of undocumented species diversity. The interplay between Pleistocene climatic oscillations and Pliocene/Miocene orogenic events has contributed to shaping the current diversity and distribution of modern lineages in both the tropical and temperate regions of South America. Although older divergence times were observed for a range of species, most herpetofauna underwent an intraspecific lineage split much earlier than other organisms. The geographical ranges of species associated with forest habitats were reduced mainly during glacial cycles, whereas species associated with open vegetation domains have shown variable responses to climatic oscillations. The results suggest a highly complex mosaic of phylogeographical patterns in South America. We suggest future research directions to promote a better understanding of the origin and maintenance of the South American biota.

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Phylogeographical patterns shed light on evolutionary process in South America.

Pleistocene Mammals of North America

Puma concolor, a large American cat species, occupies the most extensive range of any New World terrestrial mammal, spanning 110 degrees of latitude from the Canadian Yukon to the Straits of Magellan. Until the recent Holocene, pumas coexisted with a diverse array of carnivores including the American lion (Panthera atrox), the North American cheetah (Miracynonyx trumani), and the saber toothed tiger (Smilodon fatalis). Genomic DNA specimens from 315 pumas of specified geographic origin (261 contemporary and 54 museum specimens) were collected for molecular genetic and phylogenetic analyses of three mitochondrial gene sequences (16S rRNA, ATPase-8, and NADH-5) plus composite microsatellite genotypes (10 feline loci). Six phylogeographic groupings or subspecies were resolved, and the entire North American population (186 individuals from 15 previously named subspecies) was genetically homogeneous in overall variation relative to central and South American populations. The marked uniformity of mtDNA and a reduction in microsatellite allele size expansion indicates that North American pumas derive from a recent (late Pleistocene circa 10,000 years ago) replacement and recolonization by a small number of founders who themselves originated from a centrum of puma genetic diversity in eastern South America 200,000-300,000 years ago. The recolonization of North American pumas was coincident with a massive late Pleistocene extinction event that eliminated 80% of large vertebrates in North America and may have extirpated pumas from that continent as well.

http://eebweb.arizona.edu/courses/Ecol406R_506R/PUMA_for_Culver_lect.pdf

Genomic ancestry of the American puma (Puma concolor)

Most large carnivore species are in global decline. Conflicts with people, particularly over depredation on small and large livestock, is one of the major causes of this decline. Along tropical deforestation frontiers, large felids often shift from natural to livestock prey because of their increased proximity to human agriculture, thus increasing the likelihood of conflicts with humans. On the basis of data from 236 cattle ranches, we describe levels of depredation by jaguars Panthera onca and pumas Puma concolor on bovine herd stocks and examine the effects of both landscape structure and cattle management on the spatial patterns and levels of predation in a highly fragmented forest landscape of southern Brazilian Amazonia. Generalized linear models showed that landscape variables, including proportion of forest area remaining and distance to the nearest riparian forest corridor, were key positive and negative determinants of predation events, respectively. We detected clear peaks of depredation during the peak calving period at the end of the dry season. Bovine herd size and proportion of forest area had positive effects on predation rates in 60 cattle ranches investigated in more detail. On the other hand, distance from the nearest riparian forest corridor was negatively correlated with the number of cattle predated. The mean proportion of cattle lost to large felids in 24 months for the region varied according to the herd class size (o500: 0.82%; 500–1500: 1.24%; 41500: 0.26%) but was never greater than 1.24%. The highest annual monetary costs were detected in large cattle ranches (41500 head of cattle), reaching US$ 885.40. Patterns of depredation can be explained by a combination of landscape and livestock management variables such as proportion of forest area, distance to the nearest riparian corridor, annual calving peak and bovine herd size.

https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-1795.2006.00025.x

Human–wildlife conflicts in a fragmented Amazonian forest landscape: determinants of large felid depredation on livestock

The puma (Felis concolor) has the most extensive range of any terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere, covering over 100° latitude. Food habits of different puma subspecies vary with latitude. Subspecies from temperate habitats generally eat larger prey and specialize on a smaller number of prey taxa, whereas, in tropical habitats, they prey on smaller, more varied prey. In North America, ungulates (primarily deer) represented 68% of the puma's diet by frequency of occurrence. Mean weight of vertebrate prey (MWVP) was positively correlated (r=0.875) with puma body weight and inversely correlated (r=-0.836) with food niche breadth in all America. In general, MWVP was lower in areas closer to the Equator. Patterns of puma prey selection are probably influenced by prey availability and vulnerability, habitat characteristics, and potential competition from the jaguar (Panthera onca).

Biogeographic variation of food habits and body size of the America puma.

The feeding ecology of the Patagonia puma (Felis concolor patagonica) was studied in Torres del Paine National Park, Chile, by analyzing seasonal and yearly variation in 590 prey items found in 405 puma feces from 1982 to 1988. Mammalian species accounted for 92% of all prey items in feces. European hares (Lepus capensis) were the most preyed-upon vertebrate, representing 50% of the items found in feces. Guanacos (Lama guanicoe) made up 32% of prey items and accounted for 47'%. of the total biomass consumed by pumas. From 1982 to 1988, the proportion of guanaco remains in puma feces increased from 9% to almost 30% of total prey items, paralleling an increase in the guanaco population from 670 to 1,300 individuals in the study area. The only livestock species found in the puma diet was sheep (Ovis aries), representing 5% of the total number of prey found in feces. Smalland medium-sized prey may be important alternative prey in areas where large prey are less abundant.

Feeding ecology of the Patagonia puma in southermost Chile

Rarely observed in the wild, the existence of the Andean mountain cat (Oreailurus jacobita) has been established based on only 3 skulls and 14 museum skins The Andean mountain cat's evolutionary relationship to other felids based on morphological characters is largely contradictory, with evidence aligning it with South American small spotted cats (ocelot lineage) or alternatively with pantherine lineage felids Here we describe the phylogenetic distinctiveness and placement of the Andean mountain cat using DNA extracted from pieces of nine independent pelt specimens, including one confiscated from a trapper in 1995 A phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences from three rapidly evolving mitochondrial genes (16S rRNA, NADH-5, and ATP-8) indicate that the Andean mountain cat is a distinct species belonging to the ocelot lineage Our findings suggest that the Andean mountain cat diverged from a common ancestor with the ocelot (Leopardus paradalis) and margay (L wiedii) and exhibits moderate levels of genetic variation

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Tracking the evolution of the elusive Andean mountain cat (Oreailurus jacobita from mitochondrial DNA

La partie nord de la Patagonie chilienne, malgre sa faible superficie (8000 km 2 , 1% du territoire chilien), les grands changements qu'elle a subis pendant la derniere partie du Pleistocene, et sa situation a l'extreme sud (50° a 53° de latitude sud), renferme une grande diversite de mammiferes comprenant presque 50% des especes de la faune du Chili. Les groupes les plus diversifies sont les rongeurs et les carnivores, qui representent respectivement 50% et 23% de la faune de mammiferes

J. A. Iriarte

Papers

Feeding ecology of the Patagonia puma in southermost Chile

Tracking the evolution of the elusive Andean mountain cat (Oreailurus jacobita from mitochondrial DNA

The mammalian fauna of the northern Chilean Patagonia: a biogeographical dilemma