This study characterized the diet of Leopardus colocolo from the surroundings of Junín lake, in the center of Peru, from prey remnants found within 43 scats. Origin of predator scats was determined from mitochondrial DNA from intestinal epithelial cells existing on the surface of the scats, using as a marker the control region. The prey remnants were identified using specialized literature and comparison with a voucher collection, identifying a total of 14 food items belong to mammals of Cricetidae (6), Chinchillidae (1) and Caviidae (1) families, birds of Anatidae (3) and Rallidae (2) families and one group of unidentified birds. The rodents were the main component of the diet of L. colocolo, in frequency and biomass, followed by birds. Among the food items consumed, the small cricetine rodent Calomys sp. was the most frequent; however, the greatest relative biomass contribution was pr...

Este estudio caracteriza la dieta de Leopardus colocolo en los alrededores del lago Junín, en el centro del Perú, a partir de los restos de las presas presentes en 43 heces. El origen de las heces del predador se determinó a partir del ADN mitocondrial de las células epiteliales intestinales adheridas a la superficie de las heces, utilizando como marcador la región de control. Los restos de las presas fueron identificados utilizando literatura especializada y la comparación con especímenes de colección, identificando un total of 14 ítems alimenticios pertenecientes a mamíferos de las familias Cricetidae (6), Chinchillidae (1) y Caviidae (1) y aves de las familias Anatidae (3) y Rallidae (2), y un grupo de aves no identificadas (1). Los roedores fueron el principal componente de la dieta de L. colocolo, en frecuencia y biomasa, seguido por las aves. Entre los ítems alimenticios...

The high diversity of Peruvian carnivore species may pose problems when deciding to which taxa and topics new research efforts should be directed. In this publication, we evaluated the research effort made on each taxa -by assessing the number of publications per species-, point out the knowledge gaps that are important to the conservation of each species and present the first evaluation of research priorities for this group of animals to the country. We registered 145 publications about Peruvian carnivores made since 1943. The number of publications is significantly different between taxa, between subjects and between ecoregions where the research was conducted. According to the proposed priority scale, the species to be studied with greater priority is Nasua olivacea and the lowest priority is for Leopardus pardalis. The results of our study highlight the urgent need to conduct researc...

The high diversity of Peruvian carnivore species may pose problems when deciding to which taxa and topics new research efforts should be directed. In this publication, we evaluated the research effort made on each taxa -by assessing the number of publications per species-, point out the knowledge gaps that are important to the conservation of each species and present the first evaluation of research priorities for this group of animals to the country. We registered 145 publications about Peruvian carnivores made since 1943. The number of publications is significantly different between taxa, between subjects and between ecoregions where the research was conducted. According to the proposed priority scale, the species to be studied with greater priority is Nasua olivacea and the lowest priority is for Leopardus pardalis. The results of our study highlight the urgent need to conduct researc...