By Paul Carter (22 Feb 2022). Revised 22 March 2022 to match the open access report lodged on Zenodo as:
CARTER, Paul. (2022). Alston’s Woolly Mouse Opossum, Marmosa alstoni (Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae), in Boquete, Panama. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6374907
SUMMARY
On 17 Feb 2022 at 9:00 PM I photographed Marmosa alstoni (Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae) in the Boquete area, Panama. Mammal Diversity Database (2022 v1.8) treat M. alstoni as endemic to Costa Rica, following the recent review of the M. alstoni complex by Voss et al. (2021). Following the taxonomy in Voss et al (2021) and their review of previous records in Panama it appears that this record in Boquete is the first photographic record of M. alstoni in Panama; and possibly the first confirmed record in Panama.
Mammal Species
Lophiomys imhausi (Maned Rat) in Ethiopia
Location: Harenna Forest, Ethiopia.
Date: 2018 Mar 24 – 8.24 PM.
Summary: Rarely seen in Ethiopia; only two other recent records (as at 2019).
Grammomys dolichurus (Woodland Thicket Rat) in South Africa
Record Location: SOUTH AFRICA, Western Cape Province, Wilderness, Fairy Knowe Backpackers
Dates: (1) 18 Feb 2020 (2) 4 Mar 2021
Continue readingBryde’s Whales in False Bay (Western Cape, South Africa)
Original post dated 13 April 2019; updated Oct 2021. Last sighting added 20 Feb 2021. Contact: paulcarter @ pacapix.com
In April 2019 I posted a mammal-watching report on searching from land for Bryde’s Whale (Balaenoptera brydei) in False Bay; from along the 20 km long stretch of the R44 coastal road between Gordon’s Bay and Rooiels. That report was based on 2 sightings in Feb 2019. This update (Jan 2021) is is based on over 15 sightings from the R44. The section on the taxonomy of Bryde’s Whale in Southern Africa (Balaenoptera edeni vs Balaenoptera brydei) is also revised.
Appendix 1 is a summary of my records.
Appendix 2 is an account of the dead Bryde’s Whales found annually; at least in part related to the long-line octopus fishing industry. In Nov 2019 The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries lifted the suspension of exploratory octopus fishing in False Bay and stated that “Should there be at least one mortality of any of these whales, the fishery will be terminated”. The most recent record of dead Bryde’s Whale in False Bay is that in Sep 2020 at Pringle Bay; the reported cause of death was from entanglement. Continue reading
Dendromus mesomelas – Brants’ Climbing Mouse
Record Location: SOUTH AFRICA, Western Cape, Wilderness, Fairy Knowe Backpackers. Date: 16 Jan 2021 at 8.45 PM
Continue readingWhiskered Flying Squirrel (Petinomys genibarbis) at Mount Kinabalu (Sabah, Borneo)
Whiskered Flying Squirrel (Petinomys genibarbis) at Kinabalu Park
Paul Carter, 20 Aug 2016
(Revised 8 Nov 2016 to include reference to a 1965 paper with images)
On 26 May 2016 I was spotlighting alone along Power Station Road in Kinabalu Park (Borneo) and at 8.20 pm I photographed a Whiskered Flying Squirrel (Petinomys genibarbis) very close to the 4 Km post about 500 m before Tympohon Gate. I estimate from Google Earth that it was at an elevation of approximately 1840 m.
Continue reading