Pampas foxes as prey of yellow anacondas

Abstract

Carnivore predation by other predators is rarely observed in nature. We describe here two predation events and report a third one of adult pampas foxes by yellow anacondas in Corrientes province, Northeast of Argentina. The pampas fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus) is a medium-sized fox (4.6kg) whose geographical distribution comprises the south of South America, from eastern Bolivia, western and central Paraguay, and southern Brasil, to Uruguay, and northern and central Argentina (Lucherini and Luengos Vidal 2008). It lives in a variety of habitats, from open forests, grasslands, marshes, coastal dunes, and even agricultural and rangelands (Redford and Eisenberg 1992, Lucherini and Luengos Vidal 2008). Pampas fox’s main predator is the human being, as a result of predator control by hunting, because they are blamed for lamb losses in sheep breeding farms, and for commercial hunting for the pelt trade (Lucherini and Luengos Vidal 2008, Macdonald and Sillero-Zubiri 2010). Little is known about death causes in nature, and their potential predators. Fox remains have been found in puma excrements (Puma concolor) in National Park Lihue Calel (Argentina) and some cases of foxes killed by feral dogs have been cited (Pessino et al. 2001, Lucherini and Luengos Vidal 2008). In this note we describe predation events of pampas foxes adult by yellow anacondas (Eunectes notaeus) in the Iberá Provincial Reserve and in the Mburucuyá National Park (Corrientes province, Argentina).