Not armoured enough: The black-and-white tegu Salvator merianae (Squamata: Teiidae) as a predator of armadillos (Cingulata)

Abstract

Reporting predation events is crucial to understand how species behaviour and predator-prey interactions shape food webs. However, data is still lacking for most neotropical fauna, especially reptiles. Salvator merianae is a widespread lizard species, which is often found in human-altered habitats and has been introduced in multiple locations. This Neotropical lizard is omnivorous and acts as a necrophagous, seed disperser and predator of small-sized animals. However, in spite of extensive data on its generalist diet, detailed predation records over medium-sized vertebrates (between 1 and 40 kg) are scarce. Here we report the first records of S. merianae predation on three distinct armadillo species, all of which occurred in human-altered habitats in Brazil and Argentina. Our records contribute to a better understanding of trophic interactions in modified landscapes and how large reptiles, such as S. merianae, may play an important role in food webs in the absence of larger predators.