On the presence of Nasua Storr (Carnivora, Procyonidae) in the Buenos Aires province in the late Holocene

Abstract

The genus Nasua is composed of two species, Nasua nasua and Nasua narica. It is distributed in the present from the south of North America to the north of the Rio Negro in Uruguay. Both species of the genus inhabit a great number of forested habitats.  In Argentina, the species Nasua nasua is found in Tucuman, Jujuy, Chaco, Formosa and the northeast of Santa Fe. In the present contribution we describe a lower canine of Nasua nasua from the late Holocene of the Arroyo Fredes Archaeological site in the the Parana’s Delta of the Buenos Aires Province, Argentina which is outside the present distribution of this species. We compared the canine with several specimens of Nasua nasua both males and females. Given the strong sexual dimorphism observed in the canines of the species, we recognized the specimen as a male. Two hypotheses can explain the presence of this specimen in the Parana’s Delta of Buenos Aires. The similarities between the current and past climatic conditions in the closest recent locality and the Arroyo Fredes archeological site and the small distance between both localities make expectable the presence Nasua nasua in the region. On the other hand this record can be the result of human transport by the guaranies.