Food habits in peripheral populations of Zaedyus pichiy and Chaetophractus villosus (Cingulata, Chlamyphoridae) in the Chilean Patagonia

ABSTRACT. Food habits in peripheral populations of Zaedyus pichiy and Chaetophractus villosus (Cingulata, Chlamyphoridae) in the Chilean Patagonia . In Chile the armadillos Zaedyus pichiy (Desmarest, 1804) and Chaetophractus villosus (Desmarest, 1804) have peripheral populations restricted to steppes and plains near western slopes of the Andes, being also inadequately studied. We present information on feeding habits of both species by analysis of feces obtained in two study areas of Aysen district, Chilean Patagonia. In 38 feces of Z. pichiy we identifi ed two plant taxa, six invertebrate and four vertebrate; in 72 feces of C. villosus we identifi ed three plant taxa, nine invertebrate and four vertebrate. In both armadillos species the invertebrates were the category more frequent and diverse. Coleoptera, Orthoptera and Hemiptera were the most abundant insects, and remains of ungulate Lama guanicoe (Muller, 1776) and lagomorph Lepus europaeus (Pallas, 1778) were the most frequent vertebrates. The rarefaction analysis indicates higher taxa richness in