Even though there are a number of studies of the tapir´s diet (Tapirus terrestris) and its
importance for seed dispersal in the area of rainforests, information is lacking about open or
less dense woody vegetation also found throughout the neotropics. We studied the frugivory
in the tapir’s diet and discuss their potential as seed dispersers by identifying the plant species
that germinated in the fecal samples. The study was conducted at Viruá National Park, in the
south of the state of Roraima, in the Brazilian Amazon. This region is covered by a mosaic of
“campinarana” formations in several successional stages and by several distinct types of
dense forests. A total of 111 fecal samples from T. terrestris were collected in four distinct
vegetation types: “campinarana”, dense forest, flooded forest and Mauritia palm wetland.
Each fecal sample was put in a separate soil tray and kept over a period of 16 months in a
greenhouse. These were checked for germinated seedlings and viable seeds. Germinated
seeds and established seedlings were also found in 94 fecal samples (84.7%). All seedling
morphotypes were identified to species level, genus or family, and classified by type of fruit
and plant habitat, and possible type of ingestion (intentional or accidental) by T. terrestris. A
total of 77 plant species were found in the fecal samples; from these, 75 species were
identified by seedlings and two by seed/fruit remains. Forty eight of these species are new
records for the tapir’s diet. Melastomataceae was the family with largest number of
morphotypes germinating from the fecal samples (n=19). The most frequent species were
Tococa spp., Bellucia grossularioides, Couma utilis e Aciotis indecora. 37.7% of the species
were herbs (Cyperaceae, Poaceae, Eriocaulaceae and Acanthaceae), whose seeds were
probably accidentally ingested during grazing. The high number of species that survived
ingestion and passage through the digestive tract, combined with the displacement over long
distances and among distinct vegetation types, indicate that tapirs probably have an important
ecological role in the vegetation structure in the Viruá region.
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