Data for: Landscape features affect caiman body condition in the middle Araguaia river floodplain

Landscape modifications often undermine habitat suitability for species’ persistence, with initial effects observed through physiological responses of individuals and populations. However, some landscape features can allow tolerant wildlife species to persist in human-modified landscapes, but they are still overlooked. Across distinct agricultural landscapes, we assessed landscape features affecting the body condition (estimate through scaled mass index - SMI) of Caiman crocodilus (Crocodylia, Alligatoridae) in human-modified landscapes of the Araguaia floodplain, central Brazil. We used a spatial Bayesian model averaging approach to determine the effects of landscape attributes, ectoparasites, tail damage, and severe body injuries on caiman body condition. We found that caimans had higher SMI in anthropogenic (ditches and artificial ponds) than natural habitats (lakes or rivers). Overall, caiman SMI was negatively associated with wetland cohesion (an aggregation and connectivity metric..., Study sites
The middle Araguaia River floodplain is part of Brazil’s complex and highly dynamic Cerrado–Amazonia ecotone (Marques et al., 2020a). The annual flood pulse drastically changes the landscape (wet season: October–April; dry season: May–September), spanning about 88,000 km2 at maximum flood level (February/March) and interconnecting several waterbodies, while only 3.3% (2,930 km2) of water area is present in the low-water period, September–November (Irion et al., 2016). The Araguaia floodplain supports a rich and abundant biota, including many endemic and endangered species, protected by a RAMSAR site (Ilha do Bananal; noo. 624), parks, and indigenous lands (RAMSAR, 2002; SEPLAN, 2012).
We carried out fieldwork between July and September of 2016 and 2018 (dry season), a period with a higher abundance of caimans in the waterbodies (Da Silveira, Magnusson & Thorbjarnarson, 2008; Portelinha et al., 2019). We sampled seven localities across the middle Araguaia River floodplain..., Programs able to use: Excel and R plataform.