Poaching in non–volant mammals in the Neotropical region: the importance of a metric to assess its impacts

Ferreguetti, Átilla Colombo; Rocha, Carlos Frederico Duarte; Bergallo, Helena Godoy

doi:10.32800/abc.2019.42.0203

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 41 publications

(64 reference statements)

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“…Poaching is a widespread activity in several parts of the world generating impacts that include population reductions or extirpation, additional capture of non-target species threatened with extinction and reducing ecological interactions in the communities ( Peres, 2000 ; Becker et al, 2013 ; Sousa and Srbek-Araujo, 2017 ; Ferreguetti et al, 2019 ). Although in some context subsistence is the main reason for hunting, there are several other motivations that lead people to hunt wild animals ( Bell et al, 2007 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is partly because these protected areas are insufficiently managed due to the lack of human, financial and infrastructure resources to monitor and combat poaching ( Peres and Lake, 2003 ; Ferreguetti et al, 2018 ). In addition, a quantitative metric is lacking to effectively assess the impact of poaching across the Neotropical region ( Ferreguetti et al, 2019 ). Therefore, given the critical need for effective allocation of limited resources to combat environmental crime, understanding spatial and temporal patterns of poaching is an essential component of focusing conservation efforts on protected areas ( Watson et al, 2013 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Using an occupancy approach to identify poaching hotspots in protected areas in a seasonally dry tropical forest

Dias

Ferreguetti

Rodrigues

2020

Biological Conservation

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Poaching activity has been described in the literature as harmful due to impacts on biodiversity, especially in protected areas. Although the main reason for this activity is subsistence, in many regions motivation goes beyond the limits of food necessity. We applied single-species, single season occupancy models to evaluate the spatial distribution of poachers and identify potential poaching hotspots in a mosaic of protected areas in the Caatinga domain, northeastern Brazil. We used camera-traps over a period of 200 days at 60 sites randomly selected. We used distances from human settlements, roads and the nearest water holes, frequency of game species and sampling effort as covariables that could influence poachers' occupancy and detectability and to identify potential poaching areas. Occupancy poachers were higher in sites with higher frequency of game species. Frequency of game species and distance from roads had a negative effect on the detectability of poachers. Spatial analysis indicated three critical poaching areas within and around the Boqueirão da Onça National Park, associated with roads and some isolated cattle and goat farms. In this study, we provided an assessment of poaching spatial patterns in relation to different landscape elements and biotic influences, indicating critical areas where enforcement efforts should be focused. Hotspots are clearly concentrated within and on the edge of National Park. The approach presented here to identify poaching hotspots is effective and economical, and therefore may be applied in other protected and non-protected areas throughout the world.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using an occupancy approach to identify poaching hotspots in protected areas in a seasonally dry tropical forest

Dias

Ferreguetti

Rodrigues

2020

Biological Conservation

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“…Human-wildlife conflicts appear to be catalysts for poaching and hunting in our study area; however, the most important driver of these practices was culture. Hunting is considered a cultural trait of the Neotropics and a deeply rooted cultural practice in Brazil (Fernandes-Ferreira and Alves, 2017;Ferreguetti et al, 2019). Culture was also the main motivation for lowland tapir poaching, and the use of tapir body parts for medicinal and aphrodisiac purposes stood out.…”

Section: Poaching In the Brazilian Cerradomentioning

confidence: 99%

Poaching and hunting, conflicts and health: human dimensions of wildlife conservation in the Brazilian Cerrado

Montanheiro Paolino,

Testa José,

Fernandes-Santos

et al. 2024

Front. Conserv. Sci.

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IntroductionUnderstanding human-wildlife interactions is critical to overcoming the socio-environmental crises we face worldwide. Among these interactions, poaching and hunting, human-wildlife conflict, and transmission of zoonotic diseases are major causes of biodiversity loss and detrimental to human well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze wildlife poaching, feral pig hunting, human-wildlife conflict, and health issues in a region of the Brazilian Cerrado, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The study also focused on the lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris), a poached species listed as vulnerable to extinction.MethodsFrom October 2016 to September 2017, we conducted face-to-face semi-structured interviews with 51 local people from nine stakeholder groups. Interview answers and additional information compiled during the study were evaluated using coding, narrative, and co-occurrence analyses.Results and discussionWe found that the main human-wildlife conflict in the region involves feral pigs, and hunting is practiced as a population control strategy. The lowland tapir is not considered a conflictual species, as it is beloved by most people. However, tapirs are still poached, although less so than in the past, mainly for cultural reasons. Culture was the main motivation behind wildlife poaching in general. We identified 28 species and five taxa currently poached in this Cerrado region, of which 11 are used for medical and aphrodisiac purposes. Historically, wildlife poaching was linked to poor livelihood conditions and lack of support from governmental institutions during the Agrarian Reform process, becoming a cultural habit over the years. Nevertheless, wildlife poaching is less frequent than in the past, and its main barriers are surveillance, poaching prohibition by landowners, and social norm. Therefore, promoting a change in the way people relate to nature, meeting socioeconomic needs, and increasing surveillance appear to be important conservation strategies. Although feral pig hunting may replace wildlife poaching, some hunters still poach wild species, especially peccaries. Hence, it is necessary to keep hunters under surveillance, raise awareness among them, and make them allies in conservation strategies. We found a worryingly low level of awareness about disease transmission risk through bushmeat manipulation and consumption, highlighting the importance of One Health approaches.

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Don’t shoot! How poaching may affect richness, biomass, and occupancy of non-volant mammals in an Atlantic Forest protected area, Brazil

Ferreguetti

Allemand

Pereira‐Ribeiro

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Hunting in tropical forests provides nutrition and financial income for local communities and is deeply rooted in social and cultural traditions. On the other hand, this activity, by locally reducing or extirpating populations of game species, may be responsible for the degradation and loss of key forest maintenance services. In Brazil, hunting is illegal (hereafter referred to as poaching). We evaluated, by accounting for imperfect detectability, the effects caused by poaching on mammals in the Vale Natural Reserve. We collected data over 5-years (between 2013 to 2018) using line-transect and camera-trapping to evaluate poaching effects on the density, biomass, richness, and site occupancy of mammalian species. Our complete data set included a total survey effort of 32,175 camera days across five camera trap surveys (825 working days), with a total of 25,254 records of 27 non-volant mammals. We found a negative effect of poaching index on overall-species richness based on our multi-species occupancy model. The greatest reduction in biomass occurred for ungulates and armadillos. Our results suggest that poaching can have large consequences for biodiversity in one of Brazil's largest Atlantic Forest remnants. Ours is the first study in the Atlantic Forest estimating the medium-term poaching impact on mammalian populations, demonstrating a potentially negative effect on density, biomass, and occupancy of species which are of importance for local ecosystem functioning. We demonstrate the need to start monitoring other populations of vertebrates that are a target to poaching, not only in the Atlantic Forest but in other Neotropical ecosystems.

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Poaching in non–volant mammals in the Neotropical region: the importance of a metric to assess its impacts

Cited by 3 publications

References 41 publications

Using an occupancy approach to identify poaching hotspots in protected areas in a seasonally dry tropical forest

Using an occupancy approach to identify poaching hotspots in protected areas in a seasonally dry tropical forest

Poaching and hunting, conflicts and health: human dimensions of wildlife conservation in the Brazilian Cerrado

Don’t shoot! How poaching may affect richness, biomass, and occupancy of non-volant mammals in an Atlantic Forest protected area, Brazil

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