Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers?
Wildlife persecution due to human-wildlife conflict has become a serious concern for biodiversity conservation, especially for many endangered species. In this context, conservation approaches need to consider the socio-ecological dimensions of each particular situation. The aim of this study was to...
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MDPI AG
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/5/1428 |
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| author | Amira Salom María Eugenia Suárez Cecilia Andrea Destefano Joaquín Cereghetti Félix Hernán Vargas Juan Manuel Grande |
| author_facet | Amira Salom María Eugenia Suárez Cecilia Andrea Destefano Joaquín Cereghetti Félix Hernán Vargas Juan Manuel Grande |
| author_sort | Amira Salom |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Wildlife persecution due to human-wildlife conflict has become a serious concern for biodiversity conservation, especially for many endangered species. In this context, conservation approaches need to consider the socio-ecological dimensions of each particular situation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the existence, extent and social characteristics of Human-Raptor Conflicts (HRC) in the Southern Yungas region in northwestern Argentina. We conducted 115 semi-structured interviews in 21 sites and analyzed attitudes and associations between sociodemographic variables and the existence of HRC. Forty percent of interviewees showed negative attitudes towards raptors, mainly with those species considered livestock predators rather than poultry predators. A total of 11 species were regarded as conflictive because of predation on domestic animals, of which Andean condors showed the highest conflict. The only socio-demographic factor affecting conflicts was livestock and poultry rearing, independently of age, gender and occupation of interviewees. The fact that only 8.7% of interviewees reported taking direct actions towards conflictive species indicates a relatively peaceful coexistence of people with raptors. Nevertheless, negative attitudes towards Andean condor together with their extreme susceptibility to any increase in non-natural mortality indicate the need of an integral conservation approach to tackle future threats for this species’ conservation in the area. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:22:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-85b7fccddcb9449b82317656d6193cd5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:22:06Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-85b7fccddcb9449b82317656d6193cd52023-11-21T19:59:38ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-05-01115142810.3390/ani11051428Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers?Amira Salom0María Eugenia Suárez1Cecilia Andrea Destefano2Joaquín Cereghetti3Félix Hernán Vargas4Juan Manuel Grande5Laboratorio de Ecología y Conservación de Vida Silvestre, Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC-CONICET), Bernardo Houssay 200, Ushuaia 9410, ArgentinaGrupo de Etnobiología, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, e Instituto de Micología y Botánica (INMIBO), Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET-UBA, Intendente Güiraldes 2160, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, ArgentinaÁrea de Agroecología, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martín 4453, Buenos Aires C1417, ArgentinaLas Jarillas 83, Santa Rosa 6300, ArgentinaThe Peregrine Fund, 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane, Boise, ID 83709, USAThe Peregrine Fund, 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane, Boise, ID 83709, USAWildlife persecution due to human-wildlife conflict has become a serious concern for biodiversity conservation, especially for many endangered species. In this context, conservation approaches need to consider the socio-ecological dimensions of each particular situation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the existence, extent and social characteristics of Human-Raptor Conflicts (HRC) in the Southern Yungas region in northwestern Argentina. We conducted 115 semi-structured interviews in 21 sites and analyzed attitudes and associations between sociodemographic variables and the existence of HRC. Forty percent of interviewees showed negative attitudes towards raptors, mainly with those species considered livestock predators rather than poultry predators. A total of 11 species were regarded as conflictive because of predation on domestic animals, of which Andean condors showed the highest conflict. The only socio-demographic factor affecting conflicts was livestock and poultry rearing, independently of age, gender and occupation of interviewees. The fact that only 8.7% of interviewees reported taking direct actions towards conflictive species indicates a relatively peaceful coexistence of people with raptors. Nevertheless, negative attitudes towards Andean condor together with their extreme susceptibility to any increase in non-natural mortality indicate the need of an integral conservation approach to tackle future threats for this species’ conservation in the area.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/5/1428human-wildlife conflicthuman-wildlife interactionsperceptionsattitudesandean condor<i>Vultur gryphus</i> |
| spellingShingle | Amira Salom María Eugenia Suárez Cecilia Andrea Destefano Joaquín Cereghetti Félix Hernán Vargas Juan Manuel Grande Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? Animals human-wildlife conflict human-wildlife interactions perceptions attitudes andean condor <i>Vultur gryphus</i> |
| title | Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? |
| title_full | Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? |
| title_fullStr | Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? |
| title_short | Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers? |
| title_sort | human wildlife conflicts in the southern yungas what role do raptors play for local settlers |
| topic | human-wildlife conflict human-wildlife interactions perceptions attitudes andean condor <i>Vultur gryphus</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/5/1428 |
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