Abstract
Wildlife conservation efforts in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor have focused on reducing negative interactions between humans and charismatic species. In recent years, droughts have increased in frequency and intensity in southeastern Mexico exacerbating conflicts with wildlife as they compete with humans for limited water. In the Yucatan Peninsula, Greater Calakmul Region of southeastern Mexico, Baird’s tapirs (Tapirus bairdii) are increasingly encroaching into local villages (ejidos) in search of water. This behavior could increase tapir mortality from hunting by Calakmul ejidos residents. We evaluated the trends between annual precipitation and tapir sightings near or within Calakmul ejidos from 2008 to 2019 to determine if the frequency of reported conflicts increased relative to decreased precipitation. In addition, with community participation, from 2016 to 2018 we monitored one of the ejidos where human-tapir conflicts were reported to be increasing to better describe the nature of conflicts. We did not find any relationship between the number of tapir sightings reported and annual precipitation. However, more tapirs were documented near ejidos in 2019, which is one of the years with the lowest rainfall (626.6 mm) in the last decade. Tapirs were reported as the most common wildlife species observed at waterholes (35.4%) and apiaries (32.1%). Our findings suggested that water scarcity has increased tapirs’ incursions into human-populated areas and subsequently the potential for human-tapir conflicts. We recommend that managers consider developing alternative water sources that could mitigate human-tapir conflicts and contribute to the long-term viability of other wildlife species that inhabit the Greater Calakmul Region of southeastern Mexico.
Highlights
The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor is a biodiversity hotspot and a natural land bridge that connects North and South America; it encompasses southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama (Finley-Brook 2007; Harvey et al 2008; Mendoza et al 2013)
Our findings suggested that water scarcity has increased tapirs’ incursions into human-populated areas and subsequently the potential for human-tapir conflicts
Wildlife conservation efforts in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor have typically focused on reducing conflicts between humans and large charismatic carnivore species such as jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor; Garcia-Alaniz et al 2010; Amit et al 2013; Miller 2015; Steinberg 2016; Peña-Mondragón et al 2017)
Summary
The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor is a biodiversity hotspot and a natural land bridge that connects North and South America; it encompasses southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama (Finley-Brook 2007; Harvey et al 2008; Mendoza et al 2013). Wildlife conservation efforts in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor have typically focused on reducing conflicts between humans and large charismatic carnivore species such as jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor; Garcia-Alaniz et al 2010; Amit et al 2013; Miller 2015; Steinberg 2016; Peña-Mondragón et al 2017). Efforts and resources to manage human-wildlife conflicts (HWCs) in Mesoamerica and worldwide are inequitable, with charismatic species receiving the majority of economic resources for conservation (Macdonald et al 2015). In some rural areas of Latin America, the socio-economic and ecological impact, perceptions and attitudes of local people towards non-charismatic species such as monkeys, rodents, small omnivores, reptiles and birds have received little attention (Spagnoletti et al 2016; de Lima et al 2020; Salom et al 2021). Despite the fact that HWCs are one of the main causes of the reduction and extinction of species populations (Nyhus 2016)
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