Abstract
Unsustainable harvest is driving population declines in tropical forest species across the globe. Despite maintaining the second highest percent forest cover in the world (85%), concern is increasing in Guyana that unmanaged commercial and subsistence hunting activities could result in defaunation, and the cascading ecological effects of ‘empty forests.’ The Rupununi region in southwestern Guyana, home to the Kanuku Mountains Protected Area (KMPA), hosts one of the world’s lowest human population densities (0.42 people/km2), as well as large tracts of both Neotropical savanna and forest habitats, making it one of the country’s most biodiverse regions. Indigenous Makushi and Wapichan communities that reside there have maintained subsistence lifestyles mediated by traditional beliefs and management practices for millennia. However, as human populations and access to markets increase, there is a corresponding increase in harvesting of natural resources. Protected areas have long been recognized for their role in biodiversity conservation, while also serving as a reserve for subsistence hunters. The KMPA, one of Guyana’s newest protected areas, allows for the continued sustainable use of its resources by indigenous communities. It is critical to understand the patterns, impacts, and sustainable levels of hunting in and around the protected area so that biodiversity can be managed and conserved effectively. Our study shows that the impact of current hunting intensity in and around the KMPA remains relatively low and supports the hypothesis that Neotropical forests can support hunting pressure of <1 person/km2. While our results show that current levels of hunting in the region can be considered sustainable, small shifts in activity patterns and relative abundance of preferred game species were observed in higher intensity hunting areas, which in turn appeared to have influenced other non-hunted species’ activity patterns and relative abundance. Our results suggest therefore, that even in low hunting intensity areas, monitoring both preferred game and non-hunted species’ activity patterns and abundances is important to act as an early warning system before animal populations are significantly impacted by overharvesting. Further, our study highlights the importance of considering the entire ecosystem and not simply individual populations when establishing sustainable harvesting rates for an area.
Highlights
Hunting intensity has reached unsustainable levels across much of the tropics, representing the most pressing threat to game mammal and bird populations after habitat loss (Redford, 1992; Fa and Peres, 2001; Nasi et al, 2011; Wilkie et al, 2011; Maxwell et al, 2016; Ripple et al, 2016; Young et al, 2016)
Understanding shifts in hunting preferences, patterns, and intensities, as well as the potential negative impacts of hunting, is critical for policy makers who are responsible for setting rules and regulations related to hunting
This is true in regions that allow for the continued use of resources within conservation areas by indigenous communities, as is typically the case in the Neotropics
Summary
Hunting intensity has reached unsustainable levels across much of the tropics, representing the most pressing threat to game mammal and bird populations after habitat loss (Redford, 1992; Fa and Peres, 2001; Nasi et al, 2011; Wilkie et al, 2011; Maxwell et al, 2016; Ripple et al, 2016; Young et al, 2016). Studies from across the global tropics assessing game mammal and bird species abundances under moderate and heavy hunting intensities have shown declines by an average of 83 and 58%, respectively (Wilkie et al, 2011). Determining the levels of harvest that are sustainable for tropical forest species is important for policy makers who are responsible for setting rules and regulations related to hunting, as well as for managers of conservation areas that allow for the continued use of resources by indigenous communities, which is typically the case in the Neotropics. Studies have shown an overall preference for large-bodied frugivorous and herbivorous mammals among hunters in the Neotropics (Redford and Robinson, 1987; Jerozolimski and Peres, 2003), which has resulted in documented local population declines of lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris), red brocket (Mazama americana) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), and giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus) (Cullen Jr. et al, 2000; Peres, 2001; Weber and Gonzalez, 2003; Di Bitetti et al, 2008; Superina et al, 2014)
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