Abstract
ABSTRACT Neotropical medium and large-bodied mammals are key elements in forest ecosystems, and protected areas are essential for their conservation. In Brazil, sustainable use protected areas (SU-PAs) allow both the conservation of biodiversity and the sustainable use of natural resources, especially in the Amazon region. However, SU-PAs usually suffer both internal and external pressures, and may be subject to variable degrees of defaunation. We sampled mammals using camera traps in two areas with different forest management and human occupation history in the Tapajós National Forest (TNF), in the western Amazon. Overall, we recorded a rich assemblage of medium and large-sized mammals, though both areas differed in species composition. The area with older and more intense human occupation and forest exploitation had more independent records of generalist species, while large species such as Tapirus terrestris and Panthera onca were recorded exclusively in the area with lower human occupation and no forest management. A comparison of our results with similar studies in other Amazonian sites suggests a reduction in the population size of large-bodied mammals, such as Tapirus terrestris and Tayassu pecari, likely in response to increased human activities. Local differences in human occupation within and between protected areas are common in the Amazon, demanding area-specific actions from public authorities to minimize impacts on wildlife caused by human activities. Specifically in TNF, we recommend long-term monitoring of the responses of mammals to human activities, to better subsidize conservation and management actions.
Highlights
Medium and large-bodied mammals such as armadillos, agoutis, deer, tapirs, and peccaries, are important to maintain the structure of neotropical forests (Stoner et al 2007; Oliveira et al 2018; Villar et al 2020a), but they are threatened by human activities, such as habitat transformation and poaching (Schipper et al 2008)
Our results suggest that the sampled areas in Tapajós National Forest (TNF) maintain a high species richness of large and medium-sized terrestrial mammals, to the other protected areas (PAs) used for comparison
The presence of large-bodied mammal species in the southern part of the TNF can be attributed to the low land-use intensity and occupation in this area, while the higher poaching pressure in the northern area likely lead to a decrease in larger mammals, such as T. terrestris
Summary
Medium and large-bodied mammals such as armadillos, agoutis, deer, tapirs, and peccaries, are important to maintain the structure of neotropical forests (Stoner et al 2007; Oliveira et al 2018; Villar et al 2020a), but they are threatened by human activities, such as habitat transformation and poaching (Schipper et al 2008). Many regions suffer from defaunation, a worldwide process of local or global animal species extinctions and population declines (Dirzo et al 2014). Even preserved areas have experienced severe defaunation, especially of larger species, in response to overhunting (Redford 1992; Peres and Palacios 2007; Antunes et al 2016; Galetti et al 2017; Benítez-López et al 2019). Global data indicate that mammal populations have had an average reduction of 83% in areas subject to hunting compared to non-hunted areas (Benítez-López et al 2017). Defaunation compromises, directly or through cascade effects, the functionality of ecosystems, promoting changes in food webs, prey populations, nutrient cycles, plant regeneration and possibly reducing the carbon stocks in tropical forests (Brocardo et al 2013; Bello et al 2015; Sobral et al 2017; Cooke et al 2019; Villar et al 2020a,b)
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