Community-Based Conservation and Management of Chelonians in the Amazon

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution

Richard Carl Vogt¹  José Ribamar da Silva Pinto²  Thiago Luiz Ferreira Anízio²  Carlos Dias de Almeida²  Liriann Chrisley Nascimento da Silva²  Jefferson Moreira da Silva²  Sandra Helena da Silva Azevedo²  Eleyson Barboza da Silva²  João Alfredo da Mota Duarte²  Wander da Silva Rodrigues²  Ruth Lima Teixeira²  Alfredo Luiz Belém Pontes²  Anndson Brelaz de Oliveira³  Jânderson Rocha Garcez³  Wallice Luiz Paxiúba Duncan⁴  Aldeniza Cardoso de Lima⁴  Paulo Henrique Guimarães de Oliveira⁵  Midian Salgado Monteiro⁶  Paulo Cesar Machado Andrade⁶ 

[1] Amazonian Chelonian Studies Center, National Institute of Amazonian Research, Manaus, Brazil;Community Chelonian Management Program—Pé-de-pincha Project, Manaus, Brazil;Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil;Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil;Institute of Social Sciences, Education and Animal Science, Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil;Laboratory Wild Animal, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Animal and Plant Production, Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil;

关键词: freshwater turtles;    participatory management;    monitoring;    population models;    Podocnemis;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fevo.2022.769328

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Chelonians represent an important resource in the Amazon, either as a source of protein at the base of the food chain of aquatic and transition ecosystems, or in the dispersion of seeds of plants from floodplains and flooded forests. The consumption and predatory exploitation of their meat and eggs by local populations has been, and still is, one of the main threats to these animals. Community-based conservation projects allied to official protection programs have been restoring populations of chelonians of the genus Podocnemis throughout the Amazon since 1974. In this study, we analyzed the historical time series of protection data of Podocnemis expansa, P. unifilis, P. sextuberculata and P. erythrocephala in areas protected by the government and communities in the Amazonas state and northwest of Pará state. Between 1974 and 2019, 230,444 nests and 21,350,201 hatchlings of P. expansa, 170,076 nests and 3,229,821 hatchlings of P. unifilis, 647,715 nests and 6,410,092 hatchlings of P. sextuberculata and 24,617 nests and 168,856 hatchlings of P. erythrocephala were protected. Community protection schemes emerged in 1990, and covered 80.7% of the areas and produced 64.2% of P. unifilis hatchlings and 44.6% of P. sextuberculata hatchlings. The areas with the highest production of P. expansa remain under government protection (57.4%). Using the time series of production of nests and hatchlings per beach, logistic growth curves were estimated, and the values of r and K were compared between the two protection systems (government and community). Beaches controlled by the government showed higher support capacity in the production of nests (1,910.7 ± 1,035) and hatchlings (211,513 ± 93,031) of P. expansa and P. sextuberculata (81,160 ± 34,924 hatchlings). However, the communities were more efficient in protecting nests (r = 0.102 ± 0.2315) and hatchlings (r = 0.282 ± 0.166) of P. unifilis. Community-based protection and monitoring programs are an important component that should be incorporated by the government’s environmental agencies for the management and conservation of turtles in the Amazon.

【 授权许可】

Unknown