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Hunters and hunting across indigenous and colonist communities at the forest-agriculture interface: An ethnozoological study from the Peruvian Amazon

Hunters and hunting across indigenous and colonist communities at the forest-agriculture interface: An ethnozoological study from the Peruvian Amazon
Hunters and hunting across indigenous and colonist communities at the forest-agriculture interface: An ethnozoological study from the Peruvian Amazon

Background: Wildlife has been traditionally used by forest communities as a source of protein, and the Peruvian Amazon is no exception. The articulation of colonist and indigenous communities to urban centers and markets results in changes in livelihood strategies and impacts on wildlife populations. To address the threat of overhunting and forest conversion, we provide a generalized characterization of colonist and indigenous communities and their hunting activities near Pucallpa, Ucayali, Peru. Methods: A semi-structured household survey was conducted to characterize hunters and describe their prey collections. The data were analyzed by conducting a Kruskal-Wallis test, a multiple regression analysis, and by estimating the harvest rate (H). Results: Less wealthy households were more actively engaged in hunting for food security and as a livelihood strategy. Additionally, older hunters were associated with higher hunting rates. Although the percentage of hunters was relatively low, estimated hunting rates suggest overharvesting of wildlife. Lowland pacas (Cuniculus paca) were the most frequently hunted prey, followed by red brocket deer (Mazama americana) and primates. While hunting intensity was not significantly different between indigenous and colonist communities, hunting rate disparities suggest there are different types of hunters (specialized vs. opportunistic) and that prey composition differs between communities. Conclusion: Close monitoring of wildlife populations and hunting activities is ideal for more accurately determining the impact of hunting on wildlife population and in turn on forest health. In lack of this type of information, this study provides insight of hunting as a shifting livelihood strategy in a rapidly changing environment at the forest/agriculture frontier.

Bush meat, Food security, Hunting, Livelihood strategies, Ucayali
Francesconi, Wendy
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Bax, Vincent
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Blundo-Canto, Genowefa
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Willcock, Simon
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Cuadros, Sandra
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Vanegas, Martha
fe91feff-6b4e-4961-8de6-e4e179de881a
Quintero, Marcela
4baf91d0-d6f3-45da-9e51-79d9ecf5e5b0
Torres-Vitolas, Carlos A.
028f0e74-1e9a-43c6-ac5a-18972d245c93
Francesconi, Wendy
d3b47e14-03dd-41b2-990e-08da130ee576
Bax, Vincent
1fd480ac-76b0-4a1f-b86a-19a927f1af83
Blundo-Canto, Genowefa
d6b3c75e-5a3f-40b7-80d1-1341f80c525c
Willcock, Simon
89d9767e-8076-4b21-be9d-a964f5cc85d7
Cuadros, Sandra
960fd336-0fe7-4870-9c94-0c464a2a3f7f
Vanegas, Martha
fe91feff-6b4e-4961-8de6-e4e179de881a
Quintero, Marcela
4baf91d0-d6f3-45da-9e51-79d9ecf5e5b0
Torres-Vitolas, Carlos A.
028f0e74-1e9a-43c6-ac5a-18972d245c93

Francesconi, Wendy, Bax, Vincent, Blundo-Canto, Genowefa, Willcock, Simon, Cuadros, Sandra, Vanegas, Martha, Quintero, Marcela and Torres-Vitolas, Carlos A. (2018) Hunters and hunting across indigenous and colonist communities at the forest-agriculture interface: An ethnozoological study from the Peruvian Amazon. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 14 (1), [54]. (doi:10.1186/s13002-018-0247-2).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Background: Wildlife has been traditionally used by forest communities as a source of protein, and the Peruvian Amazon is no exception. The articulation of colonist and indigenous communities to urban centers and markets results in changes in livelihood strategies and impacts on wildlife populations. To address the threat of overhunting and forest conversion, we provide a generalized characterization of colonist and indigenous communities and their hunting activities near Pucallpa, Ucayali, Peru. Methods: A semi-structured household survey was conducted to characterize hunters and describe their prey collections. The data were analyzed by conducting a Kruskal-Wallis test, a multiple regression analysis, and by estimating the harvest rate (H). Results: Less wealthy households were more actively engaged in hunting for food security and as a livelihood strategy. Additionally, older hunters were associated with higher hunting rates. Although the percentage of hunters was relatively low, estimated hunting rates suggest overharvesting of wildlife. Lowland pacas (Cuniculus paca) were the most frequently hunted prey, followed by red brocket deer (Mazama americana) and primates. While hunting intensity was not significantly different between indigenous and colonist communities, hunting rate disparities suggest there are different types of hunters (specialized vs. opportunistic) and that prey composition differs between communities. Conclusion: Close monitoring of wildlife populations and hunting activities is ideal for more accurately determining the impact of hunting on wildlife population and in turn on forest health. In lack of this type of information, this study provides insight of hunting as a shifting livelihood strategy in a rapidly changing environment at the forest/agriculture frontier.

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Accepted/In Press date: 4 July 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 10 August 2018
Keywords: Bush meat, Food security, Hunting, Livelihood strategies, Ucayali

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Local EPrints ID: 424470
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/424470
PURE UUID: 77fbd74b-946a-4623-82fb-e54d62896924

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Date deposited: 05 Oct 2018 11:37
Last modified: 05 Jun 2024 19:58

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Contributors

Author: Wendy Francesconi
Author: Vincent Bax
Author: Genowefa Blundo-Canto
Author: Simon Willcock
Author: Sandra Cuadros
Author: Martha Vanegas
Author: Marcela Quintero
Author: Carlos A. Torres-Vitolas

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