Medium and large-sized mammals of a private protected wetland in the Cerrado-Amazon biological corridor, Brazil

Brazil is the world's richest country in biodiversity, including mammal species. In the Brazilian Cerrado biome, mammalian diversity is vast, with about 251 species, 32 of them are endemic and 22 listed as threatened species. In this work, we investigated species diversity of medium- and large-sized mammals in the private protected area RPPN Pontal do Jaburu (RPPN-PJ) and its surroundings, which is a flooded area located in an important biological corridor in the Cerrado-Amazon ecotone zone, a priority area for biodiversity conservation in Brazil. We used camera-trapping, active search (night and day), and track survey during dry season (Apr – Aug 2016). We recorded 29 mammal species, being the Carnivora order the most representative with 11 species. Regarding threat status, 35.7% of the recorded species were listed as threatened in Brazil and 32.1% worldwide. We highlight the high relative frequency of threatened species records such as Tapirus terrestris, Panthera onca, Blastocerus dichotomus, Pteronura brasiliensis, Priodontes maximus, and other, as well as the presence of the newly described aquatic mammal species Inia araguaiaensis. We stress the importance of RPPN-PJ and its surroundings for mammal conservation, which include complex habitats (wetlands) located in an important ecotone zone.

Human-wildlife conflicts and drought in the greater Calakmul Region, Mexico: implications for tapir conservation

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.

Vulnerabilities and Threats to Natural Forest Regrowth: Land Tenure Reform, Land Markets, Pasturelands, Plantations, and Urbanization in Indigenous Communities in Mexico

Despite the economic and social costs of national and international efforts to restore millions of hectares of deforested and degraded landscapes, results have not met expectations due to land tenure conflicts, land-use transformation, and top-down decision-making policies. Privatization of land, expansion of cattle raising, plantations, and urbanization have created an increasingly competitive land market, dispossessing local communities and threatening forest conservation and regeneration. In contrast to significant investments in reforestation, natural regrowth, which could contribute to landscape regeneration, has not been sufficiently promoted by national governments. This study analyzes socio-ecological and economic vulnerabilities of indigenous and other peasant communities in the Mexican states of Veracruz, Chiapas, and Morelos related to the inclusion of natural regeneration in their forest cycles. While these communities are located within protected areas (Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve, El Tepozteco National Park, and Chichinautzin Biological Corridor), various threats and vulnerabilities impede natural regeneration. Although landscape restoration involves complex political, economic, and social relationships and decisions by a variety of stakeholders, we focus on communities’ vulnerable land rights and the impacts of privatization on changes in land use and forest conservation. We conclude that the social, economic, political, and environmental vulnerabilities of the study communities threaten natural regeneration, and we explore necessary changes for incorporating this process in landscape restoration.

Species richness of the vascular plants of the Bijagual high Andean forest, Colombia

Background and Aims: The high Andean forest in Colombia corresponds to a plant community located between 2400-3200(-3500) m a.s.l., characterized by the presence of arboreal species with restricted distributions that determine their physiognomy and composition. Nevertheless, these species have been affected by agricultural activity that has generated a loss of connectivity and richness. This research records the species richness, composition, and distributional data for the vascular flora in the high Andean forest of the Bijagual Massif, Bocayá, Colombia. Methods: Sampling was carried out in 27 transects. The specimens were organized under the APG IV classification system, curated and deposited in the UPTC herbarium (Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia). The number of species, list of taxa, distributions for Colombia, and conservation categories according to the IUCN were noted. Results: We registered 327 species distributed in 151 genera and 69 families; 187 species (56%) were native to the Andean region, 51 (15%) were endemic to the Andes and 24 (7%) were endemic to the Eastern cordillera of the Andes, Colombia. Schefflera bejucosa is a new distributional record for Boyacá. Greigia stenolepis, Hieronyma rufa, Puya goudotiana and Tillandsia pallescens are Near Threatened (NT). Plutarchia guascensis, Quercus humboldtii and Symplocos venulosa are classified as Vulnerable (VU), and Diplostephium oblongifolium and Dunalia trianaei as Endangered (EN). Conclusions: Bijagual is a biological corridor with great potential for biodiversity compared to other high Andean areas in Colombia. Species richness is influenced by other localities near the Massif (Tota and Mampacha), in addition to a possible stochastic and heterogeneous distribution between sampling units. Miconia, Pentacalia, Epidendrum, Elaphoglossum, Tillandsia, and some other genera are species-rich. Clusia alata, Weinmannia balbisiana, Weinmannia rollottii, Ternstroemia cf. camelliifolia, and Brunellia comocladifolia define the arboreal and shrub physiognomy of Bijagual.

Biogeography of Argylia D. Don (Bignoniaceae): Diversification, Andean Uplift and Niche Conservatism

Andean uplift and the concomitant formation of the Diagonal Arid of South America is expected to have promoted species diversification through range expansions into this novel environment. We evaluate the evolution of Argylia, a genus belonging to the Bignoniaceae family whose oldest fossil record dates back to 49.4 Ma. Today, Argylia is distributed along the Andean Cordillera, from 15°S to 38.5°S and from sea level up to 4,000 m.a.s.l. We ask whether Argylia’s current distribution is a result of a range expansion along the Andes Cordillera (biological corridor) modulated by climatic niche conservatism, considering the timing of Andean uplift (30 Ma – 5 Ma). To answer this question, we reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships of Argylia species, estimated divergence times, estimated the realized climatic niche of the genus, reconstructed the ancestral climatic niche, evaluated its evolution, and finally, performed an ancestral range reconstruction. We found strong evidence for climatic niche conservatism for moisture variables, and an absence of niche conservatism for most of the temperature variables considered. Exceptions were temperature seasonality and winter temperature. Results imply that Argylia had the capacity to adapt to extreme temperature conditions associated with the Andean uplift and the new climatic corridor produced by uplift. Ancestral range reconstruction for the genus showed that Argylia first diversified in a region where subtropical conditions were already established, and that later episodes of diversification were coeval with the of Andean uplift. We detected a second climatic corridor along the coastal range of Chile-Peru, the coastal lomas, which allowed a northward range expansion of Argylia into the hyperarid Atacama Desert. Dating suggests the current distribution and diversity of Argylia would have been reached during the Late Neogene and Pleistocene.

New record of the Chacoan Peccary, Parachoerus wagneri (Rusconi, 1930) (Cetartiodactyla, Tayassuidae) in Santiago del Estero, Argentina

New records of the Endangered Catagonus wagneri (Rusconi, 1930) are reported in Campo Grande Community of peasants, northwestern Santiago del Estero, Argentina. The new records were obtained through camera traps as well as the finding of a skull and footprints. We conducted interviews confirmed the historical presence of the species. The records indicate the presence of C. wagneri in the North Biological Corridor, expanding this species’ distribution in Santiago del Estero province, providing initial evidence of potential connection between northern and southern populations.

Occupancy patterns of prey species in a biological corridor and inferences for tiger population connectivity between national parks in Bhutan

Site occupancy models, accounting for imperfect detection and the influence of anthropogenic and ecological covariates, can indicate the status of species populations. They may thus be useful for exploring the suitability of landscapes such as biological corridors, to ensure population dispersal and connectivity. Using occupancy probability models of its principal prey species, we make inferences on landscape connectivity for the movement of the tiger Panthera tigris between protected areas in Bhutan. We used camera-trap data to assess the probability of site occupancy (Ψ) of the sambar Rusa unicolor, wild boar Sus scrofa and barking deer Muntiacus muntjak in biological corridor no. 8, which connects two national parks in central Bhutan. At least one prey species was recorded at 17 out of 26 trapping locations. The probability of site occupancy was highest for the barking deer (Ψ = 0.52 ± SE 0.09) followed by sambar (Ψ = 0.49 ± SE 0.03) and wild boar (Ψ = 0.45 ± SE 0.07). All three species had higher occupancy probability at lower altitudes. Sambar occupancy was greater farther from settlements and on steeper and/or south-facing slopes. Barking deer also had higher occupancy on south-facing slopes, and wild boar occurred mainly close to rivers. Our findings suggest that this biological corridor could facilitate dispersal of tigers. Protecting prey species, and minimizing anthropogenic disturbance and habitat fragmentation, are vital for tiger dispersal and thus functional connectivity amongst populations in this area.

Forest cover mediates large and medium-sized mammal occurrence in a critical link of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor

Connectivity of natural areas through biological corridors is essential for ecosystem resilience and biodiversity conservation. However, robust assessments of biodiversity in corridor areas are often hindered by logistical constraints and the statistical challenges of modeling data from multiple species. Herein, we used a hierarchical community occupancy model in a Bayesian framework to evaluate the status of medium and large-sized mammals in a critical link of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) in Costa Rica. We used camera traps deployed from 2013–2017 to detect 18 medium (1–15 kg) and 6 large (>15 kg) mammal species in a portion of two Jaguar Conservation Units (JCUs) and the Corridor linking them. Camera traps operated for 16,904 trap nights across 209 stations, covering an area of 880 km2. Forest cover was the most important driver of medium and large-sized mammal habitat use, with forest specialists such as jaguars (Panthera onca) and pumas (Puma concolor) strongly associated with high forest cover, while habitat generalists such as coyotes (Canis latrans) and raccoons (Procyon lotor) were associated with low forest cover. Medium and large-sized mammal species richness was lower in the Corridor area (x¯ = 9.78±1.84) than in the portions evaluated of the two JCUs (x¯ = 11.50±1.52). Puma and jaguar habitat use probabilities were strongly correlated with large prey species richness (jaguar, r = 0.59, p<0.001; puma, r = 0.72, p<0.001), and correlated to a lesser extent with medium prey species richness (jaguar, r = 0.36, p = 0.003; puma, r = 0.23, p = 0.064). Low estimated jaguar habitat use probability in one JCU (Central Volcanic Cordillera: x¯ = 0.15±0.11) suggests that this is not the jaguar stronghold previously assumed. In addition, the western half of the Corridor has low richness of large mammals, making it necessary to take urgent actions to secure habitat connectivity for mammal populations.

Willingness to Coexist with Jaguars and Pumas in Costa Rica

Shrinking habitat, depleted prey sources, and hunting increase conflict between humans and jaguars in Latin America. Participant observation was used for 131 open-ended interviews in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor of Costa Rica to describe and provide recommendations for Panthera’s rancher outreach program. Changing husbandry practices is different than wanting to relocate jaguars or pumas, which suggests willingness to coexist is based on geo-physical proximities. Further, perceived attacks on livestock may be unreliable creating a perception of more predation, villainizing large felines, and challenging coexistence. This study urges wildlife managers to evaluate the effectiveness of relocation; suggests systematic recordkeeping of jaguar and puma attacks; encourages researchers to measure willingness to co-exist with large carnivores based on geo-physical distance; suggests strategies of coexistence may have both cultural and regional differences; and recommends a communication strategy through a citizen science approach, in order to educate ranchers and create social investment among communities.