Characterization of puma–livestock conflicts in rangelands of central Argentina

Guerisoli, María de Las Mercedes; Vidal, Estela Luengos; Franchini, Marcello; Caruso, Nicolás; Casanave, Emma Beatriz; Lucherini, Mauro

doi:10.1098/rsos.170852

Cited by 48 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 67 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…, Guerisoli et al. ). Regardless of the causes of SK, the financial costs and emotional stress to cattlemen that are associated with these depredation events undermine predator conservation efforts (Naughton‐Treves et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…We reviewed two distinct sources of data for information on SK events attributed to pumas: 1) a database of publications obtained through a literature search; and 2) an original database of puma depredation events from central Argentina (Guerisoli et al. ). To construct the first database, we retrieved peer‐reviewed English and Spanish language scientific articles and book chapters through Google Scholar and the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Species Survival Commission Cat Specialist Group Digital Library (http://www.catsg.org).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The second database we used to search for evidence of SK was originally constructed for a study that aimed to characterise puma depredation in the Espinal ecoregion of southern Buenos Aires Province, Argentina (Guerisoli et al. ). This study was based on 213 semi‐structured interviews with cattle and sheep ranchers and 17 surveys of puma depredation sites that we personally conducted over an area of 23630 km 2 from 2007 to 2015 (see Guerisoli et al.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This study was based on 213 semi‐structured interviews with cattle and sheep ranchers and 17 surveys of puma depredation sites that we personally conducted over an area of 23630 km 2 from 2007 to 2015 (see Guerisoli et al. for a detailed description of the methodology). Puma kills were identified by the presence of tooth (canine) marks on the prey's throat, by the marks of claws on the prey's back, by the presence of vegetation covering the carcass and/or by the dragging of the carcass.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), we were surprised by the number of SK accounts reported by local ranchers when we started collecting information on puma–livestock conflicts in central Argentina (Guerisoli et al. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Surplus killing by pumas Puma concolor: rumours and facts

2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Surplus killing (i.e. predation in which predators kill more prey than necessary to satiate their hunger) appears to be widespread in carnivores and has the potential to exacerbate human–carnivore conflict. Nevertheless, little is known about the frequency of surplus killing or about its impact on livestock. We review the information available on surplus killing by pumas Puma concolor and use data from central Argentina to quantify its impact on ranching and to analyse both its causes and its implications for puma–human conflicts. We reviewed 73 publications and found nine mentions of surplus killing events from six countries. The sheep was by far the most commonly affected livestock species. In central Argentina, surplus killing was reported by 25–33% of the ranchers. In this region, the number of livestock killed during each event ranged from seven to 160 (median = 23) for the literature reports and from two to 70 (median = 7) in the records we personally collated. The number of individual animals killed per event was greater for interview‐based second‐hand reports than for first‐hand reports and verified events. Our results indicate that although surplus killing by pumas is uncommonly reported in the literature, it may be locally recurrent. Although surplus killing may be overestimated in interview‐based reports, it can produce significant losses for sheep and goat ranchers, may strongly exacerbate puma–human conflicts, and should be considered in puma–human conflict mitigation strategies. Ranchers typically attributed surplus killing to female pumas teaching kittens to hunt. However, there is little evidence supporting this interpretation. Surplus killing by pumas may be more likely to occur in situations where the predator's ‘normal’ hunting sequence is disrupted by the accessibility of large numbers of easy prey. Confinement, stormy weather and poor antipredator behaviour may favour the occurrence of surplus killing events on livestock.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), we were surprised by the number of SK accounts reported by local ranchers when we started collecting information on puma–livestock conflicts in central Argentina (Guerisoli et al. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Surplus killing by pumas Puma concolor: rumours and facts

2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Assessing carnivore spatial co‐occurrence and temporal overlap in the face of human interference in a semiarid forest

Martínez

Seoane

Kelly

et al. 2021

Ecological Applications

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Apex predators drive top-down effects in ecosystems and the loss of such species can trigger mesopredator release. This ecological process has been well documented in humanmodified small areas, but for management and conservation of ecological communities, it is important to know which human factors affect apex predator occurrence and which mediate mesopredators release at large scales. We hypothesized that mesopredators would avoid spatial and temporal overlap with the apex predator, the puma; but that human perturbations (i.e., cattle raising and trophy hunting) would dampen top-down effects and mediate habitat use. We installed 16 camera traps in each of 45, 10 × 10 km grid cells in the Caldén forest region of central Argentina resulting in 706 total stations covering 61,611 km 2 . We used single-season occupancy and two-species co-occurrence models and calculated the species interaction factor (SIF) to explore the contributions of habitat, biotic, and anthropic variables in explaining cooccurrence between carnivore pairs. We also used kernel density estimation techniques to analyze temporal overlap in activity patterns of the carnivore guild. We found that puma habitat use increased with abundance of large prey and with proximity to protected areas. Geoffroy's cats and skunks spatially avoided pumas and this effect was strong and mediated by distance to protected areas and game reserves, but pumas did not influence pampas fox and pampas cat space use. At medium and low levels of puma occupancy, we found evidence of spatial avoidance between three pairs of mesocarnivores. All predators were mostly nocturnal and crepuscular across seasons and mesopredators showed little consistent evidence of changing activity patterns with varying levels of puma occupancy or human interference. We found potential for mesopredator release at large scale, especially on the spatial niche axis. Our results suggest that a combination of interacting factors, in conjunction with habitat features and intervening human activities, may make mesopredator release unlikely or difficult to discern at broad scales. Overall, we believe that promoting the creation of new protected areas linked by small forest patches would likely lead to increased predator and prey abundances, as well as the interactions among carnivores inside and outside of protected areas.

show abstract

Stakeholder perspectives on the prospect of lynx Lynx lynx reintroduction in Scotland

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Conservation translocations are complex and challenging, but are frequently employed to tackle biodiversity decline. Large predator translocations can be particularly emotive and contentious, in part because they present actual or perceived risks to the safety and livelihoods of people. Understanding the social feasibility of conservation translocations is imperative, and provides opportunities to identify and address these risks. In Britain, the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx is the most frequently raised prospect for large carnivore reintroduction. We used Q‐Methodology to explore stakeholder perspectives on the prospect of lynx reintroduction to Scotland. We identified five perspectives: Lynx for Change was supportive of lynx reintroduction, feeling that lynx could facilitate ecosystem restoration. Lynx for Economy was also supportive, anticipating economic benefits to local communities. No to Lynx was strongly opposed, perceiving that humans were fulfilling the roles of absent large carnivores. Scotland is not Ready supported the conversation but perceived prohibitive socio‐ecological barriers. We are not Convinced was not satisfied that an adequate case for biodiversity gain had been made, but was open to further exploration of the potential. There were important areas of divergence among the perspectives over the potential impacts on sheep farming and the degree to which environments should be managed by people or encouraged to self‐regulate. There was a consensus on a lack of trust between stakeholder groups, which was primarily rooted in participants' experiences of previous wildlife reintroductions and the contemporary management of recovering predators. However, there was also consensus that, should lynx reintroduction continue to be explored, a participatory, cross‐sectoral approach could address these trust issues, help manage existing and emergent conflicts, and build knowledge collaboratively. We provide a foundation for future dialogue between stakeholders over the prospective reintroduction of the lynx to Scotland and recommend a stakeholder‐focused participatory process as the next step. Our findings have wider relevance for wildlife reintroductions, species recovery and conservation conflicts elsewhere. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

show abstract

Characterization of puma–livestock conflicts in rangelands of central Argentina

Cited by 48 publications

References 67 publications

Surplus killing by pumas Puma concolor: rumours and facts

Surplus killing by pumas Puma concolor: rumours and facts

Assessing carnivore spatial co‐occurrence and temporal overlap in the face of human interference in a semiarid forest

Stakeholder perspectives on the prospect of lynx Lynx lynx reintroduction in Scotland

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About