Large-scale Environmental Monitoring by Indigenous Peoples

Luzar, Jeffrey B.; Silvius, Kirsten M.; Overman, Han; Giery, Sean T.; Read, Jane; Fragoso, José M. V.

doi:10.1525/bio.2011.61.10.7

Cited by 76 publications

(102 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…However, hunting is practiced by most able-bodied men in rural Amazonia, and thus locating knowledgeable informants was straightforward (Luzar et al 2011). However, the motives of interviewees can bias responses, especially when there are perceived conflicts of interest with the interviewer (Danielsen et al 2005, Grant andBerkes 2007).…”

Section: Field Data Reliabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Low detection rates tend to derive abundance estimates with high levels of uncertainty for the rarer species of greater conservation concern (Peres 2000, Munari et al 2011, limiting their potential for detecting changes in abundance (Plumptre 2000). In contrast, locally based approaches can provide cost-effective monitoring of species distribution and abundance over large scales (Silvertown 2009) and can offer long-term sustainability by empowering local stakeholders to better manage their own natural resources (Danielsen et al 2009, Luzar et al 2011). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evaluating the use of local ecological knowledge to monitor hunted tropical-forest wildlife over large spatial scales

Parry¹,

Peres²

2015

E&S

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C. A. Peres. 2015. Evaluating the use of local ecological knowledge to monitor hunted tropical-forest wildlife over large spatial scales. ABSTRACT. Monitoring the distribution and abundance of hunted wildlife is critical to achieving sustainable resource use, yet adequate data are sparse for most tropical regions. Conventional methods for monitoring hunted forest-vertebrate species require intensive in situ survey effort, which severely constrains spatial and temporal replication. Integrating local ecological knowledge (LEK) into monitoring and management is appealing because it can be cost-effective, enhance community participation, and provide novel insights into sustainable resource use. We develop a technique to monitor population depletion of hunted forest wildlife in the Brazilian Amazon, based on the local ecological knowledge of rural hunters. We performed rapid interview surveys to estimate the landscape-scale depletion of ten large-bodied vertebrate species around 161 Amazonian riverine settlements. We assessed the explanatory and predictive power of settlement and landscape characteristics and were able to develop robust estimates of local faunal depletion. By identifying speciesspecific drivers of depletion and using secondary data on human population density, land form, and physical accessibility, we then estimated landscape-and regional-scale depletion. White-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), for example, were estimated to be absent from 17% of their putative range in Brazil's largest state (Amazonas), despite 98% of the original forest cover remaining intact. We found evidence that bushmeat consumption in small urban centers has far-reaching impacts on some forest species, including severe depletion well over 100 km from urban centers. We conclude that LEK-based approaches require further field validation, but have significant potential for community-based participatory monitoring as well as cost-effective, large-scale monitoring of threatened forest species.

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Section: Field Data Reliabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the use of local ecological knowledge to monitor hunted tropical-forest wildlife over large spatial scales

Parry¹,

Peres²

2015

E&S

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“…Månsson et al (2011) provided evidence on the low cost for the government and large landowners. The system is simple in its reporting, which is a significant factor to keep people engaged, as outlined by several other researchers (Luzar et al 2011, Parsons et al 2011. Development of mobile phone applications and a dedicated GIS indicates a continuing interest among the hunting community to keep developing and improving the monitoring program, to increase the precision and accuracy in observations, and also enhance communication among the hunters.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…A study by Luzar et al (2011) from Amazonia reported that the motivation of the local people to want to monitor and participate in a participatory monitoring program should be identified during the early stages of the development of the program. In the case of moose observations, the motivation was identified quite early, because hunters and foresters realized the impact of increasing moose populations and distributions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the case of moose observations, the motivation was identified quite early, because hunters and foresters realized the impact of increasing moose populations and distributions. Luzar et al (2011) also suggested that preliminary research findings of the data collected by participants should be communicated to the participants. The moose data is coordinated by SAWHM and is regularly communicated to the hunters.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tackling the motivation to monitor: success and sustainability of a participatory monitoring program

Singh¹,

Danell²,

Edenius³

et al. 2014

E&S

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ABSTRACT. Monitoring of species and their ecosystem attributes is a fundamental requirement in applied ecology and conservation. However, landscape scale monitoring requires an immense effort and commitment, especially when species have a wide distribution or are migratory in nature. Participatory monitoring, whereby local communities are engaged, is increasingly being proposed to address landscape scale monitoring. Its implementation is met with many challenges related to finances, motivation of the local people, lack of trained manpower, and nondirect legal use of the species in question. It is of interest to determine what makes a participatory monitoring program interesting for locals to ensure their long term engagement. Using the unique 26-year program of hunters' observations of moose (Alces alces) in Sweden as a case study, we present the evolution of this highly successful participatory monitoring program and show that tackling the motivation to monitor, early involvement of local NGOs, social activities revolving around use of the resource, the biology and economic value of the species, and technical and practical aspects related to the monitoring, together create a successful participatory monitoring program. When users benefit directly from the resource, participate in conservation/ management decision making, socialize with other participants, and get rewards for their commitment and effective monitoring, participatory monitoring schemes can then become rewarding and sustainable.

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The establishment of a collaborative surveillance program with indigenous hunters to characterize primate health in Southern Guyana

Milstein,

Shaffer,

Suse

et al. 2024

American J Primatol

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The consumption of primates is integral to the traditional subsistence strategies of many Indigenous communities throughout Amazonia. Understanding the overall health of primates harvested for food in the region is critical to Indigenous food security and thus, these communities are highly invested in long‐term primate population health. Here, we describe the establishment of a surveillance comanagement program among the Waiwai, an Indigenous community in the Konashen Amerindian Protected Area (KAPA). To assess primate health in the KAPA, hunters performed field necropsies on primates harvested for food and tissues collected from these individuals were analyzed using histopathology. From 2015 to 2019, hunters conducted 127 necropsies across seven species of primates. Of this sample, 82 primates (between 2015 and 2017) were submitted for histopathological screening. Our histopathology data revealed that KAPA primates had little evidence of underlying disease. Of the tissue abnormalities observed, the majority were either due to diet (e.g., hepatocellular pigment), degenerative changes resulting from aging (e.g., interstitial nephritis, myocyte lipofusion), or nonspecific responses to antigenic stimulation (renal and splenic lymphoid hyperplasia). In our sample, 7.32% of individuals had abnormalities that were consistent with a viral etiology, including myocarditis and hepatitis. Internal parasites were observed in 53.66% of individuals and is consistent with what would be expected from a free‐ranging primate population. This study represents the importance of baseline data for long‐term monitoring of primate populations hunted for food. More broadly, this research begins to close a critical gap in zoonotic disease risk related to primate harvesting in Amazonia, while also demonstrating the benefits of partnering with Indigenous hunters and leveraging hunting practices in disease surveillance and primate population health assessment.

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Large-scale Environmental Monitoring by Indigenous Peoples

Cited by 76 publications

References 26 publications

Evaluating the use of local ecological knowledge to monitor hunted tropical-forest wildlife over large spatial scales

Evaluating the use of local ecological knowledge to monitor hunted tropical-forest wildlife over large spatial scales

Tackling the motivation to monitor: success and sustainability of a participatory monitoring program

The establishment of a collaborative surveillance program with indigenous hunters to characterize primate health in Southern Guyana

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