The Future of Wild Mammals in Oil Palm Landscapes in the Neotropics

Abstract

We assume conservation lessons learnt from Southeast Asia adapted to the growing body of knowledge in oil palm impacts in Colombia, and adapt it to the Neotropical realm with a focus on mammals. Aspects of science, policy, and practice are reviewed. Colombia is the fourth largest producer of palm oil in the world with a growth of 42% in 2017, affecting its ecosystems and biodiversity. In order to prevent large mammal species erosion and decimation as has happened in SE Asia, the following lessons in zoning, infrastructure, harvest, monitoring, and research should be implemented. Native habitat is irreplaceable. New oil palm frontiers should occur in degraded ecosystems, with adequate governance and without requirement of new infrastructure. Roads favor hunting, logging, and disorganized human occupation. Plantations should conserve water bodies and forests to ensure connectivity and refuge for sensitive mammal species. Higher structural complexity with added plants is desired for a varied mammal species composition. Harvest should be done manually and crepuscular work hours should be avoided. How new oil palm frontiers are opened and developed will define the extent of alteration of natural mammal assemblages, the intensity of mesopredator release affecting other species from cascading trophic phenomenon and even the continuation of key large iconic herbivores and carnivores.

The environmental impacts of palm oil in context

“…, and examples of species it affects negatively. a, Panthera onca (Near Threatened) 101 and Ara macao (Least Concern) 36 . b, Pan troglodytes (Endangered) 77 .…”

Intestinal Parasites of Neotropical Wild Jaguars, Pumas, Ocelots, and Jaguarundis in Colombia: Old Friends Brought Back from Oblivion and New Insights

“…Since the vast majority of available data on wild felid parasite fauna come from captive, deceased, or highly anthropized individuals, and data on free-ranging NWF are scarce [ 30 ], the findings presented here constitute an important contribution to baseline understanding of the parasite fauna harbored by free-ranging wild felids (~67% of species) of Colombia. Agricultural expansion negatively impacts the occupancy of wild felid communities across human-modified landscapes [ 31 , 32 ], and these adverse anthropogenic factors may in turn influence their respective parasite communities. Thus, more frequent domestic animal–human–wildlife interface favors a plethora of infectious pathogens to emerge, spread, cross species barriers, and eventually evolve [ 14 , 33 ].…”

Bat Assemblage in an Oil Palm Plantation from the Colombian Llanos Foothills

“…As we mentioned before, in our study area oil palm plantations did not replace forest cover but pastures, as has been typically in the Colombian Eastern region ( Etter et al 2011 ). Pastures have low conservation value for several biological groups in Colombia ( Payán & Boron 2019 ; Boron et al . 2019 ; Gilroy et al .…”

“…Colombia is the fourth largest palm oil producer in the world ( Payán & Boron 2019 ; Boron et al . 2019 ), and the main producer in America with about 540,687 ha cultivated in 2018 [Federación Nacional de Cultivadores de Palma de Aceite (Fedepalma) 2019], but also is the country with the second richest bat fauna with 209 species (Ramírez-Chavez et al 2020).…”