Impacts of Indigenous Communities on the Biodiversity of Neotropical Rainforests A thesis submitted to the University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Science and Engineering 2017 Ciara A. Stafford School of Earth and Environmental Sciences TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 14 1.1 Bushmeat hunting in the neotropics ........................................................................... 16 Knowledge gaps ...................................................................................................... 17 Overall aims ............................................................................................................ 19 1.2 Indigenous communities and primates ....................................................................... 21 Primates as bushmeat ............................................................................................. 21 Primates in culture .................................................................................................. 23 Aims of Chapters 2 & 3 ........................................................................................... 25 1.3 Large-scale analyses of hunting .................................................................................. 27 Optimal foraging ..................................................................................................... 27 Culture and taboos .................................................................................................. 29 Aims of Chapters 4 & 5 ........................................................................................... 31 1.4 Alternative format ........................................................................................................ 33 1.4 References ..................................................................................................................... 35 CHAPTER 2: A comparison of primate species abundance and diversity between a protected and an indigenous-owned site in the Sumaco biosphere reserve, Ecuador ............. 46 CHAPTER 3: Know Your Monkey: Identifying Primate Conservation Challenges in an Indigenous Kichwa Community Using an Ethnoprimatological Approach ............ 47 CHAPTER 4: A pan-neotropical analysis of hunting preferences ................................................... 48 A note on systematic review .................................................................................... 49 Supporting information ........................................................................................... 50 CHAPTER 5: A cross-site analysis of hunting preferences for neotropical birds ........................... 51 Supporting information ........................................................................................... 52 2 CHAPTER 6: DISCUSSION…………………………………………………………………54 6.1 Using ethnographic research to inform conservation planning……………59 Practical recommendations…………………………………………………….59 Accounting for cultural change…………………………………………………60 Generalisation and the cost of ethnographic research………………………62 6.2 Monitoring hunting pressure………………………………………………...64 Missing data and the use of proxies……………………………………………..64 Species identification…………………………………………………………..….66 6.3 Conclusions……………………………………………………………………67 6.4 References……………………………………………………………………..68 3 Word Count: 46,700 (including tables) 4 ABSTRACT Thesis Title: Impacts of Indigenous Communities on the Biodiversity of Neotropical Rainforests Name: Ciara A. Stafford Institution: University of Manchester Degree Title: Doctor of Philosophy Date: June 2017 This thesis explores how indigenous communities in the neotropics affect the biodiversity of the forests in which they live; and assesses how the culture, preferences and perceptions of communities can influence the outcome of this relationship. This is first investigated via a case study that compares primate populations between a protected area in the Ecuadorian Amazon and a territory in its adjacent buffer zone that is owned by an indigenous Kichwa community. I then use an ethnoprimatological approach to investigate the attitudes of this community to primates, namely looking at (a) whether primates are seen as a distinct group, (b) the relative importance of primates as sources of bushmeat and pets and (c) the perceived value of primates in terms of their value as a resource or their ecological role. I show that diurnal primates are seen as a cohesive group, but that tree-dwelling non-primates including sloths, kinkajous and tamanduas are also frequently classified as ‘monkeys’. The community’s perceptions of the value of primates are more closely associated with their potential as bushmeat and pets, whereas few respondents view their importance in terms of their role in the forest ecosystem. I compare our findings to those in studies of other indigenous groups and discuss how they could contribute to more effective conservation planning. Next, I assess how hunting preferences for mammals and birds vary across communities over the whole of central America, Amazonia and the Guianan shield. I show that primates, cetartiodactyls and rodents are the mammalian cornerstones of prey provision for hunters in neotropical communities, whereas Galliformes, Tinamiformes, Psittaciformes, Gruiformes, Piciformes are the most commonly hunted bird orders. The location of a community alone is a significant but weak predictor of the structure of its hunting profile in terms of order preferences. In addition, I found no relationship between a community’s age and size and the average biomass of birds or mammals hunted, or the number of mammal species that are targeted. I discuss whether the age and size of communities are robust indicators of past and current hunting pressure, as well as the suitability of cross-sectional data for monitoring large-scale hunting patterns. 5 DECLARATION No portion of the work referred to in this thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning. COPYRIGHT STATEMENT I. 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Such Intellectual Property and Reproductions cannot and must bot be made available for use without the prior written permission of the owner(s) of the relevant Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions. IV. Further information on the conditions under which disclosure, publication and commercialisation of this thesis, the Copyright and any Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions described in it may take place is available in the University IP Policy (see http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/ DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=2442), in any relevant Thesis restriction declarations deposited in the University 6 Library, The University Library’s regulations (see http://www.manchester.ac.uk/library/aboutus/regulations/) and in the University’s policy on Presentation of Theses. 7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS As with all PhDs, this thesis reflects not solely the work of one person but the support, enthusiasm and help of many. First, my supervisors Bill Sellers and Richard Preziosi gave me the opportunity to fulfil a childhood ambition to live and work in the Amazon. Their enthusiasm for my project has been unwavering, even when I had lost faith in it myself. I hope I can maintain and pass on their infectious excitement about science. My time living in Payamino was immeasurably enriched by the people with whom I shared the Timburi Cocha research station. Dani Lopez, Thomas Hughes, Alejandra Zamora, Lucas Huggins, Sally Painter and Alex Nestor Bergman could always be counted on to come with me to explore new field sites, organize logistics, and provide comic relief when things did not go according to plan. In particular my field assistants Kate Lacey, Will Barker and Chris Sidhu helped me maintain my sanity and kept my project afloat through some very difficult times. I am indebted to the Timburi Cocha research station manager, Javier Patiño, whose knowledge of navigating the logistics of permits and fieldwork in Ecuador was indispensable. I would also like to thank our guides in Payamino, in particular Oscar Aguinda and Sergio Cejua, and our guides in Sumaco National Park. Their knowledge and experience was invaluable to this project. Back in Manchester, current and ex-members of the Sellers and Preziosi labs could always be counted on for discussion, statistics, and coding help, as well as general merriment. My earnest thanks go to Dr Kathrin