INVESTIGADORES
LAMBERTUCCI Sergio Agustin
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Human Perception is Threatening Andean Condors (Vulturgryphus) in San Juan, Argentina
Autor/es:
CAILLY-ARNULPHI V; LAMBERTUCCI, S. A.; BORGHI, C
Lugar:
Bariloche
Reunión:
Congreso; I Worldwide Raptor Conference; 2013
Resumen:
People?s perception about a species is one of the several aspects involved in human-wildlife conflicts. Thus, knowing what people think about a concerned species is relevant to understanding and managing human-wildlife conflicts. The Andean Condor is a global ?near threatened? species that presents serious conservation problems throughout its distribution. Andean Condor-human relationships could be one of these problems in places where they coexist. To know what people think about the Andean Condor, and to understand which factors influence people?s perception about the species, during 2010-2012 we surveyed 112 settlers (66 men, and 46 women) in Valle Fértil, San Juan, Argentina. Settlers? perception was negative; 81.3% of them considered the condor an injurious species and 91% believed condors could depredate on livestock. Factors that significantly influence settlers? perceptions were their gender, age, educational level and occupation, but the main factor was their relationship with livestock farming (70% of surveyed people rear or reared livestock); 77% reported to have lost livestock through condor attacks, but only 33% claimed to have seen the attack. Regarding condor conservation, 64% of surveyed people estimated that condor population is decreasing due to hunting. While few settlers reported having hunted a condor (14%, possibly biased by the fear for punishment), several knew people who currently hunt them (31%) or had hunted condors some years ago (38.5%). Although 63.2% of surveyed settlers thought condors should be conserved, the negative perception about condors, mainly from ranchers, is a real threat to its conservation. Hence, we suggest implementing awareness programs and environmental education campaigns to change the negative perception and reduce the threat to the condor population. Nest-site Fidelity and