Title
Chapter Title: Hunting, a potential threat to the population dynamics of peccaries (Dinomys branickii) in Colombia
Book Title: Conservation of large vertebrates in unprotected areas of Colombia, Brazil and Venezuela.
Author(s)
Saavedra-Rodríguez, Carlos A.
Published
2016
Abstract
Hunting is a threat to biodiversity and is practiced on some threatened neotropical mammal species. The pacarana (Dinomys branickii; 6-12 kg; VU) is a threatened neotropical rodent that is hunted for meat and in some localities in the Andes of Colombia, for fun. There is no information on the ecology of wild populations of the species, so there are no assessments of the impact of hunting. The pacarana has a relatively larger body size, long gestation periods and habitat specificity compared to other medium-sized rodents (6-12 kg). These characteristics are associated with extinction risk in species, and therefore, hunting is likely to be a threat that may accentuate the propensity for extinction in the pacarana. The dynamics of hypothetical populations of the species were simulated using the Vortex program and with information on sex ratio at birth, birth, mortality and longevity, and scenarios were constructed for different numbers of individuals extracted. The results show that with the removal of individuals, the projected 100-year populations tend to be reduced by up to 60%. These analyses demonstrate that the species is prone to extinction and that populations are sensitive to the extraction of individuals, so that hunting negatively affects populations and, added to the reduction of habitat due to fragmentation, accentuates the risk of extinction of the species in the Colombian Andes. Hunting directly and indirectly affects wild populations and also affects ecological functions. In the case of the pacarana, the impact on functions associated with the species in the transformed Andean ecosystems of Colombia could make it a potential prey for medium and large carnivorous mammals. Hunting is a threat to biodiversity, which is practiced on some Neotropical endangered mammals. The pacarana (Dinomys branickii; 6-12 kg.; VU) is a threatened Neotropical species, hunted for meat and recreation in some places in the Colombian Andes. There is little ecological information about this niche specific rodent. Pacaranas choose habitats between 1500-2800 m.a.s.l, on Andean slopes that contain natural rock refuges. They are more herbivorous than pacas (Cuniculus sp.) and forage around their refuges that up to a certain point define the location and area of their territory. The impact of hunting on pacaranas has not been evaluated. Due to its size the pacarana presents long gestation periods, small litters and high niche specificity compared to other medium sized rodent. The life history traits make them highly vulnerable to extinction risk and little tolerant to hunting. Population dynamic models where carried out through hypothetical simulations in Vortex program. I used information of births, sex ratios, deaths and longevity, with variations in different extraction rates of individuals. The simulations show that populations projected to 100 years show up to a 60% reduction in the population. These simulations support high extinction risk effects for the species driven by low tolerance of the population to hunting or individual removal. Habitat erosion and lowered pacarana populations may affect their predators, mainly jaguars (Panthera onca; 70 kg; NT), pumas (Puma concolor; 50 kg; LC) and ocelot (Leopardus pardalis; 10 kg; LC) with a lowered available prey base. Hunting combined with high niche specificity in the face of habitat fragmentation increases the extinction risk even more for Colombian Andean pacarana populations.
Keywords
Hunting;Rodents;Rodent;Dinomydae;Andes;Vortex;Hunting;Rodents
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PUB16240