Human-puma conflicts: is there a pathway towards coexistence?
Abstract
The puma (Puma concolor) is the most iconic and widespread top predator of the Americas. Partially because of these traits, this felid is also the focus of intense conflicts with humans that are causing significant –direct... [ view full abstract ]
The puma (Puma concolor) is the most iconic and widespread top predator of the Americas. Partially because of these traits, this felid is also the focus of intense conflicts with humans that are causing significant –direct or indirect– economic losses and threatening the ecological role of many puma populations. A global review of literature (123 publications) reveals that the nature of conflicts changes across the continent: puma population management and status (41.5% of publications) is the central issue in North America, whereas most literature focuses on livestock depredation in Central and South America (36.6%). In spite of an increasing research effort, we found scarce -and sometimes contradictory- information about causes and consequences of conflicts and limited understanding of the drivers of human responses.
Using data from 213 interviews to local ranchers and inspections of killing and predation sites, we characterized puma-livestock conflicts in rangelands of central Argentina, where the combination of retaliatory hunting and conversion of natural habitats into farmlands is threatening puma populations. Although ranchers considered depredation as the major cause of livestock mortality and reported puma attacks in 41.1% of ranches, the average economic loss was small, indicating that the damage inflicted to regional livestock industry was limited, especially when compared to the intensity of puma killing (mortality rates [individuals/year x 100km2] were 3.7 for sheep and 1.1-1.6 for pumas). However, both the per year proportion of livestock lost to predation (0.1-10.4%) and financial losses (5.3-1560.4 USD) varied largely across individual ranches, implying that significant levels of losses were endured by a few small ranchers. Because puma depredation occurred preferentially at night and in specific habitats, nocturnal fencing, shepherding, and spatial separation from predators may efficiently reduce livestock losses. Nevertheless, puma hunting was considered the most effective form to reduce depredation and was implemented by most (74.8%) ranchers. Our results suggest that uneven distribution of depredation costs among ranchers may disproportionately influence general intolerance towards pumas. We conclude that a greater, better planned research effort, especially on conflict drivers, is needed to create a viable pathway leading to sustainable coexistence between humans and pumas in the Americas.
Authors
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Mauro Lucherini
(Universidad Nacional del Sur - CONICET)
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Estela Luengos Vidal
(Universidad Nacional del Sur - CONICET)
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Maria Guerisoli
(Universidad Nacional del Sur - CONICET)
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Nicolas Caruso
(Universidad Nacional del Sur - CONICET)
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Emma B. Casanave
(INBIOSUR, Universidad Nacional del Sur-CONICET)
Topic Areas
Topics: Human-Wildlife Conflict , Topics: Cognitive Research (Values, Attitudes, Behaviors) , Topics: Linking Science to Action
Session
(01:00 - Thursday, 1st January)
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