LEMaC Wildlife Ecology, Management and Conservation Lab
Forest Science Department, ESALQ
University of São Paulo
Ongoing Projects:
Wild Neighbors
Summary
the Project Wild Neighbors coordinated by Prof. Katia Ferraz and the searcher Silvio Marchini aims to catalogate and characterize human-wildlife interactions by mapping the areas of interactions, the wild animals involve and to analyze the perception of the community on how those interactions affect them, positively or negatively. It's a partnership with the Wild Animal Studies Group (GEAS), the Socio-environmental Master Plan of the “Luiz de Queiroz” campus. , City Hall of Campus “Luiz de Queiroz”, Secretary of Defense of the Environment (SEDEMA), Department of Fauna (DeFau) of the Department of Infrastructure and Environment of the State of São Paulo (SIMA),
Institutions: Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz", University of São Paulo, SGA/USP, SEDEMA Piracicaba, DEFAU/SEMIL
Scientific team:
Financial support:
Bird ringing at the “Luiz de Queiroz” Campus: An instrument for the study of birds in a periurban area
Scientific team
Financial support
Summary
This project aims to start monitoring birds species using mist nets to capture birds that will be identified with different sequences of colored rings. This method will allow the latter identification of individuals without the need for recapture, making possible the monitoring of the species, as well as the investigation of the area used by each individual bird. In addition, the project will assist the training of new ornithologists and the teaching of undergraduate disciplines for various courses at ESALQ, besides promoting the participation of the non-academic community in bird observation and monitoring.
Monitoring of puma at the campus “Luiz de Queiroz” and surroundings: promoting science and coexistence
Scientific team
Financial support:
Summary
This project is motivated by the growing number of records of pumas (Puma concolor) in urban areas, especially in Piracicaba, São Paulo, where some records were made recently in public places. These data show that pumas and people are living in close proximity to each other, and it urgently demands the promotion of coexistence between them. Thus, this project aims to gather information about the utilization of the campus “Luiz de Queiroz” and surroundings by pumas, which is known to be an important refuge for the species in Piracicaba. These results may be useful for a better comprehension of the species’ activity in urban areas, for planning conservation strategies and to provide content to academic discussions and disciplines. During this project, we also will develop a public material for the dissemination of good coexistence practices between people and pumas in the city.
Patterns of biological diversity and coexistence human-wildlife: components that sustain ecosystem services
Scientific team
Financial support:
Summary
This project integrates, in an interdisciplinary way, mammal ecology and human dimensions of conservation, proposing a research and extension model that allows the generation of information that support public policies that maintain ecosystems services (ESs) in the region. The study has been carried out in the Southeastern Atlantic Forest Corridor (CSMA), in the four protected areas (APA São Francisco Xavier, EE do Bananal, PESM - núcleos Santa Virginia e Itariru). Our central questions are: (1) How does biological diversity support ecosystem services? and (2) What are the costs and benefits associated with biodiversity, considering both ecosystem services and conflicts arising from human-fauna interactions? Specifically, we aim to answer: (1) How is the trophic chain of mammals structured in CSMA? (2) What are the patterns of mammalian diversity from a metacommunity perspective? (3) What ecological functions may have been retained or lost in the CSMA and what is the impact on ESs in the region? (4) Is there functional connectivity (gene flow) of mammals in the corridor? (5) How does the perception of costs and benefits associated with biodiversity determine attitudes and behaviors among rural producers in relation to fauna and conservation? (6) How does payment for environmental services (PES) affect such perceptions, attitudes and behaviors? (7) What are the most cost-effective strategies to: (i) mitigate conflicts; (ii) promote coexistence between rural producers and wildlife; and (iii) engage local communities in the recovery and protection of ESs?
Partners
Species Distribution Modeling for Conservation Planning: Improving Decisions for Mammal Conservation
Summary
Modeling species distribution is a promising field for improving conservation efforts and setting priorities in decision making. The Species Distribution Models (SDMs) have been used as a conservation tool in the National Action Plans for Endangered Species since 2009 in Brazil. Researchers, modelers and decision makers have worked together using SDMs for guiding decisions and actions in conservation. A collaborative researcher’s network has been established for providing recent and accurate species presence for modelling, representing one of the biggest effort for conservation in the neotropics. Models have been generated for endangered mammals (Panthera onca, Puma concolor, Puma yagouaroundi, Leopardus pardalis, Leopardus wiedii, Leopardus tigrinus, Leopardus colocolo, Leopardus geoffroyi, Chrysocyon brachyurus, Speothos venaticus, Myrmecophaga tridactyla and Catagonus wagneri), by using presence data and environmental variables (bioclimatic, topographical, landscape, anthropogenic) in Maxent. Model results have allowed to update the current species distribution, evaluate the suitability of biomes for species occurrence, identify gaps in database, identify key areas for conservation efforts and potential corridors, improve the assessment of endangered species, and help the identification of potential areas of conflicts. Furthermore, the resulting maps have provided stakeholders with distribution information and clear results stimulating debates and discussions which otherwise may not have occurred. We stress that the assessment of conservation priorities for endangered species should consider the actual species distribution and environmental suitability of landscape in a modeling framework.
Concluded Projects:
Isotopic Ecology of Mammals in Brazilian Biomes: A tool improving mammal conservation
Summary
The changes in the ecosystems caused by human activities involve a number of consequences for biodiversity, causing beyond the loss of species and gene flow, changes in habitat use and resources. This study aims to analyze the trophic ecology of mammals in pristine and human-dominated landscapes in the Brazilian biomes, through the analysis of stable isotopes. Samples will be analyzed and compared between different biomes, and also between pristine and anthropogenic areas, offering information about differences in eating habits and habitat use by species, structure the trophic chain and influence of the anthropic matrix. This project involves partnerships with several researchers and conservation projects, becoming a multidisciplinary initiative to produce data on the ecology, biology and behavior of the species of Brazilian fauna.
Institutions: Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz", University of São Paulo, Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Universidade do Sul de Santa Catarina (Unisul), UVV | Centro Universitário Vila Velha, Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México (UAEM), Universidade Federal de Goiás / Regional Catalão, Panthera.
Macroecological Patterns for the Loss of Ecosystem Services in Anthropocene:
Allying Phylogeny, Functional Attributes, and Diversity of Neotropical Mammals.
Scientific team
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Summary
Mammals play several ecological roles and among 4,556 terrestrial species, 1,169 are highly endangered. Several studies showed important downstream effects of species loss on ecosystem functioning. The suitable functioning of ecosystems provides ecosystem services benefiting human populations. Taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversities can contribute to the evaluation of the ecosystems services. From a perspective of continued species loss, remain gaps to understand the ecosystem services promoted by mammals and the impacts defaunation processes on these services. Through a careful evaluation of functional attributes and phylogenetic diversity of Neotropical mammals, we aim to discover and predict the effects of defaunation on the ecosystems functioning, measured via ecosystem services. Based on a recent phylogeny of mammals, we built a database of functional attributes for all 1,669 species of the Neotropical region. According to the functional attributes and their services promoting, we will analyze the data with ecological network approaches for real and theoretical scenarios simulating the effects of defaunation. We aimed to understand how patterns and threats to the mammalian diversity influence ecological processes that are directly linked to human well-being.
Institutions: Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz", University of São Paulo, University of East Anglia (Norwich, UK).
Mammal Conservation at Serra do Mar Biodiversity Corridor: Applied Ecology, Human Dimensions and Conservation Planning
Summary
The Atlantic Forest biome has suffered defaunation processes resulting in the loss of ecological functions that compromised their ecosystem services. This study aims to describe the trophic ecology, functional diversity and occurrence of terrestrial mammals in preserved areas (N=5) located at the largest forest continuum of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. The study includes the isotopic analysis of fecal samples and hair carnivorous mammals, analysis of the functional diversity of the sampled communities; camera trapping for estimating abundance, density, co-occurrence, and analysis of trophic networks. The integration of different researchers and institutions will allow the exercise of interdisciplinarity, multidisciplinarity and transversality for the conservation of the Atlantic Forest biome. Also, this project is linked to other four projects that will be conducted concurrently – “Trophic Ecology, Functional Diversity and Occurrence of Terrestrial Mammals in the Atlantic Forest”, coordinated by Katia Ferraz PhD, “Ecological consequences of defaunation in the Atlantic rainforest”, coordinated by Mauro Galetti PhD, “Use, habitat selection and jaguar movement in the Atlantic Forest and Caatinga biome: a comparative analysis”, coordinate by Ronaldo G. Morato PhD, “Genetic diversity of felines (P. concolor, L. pardalis, L. tigrinus e P. yagouaroundi) and effect of the presence of mesopredator (L. pardalis) density and genetic diversity of the species of small-sized felines”, coordinated by Pedro M. Galetti Jr. PhD – will result in one of the largest conservation efforts in a biodiversity hotspot. Finally, the results shall contribute to the goals of the National Action Plans for the Conservation of Endangered Species of Felines, coordinated by CENAP/ICMBio.
Towards convivial conservation: governing human-wildlife interactions in the Anthropocene (CONVIVA)
Scientific team
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Summary
The project is grounded in the premise that conservation is critical to transformations to sustainability but that its practices need to change radically. Conservation can be effective in protecting biodiversity in places, but in toto has failed to halt global biodiversity loss. Continued habitat fragmentation and reduced funding during times of austerity compound this problem. Many conservationists now acknowledge this, leading to vigorous 'Anthropocene' discussions on how to reconfigure human-wildlife relations, protected areas and the role of economic development in conservation. CON-VIVA's key objective is to conceptually refine and empirically test the prospects for one proposal emerging from these debates: convivial conservation. This new model aims to move beyond protected areas and faith in markets to build landscape, governance and funding pathways that integrate conservation and poverty reduction, while enhancing prosperity. CON-VIVA investigates the prospects for convivial conservation by comparing cutting-edge conservation cases that address human-wildlife conflict involving apex predators in Finland, USA, Brazil and Tanzania. Our hypothesis is that if 'living with' apex predators can be effectively combined with new forms of economic development, a transition to convivial conservation can be boosted significantly.
Mais informações: https://conviva-research.com/