Doctoral Dissertation Research: Human Use and Potential Conservation of River Turtles in Eastern Lowland Bolivia

经过几个世纪的开发，包括成年和卵的收获，淡水龟Podocnemis expansa和P. unifilis的数量在亚马逊上游盆地的大部分活动范围内都严重减少。这些海龟仍然是玻利维亚东部低地诺埃尔肯普夫梅尔卡多国家公园管辖范围内河流社区的重要野生动物资源。面对日益增长的龟肉和龟蛋需求，该地区人民面临的一个主要挑战是维持龟的数量水平。本博士论文研究项目将探讨当代社会经济因素如何影响海龟种群的狩猎压力。将收集两个社区的社会经济特征数据，这些社区捕杀和消费足爪龟。海龟种群的相对丰度将通过在狩猎活动频繁的地区以及在少量或未狩猎的河流样带进行日光浴观察来评估。将利用全球定位系统对两个社区所处河流的样带沿线的人类活动模式进行分类和记录。这些信息，结合相对丰度数据和社会经济信息，将在地理信息系统（GIS）中进行分析，以确定空间相关性的模式。相对丰度数据可为海龟可持续捕捞的计算提供参数。对社会经济数据的回归分析将有助于深入了解特定元素的重要性及其对海龟蛋白质消费的影响。据推测，随着市场准入和创收机会的增加，以龟肉和龟蛋为生的消费将会减少。微观经济理论认为，随着物种的市场价值增加，知识水平的提高和随之而来的自然资源保护将会导致，从而鼓励居民更有可能保护有价值的物种。微观经济理论也将受到审查。通过该项目收集的相对丰度和社会经济信息将有助于了解增加现金收入对野生动物资源和基于社区的保护和管理工作的影响。研究区在保护区缓冲区的位置也应产生对保护区管理有用的结果。量化狩猎的影响及其背后的驱动力将为根据当地情况制定管理计划提供基础，因此比不考虑这些因素而制定的计划更有可能保持原状。本研究收集的信息的汇总将有助于了解玻利维亚东部低地乌龟利用的现状，并有助于以社区为基础的亚马逊野生动物物种保护的潜力。作为博士论文研究改进奖，该奖项还将提供支持，使有前途的学生建立一个强大的独立研究生涯。

After centuries of exploitation, including the harvest of both adults and eggs, populations of the freshwater turtles Podocnemis expansa and P. unifilis are seriously reduced throughout most of their ranges in the upper Amazon basin. These turtles remain important wildlife resources for river-oriented communities within the jurisdiction of National Park Noel Kempff Mercado in eastern lowland Bolivia. A major challenge facing people of this region is maintaining population levels of turtles in the face of growing demand for turtle meat and eggs. This doctoral dissertation research project will investigate how contemporary socioeconomic factors affect the hunting pressure on turtle populations. Data will be collected on socioeconomic characteristics of two communities where Podocnemis turtles are hunted and consumed. The relative abundance of turtle populations will be assessed through basking observations in areas with active hunting as well as in lightly or non-hunted river transects. Human activity patterns along transects of the rivers accessed by two communities will be cataloged and recorded using a global positioning system. This information, combined with the relative abundance data and socioeconomic information will be analyzed in a geographic information system (GIS) to ascertain patterns of spatial correlation. The relative abundance data should provide parameters for the calculation of sustainable turtle harvest. Regression analyses of socioeconomic data will offer insights into the importance of specific elements and their influence driving turtle protein consumption. It is hypothesized that with greater access to markets and cash-generating opportunities, consumption of turtle meat and eggs as subsistence will decrease. Also under examination will be the relevance of microeconomic theories that hold that increased levels of knowledge and ensuing protection of natural resources will result as the market values of species increase, thereby encouraging residents to be more likely to protect valuable species. The combined relative abundance and socioeconomic information that will be gathered through this project will contribute to knowledge about the effects of increased access to cash income on wildlife resources and community-based conservation and management efforts. The location of the study area in the buffer zone of a protected area should also yield results that are useful for protected-area management. Quantifying the impacts of hunting and the driving forces behind them will provide a basis for development of a management plan that is based on a local context and thus will be more likely to remain in tact than plans developed without consideration of such factors. The aggregation of the information collected in this study will contribute to the understanding of the present situation of turtle use in eastern lowland Bolivia and to the potential for community-based conservation of Amazonian wildlife species. As a Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement award, this award also will provide support to enable a promising student to establish a strong independent research career.