Cappa Flavio, Campos Valeria, Giannoni Stella, Andino Natalia
INTERBIODES (Interacciones Biológicas del Desierto), Facultad Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales (Universidad Nacional de San Juan), San Juan, Argentina.
CIGEOBIO-CONICET (Centro de Investigaciones de la Geósfera y Biósfera - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), San Juan, Argentina.
PLoS One. 2017 Aug 31;12(8):e0184018. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0184018. eCollection 2017.
The effects of poaching on wildlife have been widely studied in conservation biology and can be heterogeneous, particularly on ungulates. These effects can be estimated through different methodologies whose use depends on several conditions such as Flight-initiation distance (FID). Our objectives were: 1- to evaluate whether poaching affects the FID and group structure of a guanaco (Lama guanicoe) population in a high cold desert in San Juan (Argentina); 2- to assess whether habitat structure (slope and vegetation cover) influences FID and group structure in this population. The study area included a site with poaching (unprotected area), and a site without poaching (protected area). We recorded 100 groups of guanacos: 70 in the protected and 30 in the unprotected area. FID and group size were greater in the unprotected than in the protected area, whereas proportions of group categories (with offspring, without offspring and solitary) were similar between areas. Besides, in relation to habitat structure, FID increased when vegetation cover decreased. On the other hand, FID and group size were not affected by slope. Our study shows that guanacos respond to poaching pressure as do other ungulate species, and that other factors such as vegetation cover also affect this behavior. Managers should be aware when interpreting FID due to its relation to habitat structure; the guanaco appears to assume greater risk (lower FID) in areas with high vegetation cover.
偷猎对野生动物的影响在保护生物学领域已得到广泛研究，且可能具有异质性，尤其是对有蹄类动物而言。这些影响可通过不同方法进行估算，方法的使用取决于诸如逃跑起始距离（FID）等多种条件。我们的目标是：1. 评估偷猎是否会影响阿根廷圣胡安高寒沙漠中骆马（原驼）种群的逃跑起始距离和群体结构；2. 评估栖息地结构（坡度和植被覆盖度）是否会影响该种群的逃跑起始距离和群体结构。研究区域包括一个存在偷猎行为的地点（未保护区）和一个不存在偷猎行为的地点（保护区）。我们记录了100组骆马：70组在保护区，30组在未保护区。未保护区的逃跑起始距离和群体规模大于保护区，而不同区域之间各类群体（有后代、无后代和独居）的比例相似。此外，关于栖息地结构，植被覆盖度降低时，逃跑起始距离增加。另一方面，逃跑起始距离和群体规模不受坡度影响。我们的研究表明，骆马与其他有蹄类物种一样，会对偷猎压力做出反应，并且植被覆盖度等其他因素也会影响这种行为。管理者在解释逃跑起始距离时应予以注意，因为它与栖息地结构有关；骆马在植被覆盖度高的区域似乎会承担更大风险（更低的逃跑起始距离）。
