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1 January 2020 Responses of two sympatric species of peccaries (Tayassu pecari and Pecari tajacu) to hunting in Calakmul, Mexico
M. Briceño-Méndez, E.J. Naranjo, S. Mandujano, M. Altricher, R. Reyna-Hurtado
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Abstract

The white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari) and the collared peccary (Pecari tajacu) are social ungulates of great ecological and economic importance. Both species represent important sources of animal protein in the diet of indigenous and rural communities in Neotropical forests, which has contributed to reducing their populations throughout their geographic distribution. It is still not well understood how the social ecology of peccaries is affected by hunting. This study analyzed the relationship between hunting and group size, group composition, daily activity patterns, and the relative abundance of the two peccary species. Camera-traps and direct observation were used from February 2014 through February 2015 in two sites differing in their degree of protection and hunting pressure: the first was Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (a site with no hunting) and the second was the community of Nuevo Becal (a hunting site). Our analyses suggest that hunting negatively affects group size, structure, composition and the relative abundance of both peccary species. We propose that management and conservation plans, particularly for key resources such as water, and monitoring and hunting controls in the habitats of both peccary species, might ensure their survival in the Calakmul region.

© The Author(s) 2016 This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
M. Briceño-Méndez, E.J. Naranjo, S. Mandujano, M. Altricher, and R. Reyna-Hurtado "Responses of two sympatric species of peccaries (Tayassu pecari and Pecari tajacu) to hunting in Calakmul, Mexico," Tropical Conservation Science 9(3), (1 January 2020). https://doi.org/10.1177/1940082916667331
Received: 5 May 2016; Accepted: 30 June 2016; Published: 1 January 2020
KEYWORDS
activity patterns
Calakmul
collar peccary
group size
hunting effect
Pecari tajacu
Tayassu pecari
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