Integrating Ethnography and Hunting Sustainability Modeling for Primate Conservation in an Indigenous Reserve in Guyana

Indigenous reserves are increasingly common throughout the tropical world. This is particularly true in Amazonia, where they make up >50% of protected land area. While these reserves offer tremendous opportunities for conservation, hunting represents a considerable threat to primate populations. As eliminating hunting may not be feasible, conservationists must work collaboratively with indigenous groups to promote sustainable management. This requires an understanding of the sociocultural drivers of hunting, quantitatively assessing sustainability, and developing co-management strategies that are commensurable with indigenous ontologies. In this article, we integrate ethnography with sustainability modeling to assess the importance of primate hunting to the livelihoods and culture of indigenous Waiwai in the Konashen Community-Owned Conservation Area, Guyana and to simultaneously promote sustainable co-management. We collected quantitative data on Waiwai harvesting through hunter self-monitoring and used semistructured interviews, unstructured interviews, and participant observation to understand the cultural importance of hunting to Waiwai society. We incorporated these data into spatially explicit biodemographic models to assess sustainability for four primate species. Primates, particularly spider monkeys (Ateles pansicus), were among the most important Waiwai prey and primate hunting played an important role in the construction of both individual and collective Waiwai identity. Our biodemographic models indicated that hunting will cause relatively little depletion for most primates in 20 years, although spider monkeys are predicted to disappear from a majority of the Waiwai catchment area. We argue that successful co-management of hunting in indigenous reserves requires truly integrative approaches that combine quantitative sustainability assessments with detailed concurrent ethnographic research.     

A mixed-methods approach to understanding domestic dog health and disease transmission risk in an indigenous reserve in Guyana,South America

Domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) can transmit a variety of pathogens due to their ubiquitousness in urban, rural and natural environments, and their close interactions with wildlife and humans. In this study, we used a mixed-methods approach to assess the role of domestic dogs as potential intermediaries of disease transmission from wildlife to humans among indigenous Waiwai in the Konashen Community Owned Conservation Area, Guyana. To address these objectives we 1) performed physical examinations and collected biological samples to assess Waiwai domestic dog health, and 2) administered questionnaires to characterize the role of dogs in the community and identify potential transmission pathways between wildlife, dogs, and humans. We observed ectoparasites on all dogs (n = 20), including: fleas (100%), ticks (15%), botflies (30%), and jigger flea lesions (Tunga penetrans) (80%). Ten percent of dogs were seropositive for Ehrlichia canis/ewingii, 10% were positive for Dirofilaria immitis, and one dog was seropositive for Leishmania infantum. All dogs (n = 20) were seronegative for: canine distemper virus, Brucella canis, Leptospira serovars, Trypanosoma cruzi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum/platys and Borrelia burgdorferi. Our questionnaire data revealed that the Waiwai remove ectoparasites from their dogs, clean up dog feces, and administer traditional and/or Western medicine to their dogs. White blood cell, strongyle-type ova, and eosinophil counts were lower in dogs that were not frequently used for hunting, dogs that did receive traditional and/or western medicine, and dogs that were frequently kept in elevated dog houses, although differences were not statistically significant. While our results suggest that the Waiwai have developed cultural practices that may promote dog health and/or prevent zoonotic disease transmission, more research is necessary to determine the efficacy of these practices. Our study provides important data on the health of dogs and the potential for disease transmission to humans in a zoonotic hotspot.     

“Spider Monkey Cotton”: Bridging Waiwai and Scientific Ontologies to Characterize Spider Monkey (Ateles paniscus) Filariasis in the Konashen Community Owned Conservation Area,Guyana

International Journal of Primatology - Zoonotic disease risk is greatly influenced by cultural practices and belief systems. Yet, few studies have investigated how different ways of knowing are...