Juarez Carlos Brito Pezzuti

• Professor (Associate) at Federal University of Para

Plastic and other synthetic polymers pose a significant threat to wildlife, particularly aquatic organisms. Numerous reports have documented instances of animals, including fish, cetaceans, birds, and turtles, ingesting plastic. While the Chelonian group has received considerable attention in relation to plastic pollution, most studies have primari...

Protected areas, including Indigenous Lands, play a critical role in protecting natural habitats and wildlife. The Amazon has a remarkable network of protected areas and is home to the largest population of the Neotropics' largest felid, the jaguar (Panthera onca). Yet, knowledge of the population status of jaguars across the biome is scarce. In th...

We estimate the annual mortality of big cats (Panthera onca and Puma concolor) resulting from subsistence hunts in two Amazonian Extractive Reserves. Leveraging data from a participatory biodiversity monitoring program, which records the outcomes of hunting forays, we treat the set of all hunts carried out in a given year, k, as an ensemble of Bern...

The reproductive ecology of a species is a key focus of conservation planning efforts as it offers insights into how the species persists and adapts to its environment. The Yellow-Spotted River Turtle, Podocnemis unifilis (Troschel,1848), has a wide distribution within the Amazon region and is generalist in its nesting site choice. Monitoring the n...

The Podocnemidid Amazon river turtles are the region´s most conspicuous and culturally important species. Intense exploitation led populations of the largest species, such as the Giant South American River Turtle (Podocnemis expansa), to drastic declines over time. Since 1979, the main nesting areas of the Giant South American River Turtles have be...

Hydroelectric dams, once seen as clean and renewable energy sources, have been the subject of extensive research, particularly concerning their socio-environmental impacts. The Belo Monte Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) relies on the operation of two dams, diverting water from a 130 km stretch of the Xingu River to generate energy, disrupting the n...

The Belo Monte Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) relies on diverting water from the Xingu River (Brazilian Amazon) to generate energy, disrupting the natural flooding cycle and creating an extreme and extended dry period along a 130 km stretch of the Xingu River (Volta Grande do Xingu - VGX). Local communities, including ribeirinhos (riverside dwelle...

Background Snakebites are considered a neglected tropical disease responsible for many accidents, some fatal, and are related to poverty. The Brazilian Amazon has the highest incidence of snakebites per inhabitant, with the state of Pará having the most reported cases. For those who have difficult access to hospitals and pharmacies, this issue is e...

The advance of urbanization, the construction of large-scale projects, and the intensification of the extraction of natural resources are modifying the food consumption patterns of human populations in the Amazon. The influences of the population's economic integration and proximity to the market are crucial factors that shape various aspects of th...

The Amazon is one of the most diverse biomes around the globe, currently threatened by economic and industrial development and climate change. Large mammals are keystone species, playing an important role in ecosystem structure and function as ecological engineers, while being highly susceptible to deforestation, habitat degradation , and human exp...

Given the need for consistent databases for conservation planning and management in protected areas, a challenge is to develop more accessible approaches, while ensuring that the data are robust and fit for purpose. We compared the assemblage of medium and large vertebrates using three techniques, camera trap, diurnal line-transect census (sighting...

Context Waterfalls and rapids of Amazon basin have been suggested as causing the speciation and genetic structure of many freshwater species, including turtles. The species behavior affects the way waterfalls and rapids limit gene flow. The Yellow-spotted River Turtle ( Podocnemis unifilis ), a widely distributed and endangered Amazonian turtle, do...

Subsistence hunting provides an important food source for rural populations in tropical forests but can lead to wildlife depletion. Management of wildlife resources depends on assessments of hunting sustainability. We assessed the sustainability of subsistence hunting in two Amazonian Extractive Reserves. We examined hunting data from a community-b...

Freshwater turtles are a valuable food resource for riverine human communities and have been historically overharvested throughout all major tropical large river basins, with consequent gradual population decreases. Even species considered to be abundant are declining, and in many cases were brought to a condition of near extinction. The collection...

In the Amazon, the aquatic fauna of turtles is rich and varied, the podocnemididae family being the most widely distributed throughout the basin. The podocnemidids, as well as other representatives of aquatic fauna, have their densities and abundances infl uenced by the annual variation of the hydrologic cycle in the various river systems where the...

The matamatas (Chelus fimbriata and the recently described Chelus orinocensis) are the largest species in the family Chelidae, easily identified by their distinct morphological characteristics. The matamatas have a wide distribution in South America, occurring in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, French Guiana, Peru, and Venezuela, as wel...

We evaluated the vulnerability of nesting sites (sandbanks) available to Podocnemis expansa, P. unifilis and P. sextuberculata to human threats and the coverage of these areas by a public policy created to conserve turtles. Species distribution models were used to identify potential nesting areas in the Brazilian Amazon, where sandbanks were mapped...

Neste artigo, dissertamos sobre a relação dos povos tradicionais e a gestão de fauna silvestre na Amazônia Brasileira, como os marcos legais que regem o tema são subutilizados e quais são as perspectivas para o futuro do manejo e conservação dessas espécies. Abordamos também como ocorre a marginalização dos povos tradicionais quanto ao uso dos recu...

Amazonia forest plays a major role in providing ecosystem services for human and sanctuaries for wildlife. However, ongoing deforestation and habitat fragmentation in the Brazilian Amazon has threatened both. The ocelot is an ecologically important mesopredator and a potential conservation ambassador species, yet there are no previous studies on it...

Subsistence hunting is an important cultural activity and a major source of dietary protein and other products for indigenous and non-indigenous populations throughout Amazonia. Nonetheless, subsistence hunting occupies an uncertain legal status in Brazil, leaving many traditional and rural Amazonian populations subject to arbitrary interpretation...

A caça, além de prover o sustento de populações tradicionais, indígenas e não-indígenas, em áreas remotas, vem também assumindo função socialmente estruturante nessas sociedades. Neste artigo, conceituamos a caça de subsistência para além da visão preservacionista, preponderante nos campos das ciências ambientais e jurídicas, e oferecemos uma persp...

This paper presents a study of the hunting activities on Xerente Indigenous Land (XIL) in the Brazilian Cerrado. We used data from a Hunting Monitoring Program from eight villages to evaluate the effects of village age, distance from village to town and season (wet and dry) on the composition of hunted species, animals and biomass killed and availa...

Community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) involves a system of local practices designed to regulate access to, and use of, natural resources through rules and norms shared by a set of users. These institutions are usually defined through rational motivations that drive collective action and well-delimited social and spatial boundaries. We...

Due to the toxicity and high environmental persistence of organochlorine pesticides in aquatic organisms, turtles have been studied as environment biomonitors. These animals are important sources of protein for the riverside and indigenous peoples of the Brazilian amazon. In the present study, organochlorine pesticide contamination was investigated...

As populações humanas amazônicas apresentam estreita relação com a fauna silvestre, que consiste em uma das bases da sua alimentação. Os quelônios, principalmente os jabutis e as espécies da família Podocnemididae, por sua vez, são historicamente utilizados na bacia amazônica desde antes da chegada do colonizador europeu. Neste estudo, foram caract...

Community-based research that involves participatory monitoring has been increasingly used in studies on hunting activity in traditional societies of the Neotropics, particularly in the rainforest environment. We present the results from a year-long study of participatory monitoring of hunting in 10 villages in Xerente indigenous land in the Brazil...

The Amazon Basin experienced a pervasive process of resource overexploitation during the 20th-century, which induced severe population declines of many iconic vertebrate species. In addition to biodiversity loss and the ecological consequences of defaunation, food security of local communities was relentlessly threatened because wild meat had a his...

RESUMO Este artigo discute o extrativismo vegetal na região amazônica a partir da coleta extrativa de folhas de jaborandi, na região de Carajás (Pará, Brasil). Essa planta é utilizada para a extração de pilocarpina que é o insumo para a produção de colírios para tratamento de glaucoma. Buscou-se analisar e teorizar sobre os complexos e múltiplos fa...

In contrast to the other Podocnemis species, Podocnemis erythrocephala (Pleurodira: Podocnemididae) is restricted to blackwater and clearwater rivers and lakes, including the Negro River basin, and several other tributaries of the eastern Amazon River basin. In order to test the effects of geographic barriers on genetic connectivity of P. erythroce...

Peru is strategically located in South America, sharing borders with Ecuador, Bolivia, Co- lombia, Brazil, and Chile, where the Rufford Foundation has supported over 400 projects (Peru 91, Ecuador 46, Bolivia 44, Colombia 89, Brazil 122, and Chile 56). Since many Rufford-supported projects are conservation-driven, we took this opportunity for grant...

Amazon river turtles are increasingly threatened by habitat loss and alteration due to the Brazilian energy policy based on construction of hydroelectric dams, meanwhile, populational studies remain scarce. We described the population structure, and established body allometric relationships of Podocnemis unifilis in the Terra do Meio Ecological Sta...

Subsistence hunting can change the demographic structure of wild mammal populations, increasing the proportion of young animals, inducing females to reproduce early and increasing litter sizes. We examined the relationship between hunting pressure and age structure in the Vulnerable white-lipped peccary Tayassu pecari , analysing the distribution o...

Consumption of turtles by natives and settlers in the Amazon and Orinoco has been widely studied in scientific communities. Accepted cultural customs and the local dietary and monetary needs need to be taken into account in conservation programs, and when implementing federal laws related to consumption and fishing methods. This study was conducted...

This work contributes to the study of urban climate in Belém, PA, during the lesser rainy season, along with an analysis of social segregation issues on urban space. A campaign for collecting meteorological data during the lesser rainy season on the region was made. The data were used to calculate the thermal comfort index inside the neighborhoods...

In turtles, the selection of the nesting area is critical for the survival of the embryos. This study investigated the environmental characteristics of nesting areas selected by Podocnemis unifilis and the spatial distribution of the nests, as well as the influence of these factors on hatching success in a floodplain area of the lower Amazon River...

The nesting site selected by a female turtle influences the temperature and humidity of the incubating eggs, which affects the development, survival, and sex of the embryo and the subsequent developmental phases. The present study evaluated the effects of environmental variables on the duration of incubation, hatching success, and sex ratio of hatc...

Podocnemis unifilis is found throughout the Amazon basin, where it has been harvested as a highly valued source of animal protein since precolonial times. Harvesting rates are also lower during the flooding season due to the availability of habitat for turtle dispersal. This study investigated the effects of the hydrological cycle and human impacts...

In reptiles, the hatching and emergence of a single clutch may be synchronized or may take place over a number of days, weeks, or even months, depending primarily on the microenvironment of the nest. The present study focused on the patterns of hatching and emergence of Podocnemis unifilis hatchlings in an area of várzea floodplain on the lower Ama...

Caiman community management plan in lower Amazonian floodplain, Santarem (PA), Brazil. Collective agreements (acordos de pesca and plano de uso) were created by community organization initiatives in the lower Amazon floodplain with the objective to plan the use of natural resources associated with improving quality of life. After a participatory st...

Podocnemis sextuberculata is cited as “vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List due to a decline in its population as a result of the intensive exploitation pressure throughout its range. Understanding the effects of environmental characteristics and human activities on turtle populations is essential to improve cu...

In small-scale human settlements, the acquisition of animal protein is strictly related to subsistence activities, and yours dietary habits are determined by the availability and the selectivity permitted by the diversity of these resources. This study analyzed the consumption of animal protein sources in seven traditional riverine communities of t...

The purpose of this study was to describe the traditional knowledge of fishermen regarding the behaviour, habitat use and migration of fishes from the Sciaenidae in the villages of Pescadores and Bonifacio (Ajuruteua – Pará). Results show a detailed and accurate knowledge of the Ajuruteua fishermen regarding aspects of fish behaviour, physiology an...

Predation of Caiman crocodilus (Spectacled Caiman) eggs by Saimiri Sp. (Squirrel Monkey)

Na Amazônia, a captura de quelônios pelos indígenas é muito anterior à conquista européia. O estudo do saber popular que é usado na produção em pequena escala pode contribuir para, compreender como os recursos naturais no caso, os quelônios são explorados. O presente estudo foi realizado em três comunidades (São Sebastião, Fazenda e Beabá) da Reser...

As pesquisas sobre o conforto térmico surgiram devido às preocupações com a melhoria das condições de trabalho e da qualidade de vida da população. Neste estudo analisaram-se as condições de conforto térmico a qual a população da cidade de Belém está submetida, através de medidas de campo e aplicação do Índice de Calor (IC). Os resultados encontrad...

Rhinoclemmys punctularia punctularia is a semi-aquatic chelonian found in Northern South America. We analyzed the habitat use, size structure and sex ratio of the species on Algodoal-Maiandeua Island, a protected area on the Northeastern coast of the Brazilian state of Pará. Four distinct habitats (coastal plain lake, flooded forest "igapó", interd...

The body size of the organisms represents an important parameter, which may have consequences on their ecology, reproductive activities, evolution and development. Allometry relationship is the study of the size (or growth) of a body part in relation to the final size (or growth) of the organism. This study analyzed the allometric relationships bet...

For many millennia humans and reptiles have interacted, but the attitude of humans towards these animals has depended on culture, environment, and personal experience. At least 719 reptile species are known to occur in Brazil and about 11% of this fauna has been exploited for many different purposes, including bushmeat, leather, ornamental and magi...

We found 36 nests of Podocnemis erythrocephala in the lower Tapajós River in central Amazonia during 3 consecutive nesting seasons, from 2006 to 2009. The species nested from the end of the dry season to the start of the rainy season, nesting far from the water in savanna vegetation. Mean clutch size was 7 eggs (range, 5–11), mean incubation time w...

The chelonians are, in general, important for the economy of the traditional populations of the Amazon region, especially as a source of animal protein. Furthermore, sub-products, such as eggs and fat, are utilized in the manufacture of cosmetics, and the plastron and carapace are used in the manufacture of adornments. The freshwater turtle species...

We surveyed the Tapajós–Arapiuns Extractive Reserve in Brazilian Amazonia to investigate hunting of jaguars Panthera onca and pumas Puma concolor. We interviewed 115 people in 45 villages in 2007–2008, and recorded numbers of jaguars and pumas killed and the circumstances associated with each killing. At least 32 jaguars and 22 pumas were killed in...

Os quelônios da bacia amazônica constituem um ítem alimentar desde antes da chegada do colonizador europeu, e um importante produto regional para subsistência e comercialização, desde o período colonial até os dias de hoje. Todavia, muito pouco se sabe a respeito dos níveis de exploração e pressão sobre os estoques naturais, embora o declínio popul...

O manejo da vida silvestre inclui o aproveitamento sustentável dos recursos naturais. Para a maioria das populações rurais da bacia amazônica, os peixes, os demais vertebrados aquáticos como as tartarugas fluviais, os jacarés e o peixe-boi, e os grandes vertebrados terrestres são a fonte primária de proteína e, juntamente com a farinha, fornecem a...

Este trabalho aborda como o histórico de uso das paisagens produzidas pelo homem na Amazônia acarreta profundos efeitos na capacidade de recuperação deste ecossistema. O presente estudo foi realizado na macro-região de Paragominas, considerada como a mais degradada de toda a bacia amazônica (Capobianco et al. 2001).Palavras-chave: Ação antrópica. B...

Um experimento regional em co-manejo está sendo realizado no Baixo Amazonas e está desenvolvendo uma política básica e elementos institucionais para uma abordagem ecossistêmica para o manejo de várzea. Esta iniciativa nasceu dos movimentos de base das comunidades ribeirinhas que, preocupadas com a excessiva pressão da pesca comercial sobre os recur...

Studies concerning the use of multiple natural resources by Amazonian indians are scarce. This work presents a portrait of how the Deni Indians, inhabitants of an area between two of the most important white-water rivers of the Amazon basin (Juruá and Purus Rivers), exploit natural resources in their territory. The Deni exploit both the upland and...

Studies concerning the use of multiple natural resources by Amazonian indians are scarce. This work presents a portrait of how the Deni Indians, inhabitants of an area between two of the most important white-water rivers of the Amazon basin (Juruá and Purus Rivers), exploit natural resources in their territory. The Deni exploit both the upland and...

A regional experiment in co-management is underway in the Lower Amazon that is developing the basic policy and institutional elements for an ecosystem-based approach to floodplain management. This initiative grew out of the grassroots movement of floodplain communities who, concerned with excessive commercial fishing pressure on local fisheries, to...

Quelônios têm uma longa história de uso na Amazônia. Nos dias atuais são consumidos, ainda que ilegalmente, por populações urbanas e rurais. Mas há pouca discussão sobre essa questão. Uma pesquisa de opinião e sobre hábitos de consumo de quelônios na Amazônia nos leva à discussão sobre como as pessoas percebem o problema, as alternativas para uma s...

Turtles have been historically used in the Amazon. Nowadays they are consumed, although illegally, by urban and rural populations, but the question is not usually on target. A poll and a research on consumption habits lead us to discuss how the people perceive the problem, the alternatives to such anomalous and concerning situation, and the perspec...