Ethnoecology in the Colombian Amazon : Tikuna-wildlife interactions in Amacayacu National Park

• Main Author: Parathian, Hannah E.
• Published: Oxford Brookes University 2014
• Subjects: 304.2
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.674875

This study examines human-wildlife interactions in Amacayacu National Park in the Colombian Amazon (3°02’-3°47’ S, 69°54’-70°25’ W). It explores local concepts of nature to contribute towards culturally relevant conservation that provides long-term solutions to environmental issues. Research was carried out with indigenous people from the Tikuna communities of Mocagua (population = 511) and San Martín (population = 480). Male and female participants between 3-78 years took part (n = 228). A multi-methods approach was adopted to assess the social, cultural, nutritional and economic significance of wildlife, and findings favour the implementation of holistic biocultural conservation methods. I carried out all-occurrence sampling, participant observation, semi-structured interviews and workshops, as well as acquiring information through one-to-one conversations and group discussions, and by documenting community events and practices using Participatory Film-Making. Dramatisations, games and music sessions were also carried out with children. Quantitative and qualitative data, obtained during categorisation tasks, suggest gender plays a significant role in establishing people’s knowledge and perceptions about wildlife (comparisons between men and women for food X²=6, df=1, n=105, p < 0.05 and pets X²=32, df=1, n=75, p < 0.05). The communities’ locations also influence how people use and value wildlife as opportunities through tourism, research and conservation fluctuate. This creates economic and environmental differences which are most prominently reflected in the local diet and people’s livelihood options. Dietary assessments reveal that domestic meat, which must be bought or traded for in nearby towns or villages, is consumed in Mocagua (X²=37.44, n=59, df=1, p < 0.05) while people go without meat more frequently in San Martín (X²=20.77, n=274, df=1, p < 0.05). Conversations with the elderly and the young show that socio-economic factors and dietary taboos vary temporally as well as geographically (comparisons between adults and children in Mocagua X²=45.88, n=183, df=5, p < 0.05 and San Martín X²=11.89, n=183, df=5, p < 0.05), while the films people made using the video camera further indicate a difference of opinion about what should be the focus of conservation and development in their communities.