Overview of Boqueirao da Onça. Photo by Douglas de M. Dias.

The study will be conducted in the Caatinga, an exclusively Brazilian biome that takes up an area of 844,453 km ², where live about 27 million people, and the most needy and dependent on natural resources. The region is dominated by semi-arid climate and a seasonally dry tropical forest and is subjected to a large anthropic pressure, including combined effects of hunting of wild animals, agriculture, livestock and firewood extraction. It is estimated that 45.6% of the native vegetation of the Caatinga were converted, and extensive areas are already deserted and others are in the process of desertification. Consequently, the fauna of this biome has been suffering serious impacts, mainly due to loss and modification habitats. The sampling area, known as Boqueirão da Onça, has 9,000 km ² and is the largest continuous native forest biome. The research has as main target the carnivorous community. Thus globally, according to the IUCN classification, two species that occur in the study area are framed in some category of threat, these are: Leopardus tigrinus (VU) and the Panthera onca (NT).

However, the conservation status of these and other species vary in Brazil due to varying degrees of pressure on the biomes. There are in the most recent national list of endangered species at least four species which occurrence are described in Boqueirão da Onça, including oncilla considered endangered (EN), jaguar (VU), Puma concolor (VU), Puma yagouaroundi (VU). The challenge for the conservation of these species becomes larger when considering the regional scale, the Caatinga, the populations of carnivores are in decline, mostly due to deforestation and habitat loss. Big cats like the jaguar that is considered critically endangered (CR) and puma considered endangered (EN) are seriously threatened in the biome due to the fragmentation and loss of habitats associated with the expansion of the wind array, farming, mining and logging to fuelwood and charcoal. In addition, another major threat includes the slaughter of individuals for retaliation by the predation of livestock that are reared extensively on native vegetation. The research aims to contribute to the expansion of knowledge about the biodiversity of the Caatinga and stimulate research in this region. The results of this study also will serve as an important source of information that will subsidize the creation of a large protected area in this region.