Jordani Dutra
Does the disappearance, or the defaunation, of a big predator like the jaguar or puma affect the behaviour of other small carnivorans in the Atlantic Forest? If so, can we detect changes in what they are eating? Which groups of animals are being more affected by the absence of the big predators?
To answer these questions, we will be working in the Misiones Green Corridor. This is a continuous area of forest that is bordered to the north by Iguaçu National Park (Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná state, Brazil), heading south through Argentinian forests and ending at its southern limit, Turvo State Park (Derrubadas, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil). This area is home to a great variety of rare animals such as the jaguar (Panthera onca), the bush dog (Speothos venaticus), the southern tiger cat (Leopardus guttulus), the harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja), and the crested eagle (Morphnus guianensis), among many others. These animals are only able to persist because of the size of this very special fragment of the Atlantic Forest.
The South American coati is one of the small carnivores that may be affected by the absence of the jaguar. ©Jordani Dutra.
Iguaçu National Park has larger and more stable populations of jaguars and pumas (Puma concolor), while Turvo State Park has smaller populations (currently only one jaguar). We will be collecting faeces of small carnivorans from these two places to compare if there is any change in diet due to the absence of the jaguar and puma.
Additionally, we want to present the Misiones Green Corridor and its importance to conservation. To do that, we will interview researchers, conservationists, and the surrounding population to produce a documentary. The documentary also aims to present the perspectives of the surrounding population and help them see themselves represented in it. By doing so, we hope to help them appreciate the value of the forest they live so close to.
By the end of the project, we hope to identify which small carnivores have significant changes in their diet and which prey of these carnivores are being more affected by these changes. Thus, we will suggest new approaches for these problems. Additionally, we want to help spread the word about the Misiones Green Corridor.
Header: The Southern Tiger Cat is one of the small carnivores that live in the Atlantic Forest and is categorised as Vulnerable (VU) according to the IUCN. ©Maria Eduarda Soares Alberti.