The Impact of Trail-use by Tourists on the Mammal Fauna of Tambopata, South-eastern Peru

Authors

Chris Kirkby & Arturo Cornejo Farf�n

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Introduction

The populations of many Neotropical rainforest mammals are regularly and directly impacted upon by humans either by subsistence and commercial hunting, for their meat and/or skins (Peres 1990, 1996, 1999b, Robinson & Redford 1991, Fragoso 1991, Mittermeier 1993, Ascorra 1997, Bodmer et al. 1997, Kirkby & Padilla 1998, Maglianesi 1998, Noss 1998, Smith 1999), or through persecution because of their "pest" status (Rabinowitz & Nottingham 1986), or by capture and trade to satisfy national and international demands for exotic pets. Indirect impacts, in the form of selective logging (Johns et al. 1987, Wallace et al. 1996) and the alteration or destruction of habitats through conversion of forest habitats to agricultural land (Barnes et al. 1991) are also important anthropomorphic variables that are currently altering mammal populations and affecting the long-term stability and viability of rainforests throughout the world.

The effects of certain human enterprises which aren’t necessarily destructive and don’t directly alter large areas of habitat have been little studied. Tourism is a case in point and for a long time it was regarded to be environmentally benign. Increasing evidence suggests that it can generate serious impacts. Impacts can range from the contamination and erosion of soils and the pollution of water-bodies through improper management of waste, inappropriate construction techniques, noise pollution from people and machinery, drainage of land, in forested habitats selective logging for construction purposes, the destruction of sensitive wildlife breeding habitats, and so forth. The main emphasis in this investigation, however, concentrates on a little studied issue - that relating to the impact of permanent forest trails and their use by up to 80 tourists a day. Previous studies have already identified this variable as having a possible negative impact on certain rainforest species around the world (Griffiths & Schaik 1993, Hidinger 1996, Yoon 1997). These authors documented that trail-use can result in either an increase or a decrease in local abundance of wildlife and/or a shift from diurnal to nocturnal habits amongst some species.

In the case of the TCRZ, where detailed information is required on the effects of current land-uses, such as tourism, before long-term management strategies can be implemented, this phenomenon requires further investigation, particularly the relationship between the intensity of trail-use (here-on referred to as "traffic") and the magnitude of any impact. In this chapter we report on the findings of a 23-month investigation into the relationship between trail traffic and the population abundance and community structure of 26 species of medium and large mammal. We illustrate, that traffic indeed can have significant impacts on some of the species, above and beyond other impacts such as hunting, and that the magnitude of traffic is a variable that should be considered when managing tourism in the area in the future. The long-term repercussions for the ecology of the forest and the tourism industry itself, as well as recommendations to reduce the impact where this is evident, and the use of trail-use carrying capacity as a tourism management tool, are discussed.

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