Relative abundances of medium and large mammals in the Cueva de Los Guácharos National Park (Huila, Colombia)

Abstract: Medium and large mammals are greatly affected by human activities, such as, habitat loss and hunting. In Colombia, these pressures have been most extensive in the dry and Andean forests. However, there is scare information available on the presence or abundance of these organisms for monitoring purposes. This study used photo-trapping cameras to determine the relative abundances of medium and large mammals in a mountain forest in the National Natural Park “Cueva de los Guacharos”, Huila (Colombia). Additionally, we examined whether trail use by humans could affect the distribution of these organisms. The cameras were located every 500 meters along the trails in strategic locations. We obtained the relative abundance of 11 species, being medium-sized mammals the most frequent (Cuniculus paca, Dasyprocta punctata and Mazama rufina). We recorded the presence of mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque), dwarf red brocket (Mazama rufina) and oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus), which are found in a high threat category according to the IUCN. Activity patterns were reported for 4 different species including daytime, nocturnal and cathemeral activities. Finally, we concluded that large mammals avoided trails of frequent use, and although the relative abundance of mammals is not very high, this National Park is still supporting relevant biodiversity.

摘要：大中型哺乳动物极易受到人类活动的强烈干扰，诸如栖息地丧失与狩猎行为。在哥伦比亚，这类干扰对旱地与安第斯森林的影响范围最为广泛。然而，当前用于监测该类群物种存在状况与种群丰度的相关资料仍较为匮乏。本研究借助相机陷阱（photo-trapping cameras），对哥伦比亚惠拉省瓜查罗斯洞穴国家自然公园（Cueva de los Guacharos）内的山地森林中大中型哺乳动物的相对丰度进行了测定。此外，本研究还探讨了人类步道使用强度是否会对该类群的空间分布产生影响。研究沿步道每500米布设一台相机，并将其设置在沿线关键位置。本次调查共获取了11个物种的相对丰度数据，其中中小型哺乳动物的出现频次最高，包括斑豚鼠（Cuniculus paca）、中美毛臀刺鼠（Dasyprocta punctata）以及红胸短角鹿（Mazama rufina）。本研究还记录到山地貘（Tapirus pinchaque）、侏儒红短角鹿（Mazama rufina）以及小斑虎猫（Leopardus tigrinus）的存在，依据世界自然保护联盟（International Union for Conservation of Nature，简称IUCN）的评估标准，这三个物种种群均处于高度受威胁等级。本研究还报道了4个物种的活动模式，涵盖日间活动、夜间活动以及泛昼夜活动三种类型。最后，本研究得出结论：大型哺乳动物会规避人类高频使用的步道；尽管该区域哺乳动物的相对丰度并不高，但这座国家自然公园仍维持着具有重要保护价值的生物多样性。