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The impact of hunting on tropical mammal and bird populations

Benítez-López, A; Alkemade, R; Schipper, AM; Ingram, DJ; Verweij, PA; Eikelboom, JAJ; Huijbregts, MAJ; (2017) The impact of hunting on tropical mammal and bird populations. Science , 356 (6334) pp. 180-183. 10.1126/science.aaj1891. Green open access

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Abstract

Hunting is a major driver of biodiversity loss, but a systematic large-scale estimate of hunting-induced defaunation is lacking. We synthesized 176 studies to quantify hunting-induced declines of mammal and bird populations across the tropics. Bird and mammal abundances declined by 58% (25 to 76%) and by 83% (72 to 90%) in hunted compared with unhunted areas. Bird and mammal populations were depleted within 7 and 40 kilometers from hunters’ access points (roads and settlements). Additionally, hunting pressure was higher in areas with better accessibility to major towns where wild meat could be traded. Mammal population densities were lower outside protected areas, particularly because of commercial hunting. Strategies to sustainably manage wild meat hunting in both protected and unprotected tropical ecosystems are urgently needed to avoid further defaunation.

Type: Article
Title: The impact of hunting on tropical mammal and bird populations
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1126/science.aaj1891
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaj1891
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10058583
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