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Current distribution and conservation of the huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) in Argentina and Chile

2006; SAREM; Volume: 13; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

1666-0536

Alejandro Vila, Rodrigo López, Hernán Pastore, Ricardo Faúndez, Alejandro Serret,

Bat Biology and Ecology Studies

) is anendemic deer of the Andean-Patagonian for-ests of Argentina and Chile. Originally itsdistribution extended from 34 to 54o S in Chileand occupied areas of Andean forests andecotonal steppes of Argentina between 36 and52o S (Diaz, 2000). From the beginning of theEuropean colonization the distribution andabundance of this species began to declinedue to hunting pressure, destruction of habi-tat and predation by dogs, and probably alsodue to susceptibility to diseases of livestock,competition with domestic animals and intro-duced exotic species (Povilitis, 1998; Diaz andSmith-Flueck, 2000; Serret, 2001).The huemul has become extinct in the Chil-ean VI and VII administrative regions (34o-36oS). There are no current records of its pres-ence between 38 and 41o S in Chile or inMendoza and most of Neuquen provinces inArgentina (Lopez et al., 1998). At present, thespecies is classified as endangered (Glade,1988; Diaz and Ojeda, 2000; IUCN, 2000).The evaluation of thresholds of occurrenceand trends in distribution range is an impor-tant tool for the assessment of conservationstatus of species (IUCN, 2001). In spite of thefact that huemul are legally protected in bothcountries and that there have been efforts toconserve them since the 1930s, actions aimingat defining its distribution are recent (Serret,1992; Lopez et al., 1998; Diaz, 2000). We havestudied the current distribution of huemul andidentified the location of clusters of occur-rence in the context of existing protected ar-eas and administrative unit boundaries in bothChile and Argentina.The study area includes the coastal landsand the Andean foothills and highlands withinthe historical distribution of the species(Povilitis, 1998; Diaz, 2000). This area com-prises the provinces of Neuquen, Rio Negro,Chubut and Santa Cruz in Argentina and theVIII, IX, X, XI and XII regions in Chile.Records of current presence of huemul werebased on the data set of Lopez et al. (1998),the revision and analysis of “gray” literature,and interviews with park rangers, park war-dens and wildlife biologists fromAdministracion de Parques Nacionales ofArgentina (APN), Direcciones Provinciales deFauna in Argentina, Fundacion Vida SilvestreArgentina, Corporacion Nacional Forestal ofChile (CONAF), and Comite Nacional Pro