Produção Nacional
Revisado por pares
Historical and Current Interactions with Humans
2022; Springer International Publishing; Linguagem: Inglês
10.1007/978-3-030-90742-6_7
ISSN2523-7519
AutoresLouisa S. Ponnampalam, Lucy W. Keith‐Diagne, Miriam Marmontel, Christopher D. Marshall, Roger L. Reep, James Powell, Helene Marsh,
Tópico(s)Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies
ResumoSirenians are culturally significant to traditional and contemporary human communities throughout their ranges. They live in tropical and sub-tropical coastal, riverine, and lacustrine habitatsHabitats,, including many sites of high human use. ManateesManatee and dugongsDugong (Dugong dugon) nurse their calves over prolonged periods via axillary teatsAxillary Teats and their mammary glandsMammary glands have often been likened to human breasts, fostering the widespread belief that sirenians are the basis of mermaidMermaid myths and much folkloreFolklore and magic. For thousands of years, humans have used their knowledge of the predictabilityPredictability of sirenian habitatHabitats, use and behavior, to captureCapture them for their meat and other products using simple equipment such as a harpoonHarpoon. Nonetheless, the acuity of sirenian hearing means that capturing them requires specialized skills, and many cultures have developed complex captureCapture ritualsRitual. Sirenians do not require wilderness per se and can persist in highly disturbed habitatsHabitats,. DugongsDugong (Dugong dugon) and manateesManatee can be both wary and curious. Some curious animals initiate interactions with fishers and divers. ManateesManatee are highly tactile, chew on lines, and manipulate them with their flippers. The predictable nature of sirenian behavior and habitatHabitats, use increases their likelihood of encountering, tangling, and dying in fishing gears, particularly gill netsNets gill nets , a major cause of mortalityMortality. Swim-with-sirenian programs have developed in some areas with clear water and some habituatedHabituated animals have become local tourist attractions. Sirenians, particularly Florida manateesFlorida manatee (Trichechus Manatus Latirostris), are vulnerable to injury and mortalityMortality from vessel strikes. Almost all adult Florida manateesFlorida manatee (Trichechus Manatus Latirostris) bear scars from such encounters, with about a quarter showing evidence of being hit on at least ten occasions. Sirenians accumulate contaminantsContaminants because they feed on large quantities of aquatic plants. However, none of the persistent contaminantsContaminants identified in sirenian tissues have been definitively associated with mortalityMortality, morbidity or changes in behavior. Anecdotal information suggests that sirenians give birthParturition (Birth) in quiet shallow waters and exhibit natal philopatryNatal philopatry. The lossLoss, of traditional birthingBirthing and rearing habitatsHabitats, has apparently increased the risk of dependent calves becoming separated from their mothers and subsequently stranding. DugongsDugong (Dugong dugon) and manateesManatee exhibit behavioral thermoregulationThermoregulation behavioral at the high latitude limits of their ranges. Florida manateesFlorida manatee (Trichechus Manatus Latirostris) form transient aggregationsAggregation in natural and artificial warm water sanctuariesRefuge (sanctuary), the latter resulting in the animals coming into close contact with industrial facilities. Amazonian and African manateesAfrican manatee (Trichechus senegalensis) living in floodplain environments make seasonal migrations along rivers. DamsDams isolate populations and prevent animals from reaching their feedingFeeding and breeding grounds. Despite the frequency and variety of interactions between humans and sirenians, large gaps persist in our understanding of sirenian ethology and behavioral ecology in relation to human activitiesActivity.
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