Impacts of Small-Scale gold mining on birds and anurans near the Tambopata Natural Reserve, Peru, assessed using Passive acoustic monitoring

• Published in: Tropical conservation science Vol. 9; no. 2; pp. 832 - 851
• Main Authors: Alvarez-Berríos, Nora, Campos-Cerqueira, Marconi, Hernández-Serna, Andrés, Amanda Delgado, C.J, Román-Dañobeytia, Francisco, Aide, T. Mitchell
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; French; German; Portuguese; Spanish
• Published: Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.06.2016; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Abandoned mines; Acoustics; Activity patterns; Anura; Assessments; biodiversity rapid assessment; Bird strike tests; Birds; Buffer zones; Environmental assessment; Environmental degradation; Environmental impact assessment; evaluación rápida de la biodiversidad; Gold; Gold mines & mining; Madre de Dios; minería; mining; Mitigation; monitoreo acústico; Monitoring; Paisajes sonoros; passive acoustic monitoring; Soundscapes; Species richness; Peru; ISE, Peru; minería; monitoreo acústico; evaluación rápida de la biodiversidad; passive acoustic monitoring; Paisajes sonoros; mining; biodiversity rapid assessment; Soundscapes; Madre de Dios
• ISSN: 1940-0829; 1940-0829
• DOI: 10.1177/194008291600900216

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASM) is becoming a significant cause of environmental degradation in tropical ecosystems. In this study, we conducted a rapid assessment on the impact of an ASM gold mine on the vocalizing avian and anuran communities in the buffer zone of the Tambopata National Reserve in Peru. We used seven audio recorders (three near an active mine, two in an abandoned mine, and two in an adjacent forest) to collect 2900 recordings to generate soundscapes and compare acoustic activity patterns of birds and anurans among sites. We identified 56 bird species during the morning chorus (05:00-07:00) and 9 anurans species in the evening chorus (18:00-20:00). Bird species richness was similar between the forest (28 bird species), the abandoned mine (25 species) and the active mine (24 species), but species richness of birds sensitive to disturbance was much lower in the active mine. In contrast, anuran species richness was highest in the active mine (5 species) and lowest in the forest (2 species). Results indicate that acoustic monitoring and soundscape analysis can be effective tools for evaluating the impact of mining activities on vocalizing species, and could become useful tools in rapid environmental impact assessments for mitigation and conservation strategies in ASM mining regions.