Advances, challenges and prospective of sustainable use of capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) in Colombia

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The historical use of capybaras in Colombia has resulted in numerous regulatory stages; however, a crucial factor has been the environmental authorities’ low technical capacity to implement management plans. Aiming for good management of capybara harvest that meets sanitary and animal welfare requirements, pilot trials have been conducted to promote good practices, sustainable use, and conservation of this species and its habitat. Challenges for sustainable capybara management include overcoming a lack of political will to define a global harvesting quota, strengthening environmental authorities for an appropriate orientation to users, effective control of illegal use, and reducing loss of capybara habitat. Currently, in Colombia, there are two scenarios for capybara use: 1) uncontrolled illicit capybara extraction and continued excessive habitat change leading to capybara populations decline and 2) definition and implementation of a national global quota of capybara harvest, and its inclusion in the country’s bioeconomy policy. In Colombia, the use of wildlife is a common activity despite being considered illegal in some cases (Baptiste et al., 2002). Historically, in the country, the use of wildlife has focused on the extraction of individuals from the wild either for subsistence (Lasso and Morales-Betancourt, 2021) or for commercial purposes, illegally; while legal trade has been based on the production of a few species (Mancera and Reyes, 2008). One of the species of greatest management interest for its profit goals has been the capybara Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Figure 1). This is the largest rodent of the world (up to 52 kg adult weight) and exhibits the following traits: first reproduction occurs at one year of age, average litter size is four, and there are up to 1.2 gestations/year; adults are sexually active throughout the year and group size goes from 10 to 100 individuals (Moreira et al., 2013b). These life history traits and a good habitat facilitate large populations, which together with a wide distribution in South America, have made the capybara a species of least concern (LC) in extinction risk assessments (Reid, 2016). Due to both its biological characteristics and its meat, this species is considered to have high potential to satisfy the need for high-quality protein in Neotropical countries (Nogueira-Filho and da Cunha Nogueira, 2018). Throughout its distribution, other capybara byproducts such as skin and manufactured pieces are incorporated into its direct use (Quintana and Bolkovick, 2013) as well as the potential for tourism to observe its populations and habitats (Tapper and Programme United and Species Secretariat, 2006). (A) Female capybara nursing her pups. (B) Herd of capybaras in the flooded savannah landscape. (C) Capybaras sharing space with cows. (D) Capybara herd on lagoon-land interface. Photo by Group on Conservation and Management of Wildlife. Capybara has been legally and illegally exploited in the Colombian Orinoquia region, to supply the market for dried and salted meat, in Venezuela and some regions in Colombia during Easter. Unfortunately, the uncontrolled capybara meat exploitation has depleted this resource in the natural environment in certain areas (Hernández et al., 1983). For this reason, it is necessary to establish guidelines for the capybara use to be sustainable and to guarantee the conservation of its populations. In this sense, in Colombia, in recent decades, different planning instruments have been developed such as policies, plans, and programs, in order to guide the protection, management, and use of biodiversity in general, as well as ratification of international agreements that seek to incorporate the sustainable use of biodiversity (ONU, 2017). In such documents, it is stated that wildlife use may become a conservation tool, since in addition to bringing economic and social benefits, it could encourage its preservation (Ojasti and Dallmeier, 2000). In this article, we examine the following aspects of capybara use in Colombia: 1) the potential for sustainable use of some capybara populations in the Colombian Orinoquia, based on demographic and habitat aspects, 2) the background of the commercial exploitation of the capybara and regulations, 3) pilot tests of use and socioeconomic aspects, 4) the challenges to achieve sustainable management of capybara in Colombia, and 5) prospects for the use of capybara in this country. In Colombia, capybara H. hydrochaeris is distributed in the Orinoquia and Amazonia regions. Population abundance varies among these regions according to habitat quality and hunting intensity. The largest populations are found in the flooded savannahs of the Orinoquia region, in Arauca and Casanare departments. Smaller populations live in high non-flooded savannas of Meta and Vichada departments (López-Arévalo et al., 2002). In Amazonia, capybaras are found in humid tropical forests in the Caquetá, Putumayo, and Amazonas departments (Moreira et al., 2013a). In flooded savannas, several populations have been evaluated whose densities vary with habitat traits, distance from human settlements, presence of agro-industrial crops, and hunting pressure (Figure 2). Population estimates show variations in density from 0.11 ind/ha (Aldana-Domínguez and Angel-Escobar, 2007) to 5.93 ind/ha (Atuesta-Dimian et al., 2014) in the dry season and 0.11 ind/ha (López-Arévalo et al., 2016) to 6.44 ind/ha (Atuesta-Dimian et al., 2014) in the rainy season. A multiyear analysis of six density estimates in the same locality between 2005 and 2017 agrees with the patterns of variation between dry and wet seasons, with fewer variations among years (Tiboche-García and López-Arévalo, 2021). In addition, that study showed that the population evaluated in that period had a potential for sustainable use. Regional spatially explicit habitat suitability index for capybara in flooded savannas of Colombian Orinoquia. Capybara population distribution and densities are illustrated. We highlight that the largest populations are on properties where their owners have made habitat improvements and maintain populations by controlling illegal hunting. These densities make it possible to identify the areas in which commercial hunting is possible, in locations with densities close to 3 ind/ha, a reference value established within the carrying capacity limits for the Venezuelan savannas estimated based on population dynamics monitoring during each harvest phase (Ojasti, 1973, 2003). In other areas with lower densities, population recovery is a better option, as well as carrying out some ecotourism activities based on this species and its habitats. In the flooded savannahs, the natural variations of capybara population density within the same year are due to variations in resource availability, which is influenced by water dynamics. To assess habitat quality for capybara populations in the Arauca and Casanare departments, Cardona (2017) constructed a spatially explicit regional habitat suitability index (HSI). She used natural variables such as the presence/absence of diverse types of savannahs that provide much of the capybara’s diet; escape/refuge cover, such as riparian forests and scrub, and water availability represented by lagoons and rivers. She also included anthropic variables such as presence and distance to human settlements and road infrastructure, which can affect the intensity of hunting pressure. In that assessment, Cardona (2017) found that around 80% of the assessed area had medium (25%) to high and very high (55%) habitat suitability (Figure 2). However, current habitat transformation due to rice and oil palm cultivation (which have increased recently), intensity of land use for cattle ranching, and infrastructure associated with oil extraction may affect capybara abundance in the region. These last factors represent anthropic pressures that reduce habitat quality and may decrease capybara populations i

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