Human Perception of Birds in Two Brazilian Cities

Author(s)

Graviola, Gabriela Rosa ; Ribeiro, Milton Cezar ; Pena, Joao Carlos

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BIRDS; v. 5, n. 2, p. 15-pg., 2024-06-01.

Abstract

Simple Summary Wildlife has coexisted with human society for thousands of years. While there is a general consensus that nature in urban areas should be increased, the way people perceive the animals that live within cities varies greatly. Considering research on this issue, there are very few studies analyzing people's perception of urban wildlife, and the list of animals investigated is still very limited; the lowest frequency of these studies is in South America. In order to fill this gap, we aimed to identify how people perceive birds in two Brazilian cities. We observed that people can recognize the most frequent bird species and are aware of the ecological importance of birds. We also showed that most people associate most bird species with positive feelings such as beauty, joy, well-being, and peace. On the other hand, exotic species are considered pests and generate negative perceptions. Understanding how humans perceive animals plays a significant role in comprehending the contemporary human-nature relationship. Providing this knowledge is essential for planning environments where humans and animals interact and to garner broad support for biodiversity conservation in cities.Abstract Understanding how humans perceive animals is important for biodiversity conservation, however, only a few studies about this issue have been carried out in South America. We selected two Brazilian cities to assess people's perceptions of birds: Bauru (S & atilde;o Paulo, Brazil) and Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais, Brazil). From the available bird data for each city, we developed a questionnaire and applied it between September 2020 and June 2021. The data obtained were analyzed by simple counts, a Likert scale, and percentages. Also, human feelings related to birds were placed on the Free Word Cloud Generator website. Our study confirmed that most respondents were aware of the importance of birds to ecological balance and that respondents had a generally positive attitude towards most of the bird species. However, they disliked exotic species such as the Domestic Dove and the House Sparrow, which are associated with disease, dirt, and disgust. Respondents also underestimated the number of birds that can live in urban areas and the song of birds is still a sense less experienced and perceived by people. Understanding these human-biodiversity relationships can help guide public policies and environmental education activities. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 21/08534-0 - Biodiversity and associated ecosystem services: LTER Corridor of Cantareira Mantiqueira
• Grantee: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 21/10639-5 - Center for Research on Biodiversity Dynamics and Climate Change
• Grantee: Leonor Patricia Cerdeira Morellato
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers - RIDC
• FAPESP's process: 21/08322-3 - Visual analytics of environmental data collected with passive acoustic monitoring
• Grantee: Maria Cristina Ferreira de Oliveira
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 20/01779-5 - Biodiversity in the Anthropocene: agroecosystem effects on biodiversity conservation and ecosystem function maintenance
• Grantee: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/00107-3 - A continental scale assessment of predation risk on insect prey in urban landscapes: a collaborative research network
• Grantee: João Carlos de Castro Pena
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 21/10195-0 - Contribution of payment for ecosystem services on multi-dimensions within Atlantic Forest
• Grantee: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 13/50421-2 - New sampling methods and statistical tools for biodiversity research: integrating animal movement ecology with population and community ecology
• Grantee: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 22/10760-1 - Biodiversity in the Anthropocene: a synthesis on the effect of agriculture expansion within Cerrado and Atlantic Forest
• Grantee: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Visiting Researcher Grant - Brazil