Human Perception of Birds in Two Brazilian Cities

Autor(es)

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

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: BIRDS; v. 5, n. 2, p. 15-pg., 2024-06-01.

Resumo

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)

• Processo FAPESP: 21/08534-0 - Biodiversidade e serviços associados: PELD Corredor Cantareira Mantiqueira
• Beneficiário: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 21/10639-5 - Centro de Pesquisa em Biodiversidade e Mudanças do Clima
• Beneficiário: Leonor Patricia Cerdeira Morellato
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Centros de Pesquisa, Inovação e Difusão - CEPIDs
• Processo FAPESP: 21/08322-3 - Analítica visual de dados ambientais obtidos por monitoramento acústico passivo
• Beneficiário: Maria Cristina Ferreira de Oliveira
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 20/01779-5 - Biodiversidade no Antropoceno: efeito dos agroecossistemas na conservação da biodiversidade e manutenção de funções ecossistêmicas
• Beneficiário: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 18/00107-3 - Avaliação do risco de predação de insetos em paisagens urbanas em uma escala continental: uma rede de pesquisa colaborativa
• Beneficiário: João Carlos de Castro Pena
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 21/10195-0 - Contribuições do pagamento por serviços ambientais sobre múltiplas dimensões na Mata Atlântica
• Beneficiário: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 13/50421-2 - Novos métodos de amostragem e ferramentas estatísticas para pesquisa em biodiversidade: integrando ecologia de movimento com ecologia de população e comunidade
• Beneficiário: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 22/10760-1 - Biodiversidade no Antropoceno: uma síntese dos efeitos da expansão da agricultura no Cerrado e na Mata Atlântica
• Beneficiário: Milton Cezar Ribeiro
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Pesquisador Visitante - Brasil