Honduras
Baks Tapir (apwus ba)
Estimated population: 1,000-2,000

A frontier model for
landscape ecology:
the tapir in Honduras
Flesher, KM., and E. Ley. 1996. AFrontier
Model for Landscape Ecology: The Tapir
in Honduras. Environmental and Eological
Satistic, 3:119-125.

 This work, using statistical
methods from the econometrics
literature, makes inferences about the
tolerance of the tapir to human
settlements.
 The study was undertaken in 1994
in northeast Honduras, in the
Departments of Olancho and Colon.
This is a rugged, mountainous area,
10,000-11500 sq. kilometers of
contiguous tropical evergreen
rainforest.
 However, over the last twenty
years, subsistence farmers fleeing
environmental degradation in other
parts of Honduras, have been
colonizing this study area, and this is
threatening to fragment the forest into
disconnected patches. For the tapir,
this means a larger, connected
population shattered into smaller,
isolated ones.
 This then brings the risk of
inbreeding depression, genetic drift,
and stochastic events which reduce
their chance of long term persistence.
 Flesher and Ley maintain that the
key to the long term survival of this
population in northeastern Honduras,
is to protect it as a single unit, and
avoid the negative affects of isolation.
Doing this requires maintaining links
between the forest reserves which
would allow tapirs to pass from one
reserve to another.
 The interesting approach to
continued human colonization in this
forested area is to manage further
settlement in a way in which both
humans and wildlife can be
accommodated. Flesher and Ley then
set out to accomplish learning how
human settlements affect tapir
movement


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Map of Hondras. Dotted areas indicate emainngfragnenss rainfost, according to Louise
 Emonns, Neotropical Rain Drest Mammals -A Feld Guide, 1997.
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Map ofHondurar. Dotted area indicate rnmaining fragments f rainfomrt, according to Louise
Emmons, Neotropical Rain Forest Mammals A Field Guide, 1997.


 Borrowing a frontier model from
the econometrics literature, they used
this to interpret their data set. This
paper has important implications for all
forest areas where human settlements
and wildlife co-exist. It provides a
sound and pragmatic approach which
could be a model suggesting that the
spatial arrangement of human land use
practices can be managed in a way
which could well determine the future
for wildlife in the region.
 Kevin Flesher is preparing two
additional papers on this work, giving
fragmentation trends and making
suggestions for corridor preservation
and placement.

Questions onfield research.
Kevin Flesher
c/o Ridiard Harley
gordon@providecowt .br

Staristical questions:
Eduardo Ley
edley@ftdea.es
edley @bhfoot.comn





Nicaragua
Bairs Tapir (Tapirs batk)
Estimated population: 500-1,000

No report.


Costa Rica
Bairs Tapir (Tapirs bairi)
Estimated population: 1,000

Naranjo: publications
and research
Eduardo Naranjo wrote his Master's
Thesis on T bairdii in Costa Rica.
 1. Naranjo, E.J. 1995. Abundancia y uso
de habitat del tapir (Tapius bairdis) en un
bosque tropical humedo de Costa Rica.
Mda Sitest Neotopied 4(1) 20-31.
 2. Naranjo, E.J. 1995. Habitos de
alimencacion del tapir (Tpirus boirdii), en
un bosque tropical humedo de Costa Rica.
Vuda Silvrre Neoropisel 4 (1) 32-37.
 3. Naranjo, E.J. and C. Vaughan. Notas
sobre la ecologia del tapir en el paramo
Centroamericano. Brensia (in press).
EduardoJ. Naranjo
Associate Researcher
El Colegio de la Frontera Sur
Aparrado 63
San Cristrbal de Las Cass
Chiapas 29290, Midco
Tel/Fax (52) 967-81884
enaranjo@masler.scc.ecosur.mx

Christopher ~rughan
Program Regional en Manejo de Vida
Silvesre
Universidad Nacional, Ap. 1350-3000
Heredia, Costa Rica
Tel (506) 237-7039
cvaughan@irazu.una.ac.cr


Newsletter of the IUCN/SSC TIpir Specialist Group Editor. Sharon Matola RO. Bo 1787, Belize City, Belize E-mail: BelizeZoo@btLnet
 page 7