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AUTHORS: Max Beal, Northland College; Brooke Niermann; Northland College; Parker Matzinger†, Northland College; Guido S. Rodriguez, Sistema Nacional de Areas de Conservacion; Dr. Erik R. Olson, Northland College
ABSTRACT: Understanding the status of wildlife species in protected areas is critical for conservation efforts to be successful. Piedras Blancas National Park in Costa Rica has very little baseline data on wildlife diversity and abundance. We implemented a camera-trap study to provide baseline data on the status of wildlife species within Piedras Blancas National Park from June to September in 2016 and 2017 (~1500 trap nights). We installed five Reconyx camera traps throughout the park, with camera spacing between 1.74 and 3.4km. We documented a diversity of wildlife species including, ocelots (Leopardus pardalis), margay (Leopardus wiedii), pumas (Puma concolor), tayra (Eira Barbara), collared peccary (Pecari tajacu), and Central American agouti (Dasyprocta punctate). We also compared our wildlife data for Piedras Blancas National Park to the nearby Corcovado National Park. This baseline data will be critical for assessing the long-term trends in wildlife status in relation to conservation efforts and will contribute to regional the wildlife monitoring efforts.
