Elevational Distribution and Abundance of Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) at different Protection Areas in Talamanca Region of Costa Rica

José F. González-Maya; Jan Schipper; Karla Rojas-Jiménez

Articles

Vol. 18 No. 25 (2009)

Elevational Distribution and Abundance of Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) at different Protection Areas in Talamanca Region of Costa Rica

José F. González-Maya^▸^▾
Jan Schipper^▸^▾
Karla Rojas-Jiménez^▸^▾

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Submitted: 8 July 2025
Published: 2009-06-01

Abstract

Baird’s tapir, Tapirus bairdii, is distributed from lowlands to 3600 m from México to Colombia. In Costa Rica the species was distributed across the entire country, but currently its precluded to isolated areas and national parks. Here we present the first elevational abundance estimation for the species in the Talamanca region, one of the most important and key habitats for the species throughout the region. A total of 36 paired camera-trap stations reaching a total of 2,160 trap-nights were deployed in an elevation range from 800 to 3600 m. A disrupted distribution pattern was observed with a high density for the La Amistad National Park at 2600 m. Also, low visitation (low human presence) and highly isolated sites showed a strong preference. Also, night activities were the most frequent with peaks around 1900-2000 hours and 2300-0000 hours. It seems that tapirs have disappeared from both pacific and Caribbean lowland of the Talamanca, precluding the species to mid and high elevation habitats with high degrees of isolation. This study represents an important tool for conservation planning and a key aspect to be considered for regional and species level plans. Other aspects of the species ecology, including diet and feeding habits are necessary to be compared with lowland habitats in order to retain the species on the long term.

References

Castellanos, A., Foerster, C., Lizcano, D.J., Naranjo, E., Cruz-Aldan, E., Lira-Torres, I., Samudio, R., Matola, S., Schipper, J. & González-Maya. J.F. 2008. Tapirus bairdii. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. http://www.iucnredlist.org. [Accesed on 09 January 2009].
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Davis, S.P., Haywood, V.H., Herrera-MacBryde, O., Villa-Lobos, J. & Hamilton, A. C. 1997. Centres of plant diversity-Volume 3: The Americas.WWF, IUCN. UK. Dirección General Forestal de Costa Rica. 1989. Forest cover map of Costa Rica. DGF. San José, CR.
Emmons, L. 1999. Mamíferos de los bosques húmedos de América tropical. FAN. Santa Cruz de la Sierra, BOL.
González-Maya, J.F. & Mata-Lorenzen, J. 2008. Dung-beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabeidae) from the Zona Protectora Las Tablas, Talamanca, Costa Rica. Checklist 4(4):458–463.
González-Maya, J.F.; Finegan, B.G., Schipper, J. & Casanoves, F. 2008. Densidad absoluta y conservación del jaguar y us presas en la región Talamanca, Pacífico, Costa Rica. The Nature Conservancy. San José, CR.
Griffiths, M. & van Schaik, C. 1993. The Impact of Human Traffic on the abundance and Activity Periods of Sumatran Rain Forest Wildlife. Conservation Biology 7(3):623-626.
Harcourt, C.S., Sayer, J. & Billington, C. (eds.). 1996. The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: The Americas. IUCN – CIFOR – WCMC – BP. Simon & Schuster. New York, USA.
Holden, J., Yanuar, A. & Martyr, D.J. 2003. The Asian tapir in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra: evidence collected through photo-trapping. Oryx 37:34-40.
INBio (2007) Ficha Técnica Parque Internacional La Amistad. http://www.inbio.ac.cr/pila/parque_ficha_tec.html. [Accessed 20 September 2007].
Jenkins, C. & Giri, C. Protection of mammal diversity in Central America. Conservation Biology 22(4):1037-1044.
Kappelle, M. 1996. Los Bosques de Roble (Quercus) de la Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. University of Amsterdam/Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad. Santo Domingo de Heredia, CR.
Karanth, U. & Nichols, J. 2002. Monitoring tigers and their prey: A manual for researchers, managers and conservationists in Tropical Asia. Centre for Wildlife Studies. Bangalore, IN.
Karanth, U., Nichols, J. & Kumar, S. 2004. Photographic sampling of elusive mammals in tropical forests. In: W. Thompson, (ed.) Sampling rare or elusive species: concepts, designs, and techniques for estimating population parameters. pp. 229-247. Island Press. Washington, USA.
Kelly, M. J. Submitted. Jaguar monitoring in the Chiquibul forest, Belize. Caribbean Geography.
Londoño, X. 1996. Diversity and Distribution of New World Bamboos, with Special emphasis on the Bambuseae. International Network for Bamboo and Rattan, INBAR. Beijing, CHI.
Maffei, L., Cuellar, E. & Noss, A. 2002. Uso de trampas cámara para la evaluación de mamíferos en el eco-tono Chaco-Chiquitania. Revista Boliviana de Ecología 11: 55-65.
Maffei, L., Cuellar, E. & Noss, A. 2004. One thousand jaguars (Pantera onca) in Bolivia’s Chaco? Camera trapping in the Kaa-Iya National Park. J. Zool. Lond. 262:195-304
March, I. & Naranjo, E. 2005. Tapirus bairdii. In: G. Ceballos & G. Oliva (eds.) Los Mamíferos Silvestres de México. Pp. 496-497. CONABIO. México, MX.
Mittermeier, R., Schipper, J., Davidse, G., Koleff, P., Soberon, M., Ramirez, M., Goettsch, M. & Mittermeier, C. 2005. Mesoamerica In: R. Mittermeier, P. Robles-Gil, M. Hoffmann, J. Pilgrim, T. Brooks, C. Mittermeier, J. Lamoreux & G.A. da Fonseca (Eds.) Hotspots Revisited. CEMEX, Mexico City, MX.
Mora, J. 2000. Mamíferos Silvestres de Costa Rica. EUNED. San Jose, CR.
Mora Carpio, J. 2000. Atlas Geográfico del Área de Conservación La Amistad Pacífico (ACLAP). Proyecto Proarca/Capas. Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía (MINAE) – CCAD – USAID. SINAC/MINAE. San Isidro de Pérez Zeledón, CR.
Myers, N., Mittermeier, R.A., Mittermeier, C.G., da Fonseca, G.A. & Kent, J. 2000. Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403:853-858.
Naranjo, E.J., & Vaughan, C. 2000. Ampliación del ámbito altitudinal del tapir Centroamericano (Tapirus bairdii). Revista de Biologia Tropical 48:724.
Noss, A.J., Cuéllar, R.L., Barrientos, J., Maffei, L., Cuéllar, E., Arispe, R., Rúmiz, D. & Rivero, K. 2003. A Camera Trapping and Radio Telemetry Study of Lowland Tapir (Tapirus terrestris) in Bolivian Dry Forests. Tapir Conservation 12(1):24-32.
Olson, D.M. & Dinerstein, E. 2002. The Global 200: Priority ecoregions for global conservation. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 89:199-224.
Powell, G., Palmentieri, S. & Schipper, J. 2009. Talamancan montane forests (NT0167). http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/nt/nt0167_full.html.[Accessed 18 of April 2007].
Reid, F. 1997. A field guide to the mammals of Central America and southeast Mexico. Oxford University Press. New York, USA.
Schipper, J., Scott, M., Carrillo, E. 2005. Return to Isla Talamanca? Landscape constraints to long-term species persistence in Talamanca eco-region (Costa Rica-Panamá): a conservation assessment using jaguar and their prey. 8th World Wilderness Congress. Alaska, US.
Stattersfield, A.J., Corsby, M. J., Long, A. J. & Wege, D.C. 1998. Global Directory of endemic bird areas. Birdlife International. Cambridge, UK.
Wallace, R., Ayala, G. & Gómez, H. 2002. Lowland tapir activity patterns and capture frequencies in lowland moist tropical forest. Tapir Conservation 11:14.

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Keywords

Central America
Central American Tapir
Ecology
National Parks
Protected areas

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

González-Maya, J. F., Schipper, J., & Rojas-Jiménez, K. (2009). Elevational Distribution and Abundance of Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) at different Protection Areas in Talamanca Region of Costa Rica. Tapir Conservation, 18(25), 29-35. http://www.tapirconservation.org/index.php/tc/article/view/118

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[1] Castellanos, A., Foerster, C., Lizcano, D.J., Naranjo, E., Cruz-Aldan, E., Lira-Torres, I., Samudio, R., Matola, S., Schipper, J. & González-Maya. J.F. 2008. Tapirus bairdii. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. http://www.iucnredlist.org. [Accesed on 09 January 2009].

[2] Bennet, A. Enlazando el Paisaje: El papel de los corredores y la conectividad en la conservación de la vida silvestre. UICN. San José, CR.

[3] Céspedes, M.V., B.G. Finegan, & Herrera, B. 2007. Propuesta de una red ecológica de conservación entre la Reserva de Biosfera La Amistad y las áreas protegidas de la Península de Osa, Costa Rica. The Nature Conservancy. Boletín Técnico 1:1-6.

[4] Davis, S.P., Haywood, V.H., Herrera-MacBryde, O., Villa-Lobos, J. & Hamilton, A. C. 1997. Centres of plant diversity-Volume 3: The Americas.WWF, IUCN. UK. Dirección General Forestal de Costa Rica. 1989. Forest cover map of Costa Rica. DGF. San José, CR.

[5] Emmons, L. 1999. Mamíferos de los bosques húmedos de América tropical. FAN. Santa Cruz de la Sierra, BOL.

[6] González-Maya, J.F. & Mata-Lorenzen, J. 2008. Dung-beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabeidae) from the Zona Protectora Las Tablas, Talamanca, Costa Rica. Checklist 4(4):458–463.

[7] González-Maya, J.F.; Finegan, B.G., Schipper, J. & Casanoves, F. 2008. Densidad absoluta y conservación del jaguar y us presas en la región Talamanca, Pacífico, Costa Rica. The Nature Conservancy. San José, CR.

[8] Griffiths, M. & van Schaik, C. 1993. The Impact of Human Traffic on the abundance and Activity Periods of Sumatran Rain Forest Wildlife. Conservation Biology 7(3):623-626.

[9] Harcourt, C.S., Sayer, J. & Billington, C. (eds.). 1996. The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: The Americas. IUCN – CIFOR – WCMC – BP. Simon & Schuster. New York, USA.

[10] Holden, J., Yanuar, A. & Martyr, D.J. 2003. The Asian tapir in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra: evidence collected through photo-trapping. Oryx 37:34-40.

[11] INBio (2007) Ficha Técnica Parque Internacional La Amistad. http://www.inbio.ac.cr/pila/parque_ficha_tec.html. [Accessed 20 September 2007].

[12] Jenkins, C. & Giri, C. Protection of mammal diversity in Central America. Conservation Biology 22(4):1037-1044.

[13] Kappelle, M. 1996. Los Bosques de Roble (Quercus) de la Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. University of Amsterdam/Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad. Santo Domingo de Heredia, CR.

[14] Karanth, U. & Nichols, J. 2002. Monitoring tigers and their prey: A manual for researchers, managers and conservationists in Tropical Asia. Centre for Wildlife Studies. Bangalore, IN.

[15] Karanth, U., Nichols, J. & Kumar, S. 2004. Photographic sampling of elusive mammals in tropical forests. In: W. Thompson, (ed.) Sampling rare or elusive species: concepts, designs, and techniques for estimating population parameters. pp. 229-247. Island Press. Washington, USA.

[16] Kelly, M. J. Submitted. Jaguar monitoring in the Chiquibul forest, Belize. Caribbean Geography.

[17] Londoño, X. 1996. Diversity and Distribution of New World Bamboos, with Special emphasis on the Bambuseae. International Network for Bamboo and Rattan, INBAR. Beijing, CHI.

[18] Maffei, L., Cuellar, E. & Noss, A. 2002. Uso de trampas cámara para la evaluación de mamíferos en el eco-tono Chaco-Chiquitania. Revista Boliviana de Ecología 11: 55-65.

[19] Maffei, L., Cuellar, E. & Noss, A. 2004. One thousand jaguars (Pantera onca) in Bolivia’s Chaco? Camera trapping in the Kaa-Iya National Park. J. Zool. Lond. 262:195-304

[20] March, I. & Naranjo, E. 2005. Tapirus bairdii. In: G. Ceballos & G. Oliva (eds.) Los Mamíferos Silvestres de México. Pp. 496-497. CONABIO. México, MX.

[21] Mittermeier, R., Schipper, J., Davidse, G., Koleff, P., Soberon, M., Ramirez, M., Goettsch, M. & Mittermeier, C. 2005. Mesoamerica In: R. Mittermeier, P. Robles-Gil, M. Hoffmann, J. Pilgrim, T. Brooks, C. Mittermeier, J. Lamoreux & G.A. da Fonseca (Eds.) Hotspots Revisited. CEMEX, Mexico City, MX.

[22] Mora, J. 2000. Mamíferos Silvestres de Costa Rica. EUNED. San Jose, CR.

[23] Mora Carpio, J. 2000. Atlas Geográfico del Área de Conservación La Amistad Pacífico (ACLAP). Proyecto Proarca/Capas. Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía (MINAE) – CCAD – USAID. SINAC/MINAE. San Isidro de Pérez Zeledón, CR.

[24] Myers, N., Mittermeier, R.A., Mittermeier, C.G., da Fonseca, G.A. & Kent, J. 2000. Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403:853-858.

[25] Naranjo, E.J., & Vaughan, C. 2000. Ampliación del ámbito altitudinal del tapir Centroamericano (Tapirus bairdii). Revista de Biologia Tropical 48:724.

[26] Noss, A.J., Cuéllar, R.L., Barrientos, J., Maffei, L., Cuéllar, E., Arispe, R., Rúmiz, D. & Rivero, K. 2003. A Camera Trapping and Radio Telemetry Study of Lowland Tapir (Tapirus terrestris) in Bolivian Dry Forests. Tapir Conservation 12(1):24-32.

[27] Olson, D.M. & Dinerstein, E. 2002. The Global 200: Priority ecoregions for global conservation. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 89:199-224.

[28] Powell, G., Palmentieri, S. & Schipper, J. 2009. Talamancan montane forests (NT0167). http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/nt/nt0167_full.html.[Accessed 18 of April 2007].

[29] Reid, F. 1997. A field guide to the mammals of Central America and southeast Mexico. Oxford University Press. New York, USA.

[30] Schipper, J., Scott, M., Carrillo, E. 2005. Return to Isla Talamanca? Landscape constraints to long-term species persistence in Talamanca eco-region (Costa Rica-Panamá): a conservation assessment using jaguar and their prey. 8th World Wilderness Congress. Alaska, US.

[31] Stattersfield, A.J., Corsby, M. J., Long, A. J. & Wege, D.C. 1998. Global Directory of endemic bird areas. Birdlife International. Cambridge, UK.

[32] Wallace, R., Ayala, G. & Gómez, H. 2002. Lowland tapir activity patterns and capture frequencies in lowland moist tropical forest. Tapir Conservation 11:14.