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El presente trabajo revela diferentes criterios y metodologías para el ejercicio de evaluación de proyectos de gestión ambiental. Aunado a la carencia de instrumentos de evaluación que incorporen indicadores de impacto de la dimensión biocultural, se constata la tendencia a privilegiar una valoración mercantilista de proyectos, incidiendo en la gestión ambiental. Con el apoyo teórico de la valoración relacional (relational values) y a través de la categorización de códigos emergentes de datos recabados a través de métodos etnográficos, el presente trabajo concluye con una propuesta para la aplicación de indicadores para conocer la incidencia en la dimensión biocultural en el caso de proyectos para el rescate de la meliponicultura, es decir, el cultivo de la abeja nativa comúnmente conocida como abeja melipona o Xunancab (en Maya) (Melipona beecheii), en la península de Yucatán. The present work reveals different criteria and methodologies for the exercise of the evaluation of environmental management projects. Together with the lack of evaluation instruments that incorporate impact indicators of the biocultural dimension, the tendency to privilege a mercantilist valuation of projects, with emphasis on environmental management, is confirmed. With the theoretical support of relational values and through the categorization of emerging codes from data collected through ethnographic methods, this work concludes with a proposal for the application of indicators to know the impact on the biocultural dimension in the case of projects to rescue meliponiculture, that is, the cultivation of the native bee commonly known as melipona bee or Xunancab (in Maya) (Melipona beecheii), in the Yucatan peninsula. O presente trabalho revela diferentes critérios e metodologias para o exercício de avaliação de projetos de gestão ambiental. Adicionado à carência de instrumentos de avaliação que incorpora indicadores de impacto da dimensão biocultural, se constata a tendência de privilegiar uma avaliação mercantilista de projetos, incidindo na gestão ambiental. Com o apoio teórico da valoração relacional (relational values), e por meio da categorização de códigos emergentes de dados recuperados por métodos etnográficos, o presente trabalho conclui com uma proposta para aplicação de indicadores para conhecer a incidência da dimensão biocultural no caso de projetos para o resgate da meliponicultura, quer dizer, o cultivo da abelha nativa comumente conhecida como abelha melipona ou Xunancab (em Maya) (Melipona beecheii), na península de Yucatán.

Hunting is an activity that mankind has developed since its emergence as a species. At present, there is a conjunction between local knowledge with respect to hunters’ prey, such as the habitat they occupy, breeding seasons, and even eating habits. Added to this is the social and cultural part of the hunt, represented by the types of hunting that can be practiced, the age to start hunting, the links that can be established between hunters, the hunting rituals performed pre- and post hunting, and the legends and myths around the activity.

The effects of producer diversity on predators have received little attention in arboreal plant communities, particularly in the tropics. This is particularly true in the case of tree diversity effects on web-building spiders, one of the most important groups of invertebrate predators in terrestrial plant communities. We evaluated the effects of tree species diversity on the community of weaver spiders associated with big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) in 19, 21 × 21-m plots (64 plants/plot) of a tropical forest plantation which were either mahogany monocultures (12 plots) or polycultures (seven plots) that included mahogany and three other tree species. We conducted two surveys of weaver spiders on mahogany trees to evaluate the effects of tree diversity on spider abundance, species richness, diversity, and species composition associated with mahogany. Our results indicated that tree species mixtures exhibited significantly greater spider abundance, species richness, and diversity, as well as differences in spider species composition relative to monocultures. These results could be due to species polycultures providing a broader range of microhabitat conditions favoring spider species with different habitat requirements, a greater availability of web-building sites, or due to increased diversity or abundance of prey. Accordingly, these results emphasize the importance of mixed forest plantations for boosting predator abundance and diversity and potentially enhancing herbivore pest suppression. Future work is necessary to determine the specific mechanisms underlying these patterns as well as the top-down effects of increased spider abundance and species richness on herbivore abundance and damage.

Rural communities immersed in protected natural areas have local ecological knowledge of the species that exist in their environment, which could be closely related to the management that can be provided to the area. In this sense, the involvement of communities is extremely important in conservation, since they are the ones that make use of the natural resources that surround them.

In this paper, we reflect on the local knowledge about the European honey bee Apis mellifera scutellata, namely its biology, behavior, social structure, communication, and the relationships that these organisms maintain with the environment and their natural enemies. We also discuss the impacts that land use has on this economic activity. The empirical knowledge of beekeepers converges quite well with the scientific knowledge concerning this group of organisms. En el presente trabajo se reflexiona acerca del conocimiento local que tienen los apicultores respecto a la abeja europea Apis mellifera scutellata, su biología, comportamiento estructura social, comunicación, la relación que tienen estos organismos con el entorno, sus enemigos naturales e incluso el impacto que tiene el uso del suelo en esta actividad económica. Además de vislumbrar que este conocimiento empírico converge de manera muy acertada con el conocimiento científico que se tiene de este grupo de organismos.

This paper presents an assessment of spider diversity in a complex landscape of southern Mexico. Eighteen different habitats were identified, measured and mapped across this fragmented landscape. Habitat types were characterized by measuring various features, including number of plant forms, tree cover and litter depth. Each month from February to April (dry season) and from June to August 2002 (wet season), spiders were sampled on each habitat by using pitfall traps and direct collection. Correlations between spider diversity and habitat characteristics were carried out to explore the relative contribution of each habitat variable as related to changes in spider composition and richness. In total, 115 spider species were recorded in 18 habitat types, and the mean number and density of species per habitat were 21 (± 3, standard error of mean) and 57 (± 9), respectively. The species recorded represent 41% of the fauna recorded in the Mexican state of Chiapas and 4% of the fauna recorded in Mexico. Relatively pristine habitats (e.g. deciduous forest) contained an important proportion of spider diversity in this fragmented landscape. Epigean spider diversity was significantly correlated with tree cover and with the diversity of plant forms during the rainy season. No correlation was detected between soil spider diversity and the habitat variables measured for any season. The results of this work suggest that in highly fragmented tropical landscapes, some habitat types (e.g. coffee plantations, hedgerows) might play an important role for the persistence of spider populations. The prevalence of relatively stable conditions in some of these habitats can allow spiders species (e.g. Nephila clavipes) to overcome adverse conditions such as a decrease in humidity and dramatic changes in temperature and wind exposure, allowing them to recolonize when favourable conditions return.

We documented the presence and abundance of spider species (Arachnida: Araneae) on young trees of Swietenia macrophylla, Ceiba pentandra and Cordia dodecandra found in an experimental plantation. Surveys of spider abundance and species identity conducted twice during the growing season indicated marked differences in web-building spider assemblages associated with each tree species. Swietenia exhibited the lowest spider abundance, whereas Cordia and Ceiba had similarly higher abundances. Leucauge venusta (Walckenaer, 1841) was the dominant spider on all tree species, but different spider species were co-dominant on Cordia and Ceiba (Araneus pegnia (Walckenaer, 1841) and Argiope argentata (Fabricius, 1775) respectively), and several spider species were exclusive to each tree species. These results highlight the influence of tree species identity on community structure at higher trophic levels, particularly in the case of web-building spiders inhabiting tropical tree communities.

Landscapes are heterogeneous mosaics of habitats. In Yucatan, Mexico, these landscapes have been modified by different historical events, both natural and of human origin, such as the extensive cultivation of hemp mainly distributed in the area where deciduous forest dominated. The aim of this study was to determine the diversity and spatial and temporal structure of an assemblage of cursorial spiders in a fragmented landscape by agroecological management in Yucatan. Samples were collected monthly from March 2008 to February 2009 using pitfall traps in different agroecological management areas in the landscape. More than 224 cursorial spiders belonging to 12 families, 21 genera, and 25 species were recorded. The most abundant families were Lycosidae, Oxyopidae, and Salticidae. The most abundant species in the study was Pardosa vadosa Barnes, 1959 (Lycosidae). There were changes in the spatial and temporal structure of the cursorial spiders among agroecological management areas. This might be bec...