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This article explores the relationship between legal frameworks, mountain communities and the puma in Chile. Delving into the effects of how pumas' lives have been reshaped by myriad factors (economy, the law, and global change), we address the question of how 'killability' is distributed in one Chilean basin where the species is endangered: the Maule. We pay attention to a three-level relationship that distributes and sets the rules around the right to maim and kill bodies, encompassing the state's, rancher's and puma's intrusions. We explore the distribution of the 'killable' as ongoing effects and actions cast upon bodies. These actions shape interspecies and life-death ecological relationships. We continue by deepening into the contextual vulnerability of human and non-human lives forced to compete, or set new agreements, to improve and rearrange state mandates, experiencing the symptoms of an environmental and political crisis in which they must either endure or perish. Finally, we address how the interplay between economy, conservationism and animal lives redistribute the value of, and grievability among, species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assessed social preferences toward vertebrates, invertebrates, and plants in a biodiversity hotspot in Chile. We asked respondents (n = 662) to rank species based on their preferences and to select one subset to protect and another subset to remove. We identified four species clusters based on preferences: charismatic animals, plants, less popular animals, and animals that cause phobia/rejection. Preferences to protect were higher in the charismatic animal cluster, whereas preferences to remove were concentrated in the phobic cluster. Stakeholders with environmental occupations selected species to protect from the "less popular animals" and "animals causing phobia" clusters more often than other stakeholders, whereas society in general tended to select species from the "charismatic animals" cluster. Our results suggest that factors different from conservation priorities – like charisma – guide social preferences for biodiversity, and this needs to be considered when planning management actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article explores the agrarian sociology and history of the region of Valle del Aconcagua, Chile, focusing particularly on the 20th century. Subdivision of the land throughout the region at the beginning of the century, the dominance of crops such as wheat and hemp mid-century, and the agrarian reform during the 1960s and 1970s are described. Agricultural development during the late 20th century is also analyzed with respect to fruit growers, exporters and seasonal workers. The economic effects of the agricultural industry in Chile throughout the time period are also discussed.