Tourist Knowledge of and Beliefs about Wild Capuchin Monkeys (Sapajus nigritus) at Iguazú National Park, Argentina

Abstract

People's attitudes toward wildlife and how humans perceive themselves in relation to the natural environment are essential components of human-wildlife interactions. Iguazú National Park (INP), in northern Argentina, is visited daily by thousands of tourists. We studied tourists’ knowledge of the diet and daily activity patterns of capuchin monkeys (Sapajus nigritus) and tourists’ beliefs about why monkeys and people interact. We administered a questionnaire (N = 601) at four locations where tourists tend to concentrate between December 2015 and February 2016. We used generalized linear models to examine factors influencing tourists’ knowledge. Our results indicate that tourists had accurate knowledge of the monkeys’ daily activities and diet. Visual contact with monkeys and the presence of a tour guide was linked to better knowledge about daily activities but not about diet. People older than 50 years with a university degree and/or a profession had higher levels of knowledge about diet than younger people without it. We found no effect of whether tourists came from regions with or without monkeys as native fauna or sex on tourists’ levels of knowledge. Most of the tourists believed that monkeys approach people because they are looking for food. Taking photos, curiosity, and feeding monkeys were the most important reasons given for why people approach the monkeys. We found no differences between the sexes in their beliefs about interactions taking place because of food. Our results strengthen the need to move the focus of management strategies from wildlife behavior to human behavior, knowledge, and perceptions about wildlife if we want to improve conservation strategies.