Ecological knowledge and value of traded species: Local awareness of native turtles in Hainan, China

• DOI: 10.1111/acv.12867
• Publication Date: 2023-03-27T07:36:11Z
• Authors: H. Ma; S. K. Papworth; T. Ge; X. Wu; C. Yu; H. Zhang; F. Xiao; D. Gaillard; J. Bielby; S. T. Turvey
• Keywords: Wildlife trade; Salience (neuroscience); Vulnerable species

Abstract Wildlife trade is driving species extinctions globally, and the Asian Turtle Crisis posing a threat in China as turtle are collected from wild sold at high prices. Local ecological knowledge increasingly used to determine status of threatened taxa, but there little understanding wider relationships between indices other conservation‐relevant factors such market values traded species. To assess whether local people's awareness potentially turtles might indicate direct interaction with these species, we conducted 185 interviews rural villages around Bawangling National Nature Reserve, Hainan, China. Interviewees were asked free‐list native salience then shown photographs recognition knowledge. We investigated species' salience, recognized, named and/or perceived be by more people, independently obtained Indices varied among interviewees, all reported least some people. There was no correlation value, indicating that valuable likely well known. However, perception irrespective concern for conservation because vulnerable exploitation. Our results highlight communities should not assumed have accurate implications management wildlife community level.