I I know whether the snake is poisonous or not by looking at its body: Local gold miners and ex-gold miners Ecological Knowledge regarding the snake fauna in a rural area of Roraima

Abstract

The appreciation of Local Ecological Knowledge is an important alternative to promote the conservation of biodiversity. The purpose of this study is to assess the local ecological knowledge of gold miners and ex gold miners regarding the snake species that are most commonly located in this location and ecological aspects of these animals. The data was collected through the crossing of information between semi structured interviews, informal conversations and free lists that were analysed quali quantitatively from the Relative Citation Frequency, Multiple Linear Regression and Fidelity Level (FL). The most common species were the Falsa Jararaca (Leptodeira annulata) (FR = 0,94) and Jiboia (Boa constrictor) (FR = 0,89). On the whole, this study confirmed that gold miners and ex-gold miners know the main ecological aspects of the snake fauna, describing the behavior, diet, habitat use, reproduction and seasonal behaviors. However, it was observed that people utilize characteristics related to the body shape to differentiate a poisonous snake from a not poisonous one which are not entirely correct and reliable and may cause misconceptions. These misconceptions can result in the indiscriminate deaths of some species of snakes, considering that 30% of the informants have said that they only kill these animals if they are poisonous and are inside a house.