Ethnoecology, Resource Use, Conservation And Development In A ...

crop. According to the reports of people in Maruranau, it also means that in most
cases, clearing an old farm causes the growth of cassava as a volunteer, from seeds
already present in the soil. During visits to farms during 1998, I observed seed
cassava to be present in many farms. It appears that in this year, when owing to
drought many families suffered a shortage of cassava sticks (stem cuttings that are
used as propagules), cassava growth from seeds alleviated the situation somewhat.
The cassava seed bank thus seems to provide a safety net in times of shortage as
well as stock for genetic diversification.
My impression is that levels of agricultural pressure, in this village at least, remain
sufficiently low that forest degradation is avoided and farming rather causes biotic
enrichment by increasing the area of gap and edge habitats and thus promoting the
abundance of its associated plant and animal species. This effect has previously been
noted to be a mechanism via which, intentionally or unconsciously, indigenous
agricultural activities can lead to enhancement of the biotic richness of their area,
over both short-term and evolutionary time scales (Balée 1989, 1993; Meilleur 1994:
267-271; Escamilla et al. 2000). In an ecotone habitat that may promote genetic
diversity even in the absence of human manipulation, the biological effects may be of
even greater significance. Informants often described local phenotypic variation in
Wapishana animal categories referring to what are conventionally considered single
biological species; in some cases the Wapishana language subdivides categories
corresponding to biological species on this basis. For example, one informant
described two distinct named types of oran (Agouti paca), differing in size and
colour, and several people referred to distinct named forms of bichi (Tayassu
pecari). I was unable to verify the biological basis of these claims within the present
study, but clearly the effects of anthropic modification on the local genetic diversity
of wild species are an important topic for further study.
Whatever the detailed ecological consequences of agricultural activities, it seems
likely that human nutritional advantages must also accrue, as the frequency of
hunting opportunities within and near the farming area is raised. The ecology of
agriculture, succession in fallows, and the effects on game animal populations and
thus hunting returns are clearly complex subjects of central importance to the
understanding of the human position in the forest ecosystem. The restricted and
qualitative assessment presented here probably raises more questions than it
answers, but it demonstrates the potential value of further, detailed interdisciplinary
research on this topic.