Risk perception and popular knowledge about crocodilians (Caiman crocodilus and Crocodylus acutus) in river communities in the provinces of Veraguas and Chiriquí, Panamá, Central America

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5209/redc.99599
Keywords: Crocodilian conservation, human-crocodilian conflict, local knowledge, Central America, coexistence, crocodilians

Abstract

This empirical qualitative social research study examines human-crocodile coexistence to support the design of the National Crocodile Management Plan in Panama. The study analysed the risk perception and knowledge of communities living with crocodilians through surveys conducted in sixteen localities in Veraguas and Chiriquí. Overall, 82% of respondents showed a good knowledge of crocodilians, although only half had completed primary school. Men were more familiar with crocodiles due to their involvement in fishing and agriculture. Despite the fear of crocodiles, 74% of respondents supported their conservation, highlighting the need for educational programmes to promote sustainable crocodilian management.

Author Biographies

Miryam Venegas-Anaya, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá

I was born on April 9, 1959, in Bogotá, Colombia. I am of Panamanian nationality. I hold a Bachelor's degree in Education with a specialization in chemistry and biology from the University of La Salle, a degree in Veterinary Medicine from the National University of Colombia, a Master's in Science from the Santa María La Antigua University, and a PhD in Biology from Texas Tech University. I completed postgraduate studies at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

I am a researcher at the Hydraulic and Hydrotechnical Research Center (CIHH) of the Technological University of Panama, and I am also a Panamanian researcher at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. My research areas include Molecular Biotechnology, Molecular Ecology, and Trophic Networks in Marine Coastal Environments.

Nathalia, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá

Ingeniera ambiental, Máster en Análisis Avanzado de Datos Multivariantes y Doctora por la Universidad de Salamanca en Estadística Multivariante Aplicada.

Actualmente, Investigadora, en el Centro de Investigaciones Hidráulicas e Hidrotécnicas (CIHH) de la Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá (UTP). Miembro del Sistema Nacional de Investigación (SNI) e Investigadora Afiliada al Centro de Estudios Multidisciplinarios en Ciencias, Ingeniería y Tecnología (CEMCIT-AIP). Además, fue parte del Programa de Estancias en Ciencia, Tecnología y Políticas en la Secretaría Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (SENACYT)-IAI STeP Fellow.

Ganadora de múltiples premios, entre ellos: 25 mujeres en la Ciencia en Latinoamérica, iniciativa de las Empresas 3M, Condecoración Nacional Medalla 8 de marzo en mérito a su aporte a la Ciencia, Tecnología en Investigación, iniciativa del Gobierno Nacional y una de las 100 mujeres más poderosas 2022 de la Revista Forbes en Centroamérica

Felipe Morcillo Alonso, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain. Associate Professor, PhD

Associate Professor with a PhD in Ecology. Academic Coordinator of the Official Master's Degree in Conservation Biology. Complutense University of Madrid. I am an ecologist. PhD in Science (Biology-Ecology) Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain

Throughout my professional career I have developed a technical-scientific profile in the following subjects:
Management of invasive exotic species.

Limnology and Ichthyology. Biological studies (phylogenetic and biogeographic). Iberian fish and fish from the Neotropics (Central America and Peruvian Amazon). Fish migration. Fish passages. Studies of movement, behaviour and physiology of effort.

Environmental impact. Energy transport infrastructures.

Interpretation and implementation of the Birds, Habitats and Water Framework Directives.

University and course teaching. Toxicology. Projects and studies in Biology.

Ecology. Fish passages. Sampling in continental waters. Environmental awareness.

Anabel Perdices, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales

Born on October 12, 1965, in Madrid, in a family that always supported and facilitated her studies, Anabel Fernández Perdices began her Biology degree at the Complutense University, inspired by the great nature documentaries of her childhood and youth. She completed her studies at the University of Santiago de Compostela.

She carried out her doctoral thesis at the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid, using freshwater fish as a study model and collaborating on various research projects. She worked for several years at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, where she was impressed by the tropical biological diversity. There, she expanded her knowledge of different groups of tropical fish and learned the use of new molecular techniques for studying biodiversity.

She returned to the Iberian Peninsula under the University of Lisbon (Portugal), where she worked for four years in the Faculty of Sciences before joining the Museum as a scientist. There, she works in the Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology.

To develop her research, Anabel has traveled across almost all inhabited continents to collect from their rivers, ranging from the great Russian steppes to the winding Turkish streams, the seasonal African courses, and both slopes of the Americas. Of course, no European river holds secrets for her, especially those from the Mediterranean basin.

Mauricio González Jáuregui, 1. Center for Studies on Sustainable Development and Wildlife Utilization, Autonomous University of Campeche, Mexico. Full-time Professor and Researcher, PhD 2. Crocodile Research and Management for Conservation, Founding Researcher, PhD

Doctor and Master of Science in Wildlife Management from the Institute of Ecology A.C., Bachelor of Biology from the Autonomous University of Campeche. In the academic field, my area of ​​interest is the ecology of wildlife and the risks to its conservation, particularly pollution and exploitation. As a consultant, my field of expertise is the control and management of risky wildlife and its habitat, conservation through sustainable use, and the management of Wildlife Conservation and Utilization Units (UMAs).

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Published
2025-06-25
How to Cite
Venegas-Anaya M., Nathalia, Morcillo Alonso F. ., Perdices A. y González Jáuregui M. (2025). Risk perception and popular knowledge about crocodilians (Caiman crocodilus and Crocodylus acutus) in river communities in the provinces of Veraguas and Chiriquí, Panamá, Central America. Revista Española de Desarrollo y Cooperación, 52(1), 101-117. https://doi.org/10.5209/redc.99599
Issue
Vol. 52 No. 1 (2025): Monográfico: Horizontes comunes: Estrategias de Cooperación para la Biodiversidad y el Desarrollo Sostenible
Section
Monograph

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