Turtles, indians and settlers

Podocnemis expansa exploitation and the Portuguese settlement in eighteenth-century Amazonia

Bibliographic Data

ID4766433
AuthorsChristian Fausto Moraes Dos Santos (0000-0002-7537-4547, Universidade Estadual de Maringá, corresponding author), Marlon Marcel Fiori (0000-0001-6507-0788, Universidade Estadual de Maringá)
Year2020
Volume21
Issue44
Pages350-373
Publication date2020-08-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueTopoi (Rio de Janeiro (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1518-3319 • E-ISSN: 2237-101X
PublisherFapUNIFESP (SciELO) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1590/2237-101x02104404
OpenAlexW3048127576
SCIELO_PIDS2237-101X2020000200350
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited25

During the eighteenth century, Portuguese settlers in Amazonia captured thousands of turtles and crushed millions of their eggs. These turtles, especially the Giant South American River Turtle (Podocnemis expansa), gave these settlers two essential resources: meat and oil. Though there is a rich historiography on turtle hunting, important social and environmental dimensions of the practice in Amazonia during the colonial period have been overlooked. In this paper we focus on how turtles played a key role in the diet and domestic needs of Portuguese settlers in the Amazon rainforest and explore the shape and magnitude of colonialism's impact on these animals. The turtles became prime targets for Portuguese settlers because they were abundant and had characteristics and behavior that made them easy prey. Though P. expansa did not become extinct, Portuguese hunting had enduring impacts on their distribution and abundance that merit consideration

Amazon rainforest · Archaeology · Biology · Colonialism · Ethnology · Fishery · Geography · Portuguese · Rainforest · History · Primate Behavior and Ecology · Turtle Biology and Conservation · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation · Ecology

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