Habitat spatial distribution, seasonal variation, and activity patterns influence changes in vertebrate assemblages over time. Terrestrial birds play major roles in the dynamics of tropical forests, but there are few effective methods to study these species due to their cryptic coloration and elusive behavior. We used camera-trap data collected during 16 mo (February 2017–June 2018) to describe the terrestrial avifauna in southeastern Peru, assess to what extent the composition of terrestrial avifauna changes among seasons and across two major habitats (terra firme and floodplain forests), and determine daily activity patterns of terrestrial birds. We used overlap analyses to examine temporal co-occurrence between ecologically similar and sympatric species. Camera traps recorded 16 species, including eight species in the family Tinamidae. Capture rates were highest for Pale-winged Trumpeters (Psophia leucoptera; Psophiidae) and Gray-fronted Doves (Leptolila rufaxilla; Columbidae). Species composition did not differ between habitats or seasons, and capture rates between habitats only differed for White-throated Tinamous (Tinamus guttatus). Overlaps of activity patterns were high between ecologically similar species and species found in terra firme habitats (White-throated Tinamous and Cinereous Tinamous, Crypturellus cinereus) and in both habitat types (Pale-winged Trumpeters and Gray-fronted Doves). Low numbers of captures of possibly locally rare or less abundant species hindered a complete analysis of spatial and seasonal patterns of terrestrial bird assemblages. We suggest a greater sampling effort and greater spatial replication to better understand the spatial and seasonal dynamics of the terrestrial avifauna. Further studies that assess the mechanisms that allow the coexistence of sympatric tinamous would be valuable, both in our study area and elsewhere. The use of camera traps in long-term monitoring projects proved to be an effective tool for monitoring terrestrial birds, identifying cryptic and often rare animals to species level, and providing valuable ecological information at species and community levels.

The Amazon region has been viewed as a source of economic growth based on extractive industry and large-scale infrastructure development endeavors, such as roads, dams, oil and gas pipelines and mining. International and national policies advocating for the development of the Amazon often conflict with the environmental sector tasked with conserving its unique ecosystems and peoples through a sustainable development agenda. New practices of environmental governance can help mitigate adverse socio-economic and ecological effects. For example, forming a “community of practice and learning” (CoP-L) is an approach for improving governance via collaboration and knowledge exchange. The Governance and Infrastructure in the Amazon (GIA) project, in which this study is embedded, has proposed that fostering a CoP-L on tools and strategies to improve infrastructure governance can serve as a mechanism to promote learning and action on factors related to governance effectiveness. A particular tool used by the GIA project for generating and sharing knowledge has been participatory mapping (Pmap). This study analyzes Pmap exercises conducted through workshops in four different Amazonian regions. The goal of Pmap was to capture different perspectives from stakeholders based on their experiences and interests to visualize and reflect on (1) areas of value, (2) areas of concern and (3) recommended actions related to reducing impacts of infrastructure development and improvement of governance processes. We used a mixed-methods approach to explore textual analysis, regional multi-iteration discussion with stakeholders, participatory mapping and integration with ancillary geospatial datasets. We believe that by sharing local-knowledge-driven data and strengthening multi-actor dialogue and collaboration, this novel approach can improve day to day practices of CoP-L members and, therefore, the transparency of infrastructure planning and good governance.

Aim: Forests support the majority of the planet's terrestrial biodiversity, and in recent years the characterisation of soundscapes has emerged as a powerful tool for understanding forest ecosystems, both in terms of ecology and for the purpose of conservation. But it is still poorly understood to what extent generalisations can be made about soundscapes in different parts of the world, and to what extent we should expect soundscapes to differ regionally. Here, we characterise the dominant acoustic features of forest soundscapes on a global scale and establish baseline expectations for how acoustic indices vary among biogeographic realms and biomes. Location: Forests in Brunei, Ecuador, Gabon, Germany, Peru, Singapore, Sierra Leone and the USA, a dataset spanning two biomes and five out of six global biogeographic realms where forests occur. Time Period: Two to five weeks of continuous audio data from each site collected between 2020 and 2024. Major Taxa: Birds, amphibians, insects and mammals. Methods: Stratifying data by time and frequency, we calculated four acoustic indices. Principal components analysis was used to compare the similarity of soundscapes across sites. Results: Temperate and tropical forest soundscapes clustered separately in principal component analysis. Temperate forests had soundscapes which were uniformly loud during the day across all frequencies and were generally quiet at night. In contrast, all tropical locations had complex soundscapes during both day and night and had banding patterns suggestive of a high diversity of soniferous insects. These banding patterns were created by the unique soniferous community at each site, causing the ‘acoustic fingerprint’ of each site to be most similar to other sites in the same ecoregion and in the same biogeographic realm. The ‘acoustic fingerprints’ of temperate forest differentiated between ecoregions only when dawn was considered separately. Main Conclusions: Our results stress the importance of using regional specific baseline data, as soundscapes are not necessarily comparable. Ecoacoustics is growing in popularity as an ecosystem monitoring tool, and understanding how forest soundscapes vary naturally across the globe can provide much needed context for studies that seek to understand factors that may disrupt or alter those soundscapes.