Human and Non-Human Primate Coexistence in Argentina: Conflicts and Solutions

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Each of the five primate species inhabiting Argentina faces various threats in terms of conservation that hamper their ability to coexist with human populations. These threats have in common that they are the result of human actions and changes in the landscape, and they all have consequences that may result in human–primate conflict. Furthermore, these changes surely present remarkable challenges for slow-life primates, as they happen too quickly for genetic adaptations to evolve within a timeframe compatible with population viability. Hence, it becomes imperative to delve into the consequences of the different threats that the different species face and the conflicts that are derived from them. We present a detailed compilation of what we consider to be the most relevant and current conflicts between humans and non-human primates in Argentina and describe ongoing national and regional educational, research, and conservation approaches to mitigate those effects. ABSTRACT: There are five different primate species inhabiting widely distinct ecoregions in Argentina. Each of them faces various threats in terms of conservation and conflicts that hamper their ability to coexist with human populations. We present here some of the drivers known to be the causes of conflicts between humans and primates in the southernmost area of distribution of Latin American primates. We focus our synthesis on two of the biggest sources of conflict: the effects of different anthropogenic disturbances, and human misconceptions concerning the role of primates in the ecosystem. In each section, we briefly characterize the conflicts worldwide and then provide specific cases and examples from Argentina. In the last part of the manuscript, we further describe some ongoing national and regional educational, research, and conservation approaches to mitigate those effects.