Space, Place, and Hunting Patterns among Indigenous Peoples of the Guyanese Rupununi Region

Hunting remains an important subsistence activity for many indigenous peoples of the Neotropics. This paper describes indigenous hunting patterns using a mixed-methods approach in southern Guyana from a space and place perspective that takes into account both biophysical and cultural/spiritual factors. Findings confirm those of others, that distance from community, mediated by characteristics of the biophysical environment, impacts where hunters go. Mapping of the spiritual landscape, however, demonstrates that sense of place is also important. This paper argues that researchers and managers should be careful to incorporate both the local environmental and cultural/spiritual contexts in studies that inform biodiversity and sustainable resource-use management.