A review of wildlife used by the Mayan communities in areas close to the nature reserves in the Yucatán Peninsula region, Mexico

The Mayan communities in the Yucatán Peninsula (YP) of Mexico have comprehensive knowledge regarding the uses of the local flora and fauna. The objectives of this study have been to integrate the knowledge of fauna uses (FU) to understand the sites studied and determine the diversity of uses, conservation categories and areas of greatest use of fauna in the YP, Mexico. An exhaustive search of references was conducted using the snowball method, applying keywords individually or in specific combinations. To know the areas of greatest influence of FU, 20 and 30 km spatial buffers were made using ArcGIS. A total of 22 FU studies covering 77 sites were analyzed; recording a total of 216 species for 12 main FUs. The main use associated with the consumption of wildlife among the Mayan communities has been as sources of food (157 species), since it provides the primary source of animal protein in their traditional diet.