摘要：Increased devolution of forest ownership and management rights to local control has thepotential to promote both conservation and livelihood development in remote tropical regions. Such shiftsin property rights, however, can generate conflicts, particularly when combined with rapidly increasingvalues of forest resources. We explored the phenomenon of Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) theft incommunities in Western Amazonia. Through interviews with 189 Brazil nut collectors in 12 communitiesin Bolivia and Brazil and participation in the 2006 and 2007 harvests, we quantified relative income derivedfrom Brazil nuts, reported nut thefts, and nut collection and management practices. We found a muchgreater incidence of reported Brazil nut thefts in Pando, Bolivia than in the adjacent state of Acre, Brazil.Our analyses suggest that three factors may have affected nut thefts in the forest: (1) contrasts in the timingand process of formally recognizing property rights, (2) different historic settlement patterns, and (3)varying degrees of economic dependence on Brazil nuts. Threat of theft influenced Brazil nut harvestregimes, with potentially long-term implications for forest-based livelihoods, and management andconservation of Brazil nut-rich forests in Western Amazonia
关键词：Amazon; Bertholletia excelsa; Brazil nut; community forest management; land tenure; non-;timber forest products; NTFPs
