Conhecimento herpetológico dos estudantes de uma comunidade rural do Recôncavo Baiano

Abstract

The cultural interaction between humans and the natural environment, especially associated with the exploitation of fauna and flora, favor the construction of traditional knowledge that can provide precious and unique information in the recognition and classification of organisms. However, it is noted that in the schools the contents of Zoology, specifically on reptiles and amphibians, are worked in a superficial way, making it difficult for students to understand the importance of these animals to nature. Based on these assumptions, the present study sought to investigate reptile and amphibian conceptions of students from the rural community of the district of São José do Itaporã, in the municipality of Muritiba, State of Bahia, aiming to promote demystification and awareness of the importance of herpetofauna conservation local. For this, a qualitative questionnaire with open and closed questions was applied. In addition, the technique of Draw-A-Scientist, with adaptations, was used for the collection of reptile and amphibian drawings. The data obtained through the questionnaires were categorized and analyzed with the help of Iramutec Software. The drawings were analyzed and later classified according to the characteristics elucidated in each representation. The results revealed that many students do not or do not know the importance of these animals to nature, in addition to not understanding the differences and morphological and biological characteristics of reptiles and amphibians. It was also verified that diverse myths and beliefs are attributed to herpetofauna, being the death of these animals the main consequence of this. Thus, there’s a need to improve and contextualize the teaching of living beings, allowing students to make associations between the animals in their region and scientific contents, emphasizing the significance of these beings to the ecosystems, in order to conserve local biodiversity.