Study Area
Fernando de Noronha is a small archipelago located in the tropical Atlantic Ocean (3º 51’ S / 32º 25’ W), with a territorial area of 18.6 km² (IBGE, 2019). It has a tropical climate with mean temperatures around 24°C (R. Dias et al., 2011). The island was discovered in 1503, but colonization started only in 1630 by the Dutch and in 1736 by the French. Portuguese colonization followed almost instantly, intensifying the militarization process of the archipelago, also bringing the first livestock animals (Grossman et al., 2010). Currently Fernando de Noronha is part of the Pernambuco State, and it is composed by two federal protected areas: (a) a marine national park (PARNAMAR), currently labeled as Category II of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and which covers 53% of the terrestrial area of the main island and all the secondary islands; and (b) an environmental protection area (APA), located around the inhabited area of the main island and labeled as Category VI of the IUCN. The population was estimated at 3,061 in 2019 (IBGE, 2019), and the concurrent tourist population is roughly twice the resident population.
The local fauna is relatively diversified; the Noronha skink (Trachylepis atlantica ) (Gasparini et al., 2007), the Noronha worm lizard (Amphisbaena ridleyi ) and three land birds (Elaenia ridleyana, Vireo gracilirostris and Zenaida auriculata noronha ) are endemic species from the archipelago. House geckos (Hemidactylus mabouia ), rococo toads (Rhinella jimi ), chickens, cats, dogs, horses, goats, sheep, cattle and tree frogs (Scinax sp.) are invasive species also found in the archipelago, as well as rocky cavies (Kerodon rupestris ) and tegu lizards (Salvator merianae ) (Dias et al., 2017). Three introduced rodent species coexist in the archipelago: Rattus rattus ,Rattus norvegicus, and Mus musculus .