Valorizing the relationships between people and birds: Experiences and lessons from Honduras

The article is derived from a decade of qualitative investigation in urban and rural areas of Honduras focused on landscapes of human-avian interaction. It outlines a methodological framework for ethnoornithological inquiry based on the systematic analysis of both intentional and accidental relationships between people and birds, and marked by a series of indicators of such relationships. It discusses a model for human-bird interaction based on utilitarian, symbolic, and empathic values, and outlines a set of social and land-use differentiations of human-bird relationships that influence this model. The utility of this approach is applied to a discussion of ethnoornithology's role in conservation, and the concept of the conservation dialogue between local and outside actors is presented as a possible way forward.