Knowledge on faunal diversification in African rainforests remains scarce. We used phylogeography to assess (i) the role of Pleistocene climatic oscillations in the diversification of the African common pangolin (Manis tricuspis) and (ii) the utility of our multilocus approach for taxonomic delineation and trade tracing of this heavily poached species. We sequenced 101 individuals for two mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), two nuclear DNA and one Y-borne gene fragments (totalizing 2602 bp). We used a time-calibrated, Bayesian inference phylogenetic framework and conducted character-based, genetic and phylogenetic delineation of species hypotheses within African common pangolins. We identified six geographic lineages partitioned into western Africa, Ghana, the Dahomey Gap, western central Africa, Gabon and central Africa, all diverging during the Middle to Late Pleistocene. MtDNA (cytochrome b + control region) was the sole locus to provide diagnostic characters for each of the six lineages. Tree-based Bayesian delimitation methods using single- and multilocus approaches gave high support for 'species' level recognition of the six African common pangolin lineages. Although the diversification of African common pangolins occurred during Pleistocene cyclical glaciations, causative correlation with traditional rainforest refugia and riverine barriers in Africa was not straightforward. We conclude on the existence of six cryptic lineages within African common pangolins, which might be of major relevance for future conservation strategies. The high discriminative power of the mtDNA markers used in this study should allow an efficient molecular tracing of the regional origin of African common pangolin seizures.

Côte d'Ivoire is the world's leading cocoa producer, annually generating over 1,500,000 metric tons of Theobroma cacao beans. Growth of this agri-business has led to extensive deforestation in Côte d'Ivoire, where the majority of the country's forest (excluding that in Tai National Park) exists as small, fragmented forest islands. Most of these forest blocks are designated as national parks or forest reserves, i.e., protected areas (PAs), but wildlife within Côte d'Ivoire's PAs is increasingly threatened by two illegal activities: hunting and full sun cocoa farming. In this paper, we investigate the impact of cocoa production on primate populations inside protected areas. We surveyed twenty three PAs (5 national parks, 18 forest reserves) in Côte d'Ivoire to determine (1) the number of primate taxa present, (2) the number of human inhabitants living adjacent to or within each PA, (3) the extent of overall habitat degradation, and (4) the extent of habitat degradation due to cocoa farming. Our data reveal a significant positive correlation (r² = .736, p < .01, α = 0.01) between cocoa farming and the absence of primate species inside Côte d'Ivoire's national parks and forest reserves. Thirteen of 23 protected areas surveyed have lost all primate populations, and four taxa -Colobus vellerosus (white-thighed black and white colobus), Colobus polykomos (Western black and white colobus), Procolobus badius waldroni (Miss Waldron's red colobus) and Procolobus badius badius (Bay colobus) -were not found in any PAs we visited. Aggressive conservation action is needed to curb hunting throughout Côte d'Ivoire, but unless illegal cocoa farming is similarly controlled, even effective enforcement of anti-hunting laws will not prevent the loss of additional primate diversity, since habitats capable of supporting primate populations -including those within protected areas -will no longer exist.

For most Ivorian regions quantitative data on the exploitation of bushmeat by local communities are scarce. We studied hunting patterns around Dassioko Sud Forest Reserve, a remnant coastal forest in south-eastern Côte d'Ivoire, through a 6-month survey of nine restaurants, in three villages surrounding the Reserve. We collected quantitative and qualitative data on the bushmeat brought to restaurants, as well as the final price for which it was sold. We calculated mean prices over the study period and extrapolated to the whole year. A total of 376 mammals (98%) and eight reptiles (2%) were sold in the restaurants surveyed. Rodents and small antelopes represented 74% of the mammals sold, probably reflecting the fact that reproductive strategists persist more successfully in heavily hunted and/or agricultural landscapes, such as the area around the Reserve. Our conservative estimate of the total biomass of bushmeat harvested annually around the Reserve is c. 40,428.03 kg (c. 11,886 animals), with a monetary value of c. FCFA 47,728,516 (c. USD 93,485.75 ), yielding an annual income of c. USD10,387.31 per person, which exceeds the mean annual income of cocoa farmers (FCFA 466,032/USD 932) more than tenfold. Although the sustainability of the bushmeat trade in the surveyed area remains unknown, we showed that hunters predominantly used cable snares, the Reserve was significantly affected by hunting activities (c. 53% of the bushmeat originated there), and larger mammalian species had been extirpated. A lack of effective protection exposes the Reserve to multiple illegal activities, including hunting, a situation exacerbated by the political crisis in 2010.

Côte d’Ivoire holds 18 catarrhine taxa, with 3 endemic to Côte d’Ivoire and neighbouring Ghana. Nine of the taxa occurring in Côte d’Ivoire are listed as threatened at the global level. However, information on their conservation status within the country is available for only a limited number of taxa. In order to assess the current distribution of primates and their conservation status, we conducted foot surveys and interviews in protected forests in the southern part of Côte d’Ivoire. Our data suggest that 22 out of 23 surveyed forests have lost 25–100% of the primate taxa expected to occur in these areas. The only exception is the Taï National Park where all of the expected primate taxa were encountered. Based on our surveys, we propose an updated national list according to the IUCN Red List criteria for all diurnal primate species of Côte d’Ivoire.