Man determines the distribution of elephants in the rain forests of northeastern Gabon

Barnes, R. F. W.; Barnes, Keith; Alers, M. P. T.; Blom, A.

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2028.1991.tb00820.x

Cited by 151 publications

(149 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Canopy cover and forest structure explained variation in densities for several guilds and are likely associated with the abundance of food resources. Notably, elephants and apes had higher densities in forest with a heterogeneous canopy that provides herbaceous food plants for elephants and gorillas (Barnes et al 1991). In contrast, frugivorous and insectivorous birds and monkeys had higher densities in closed-canopy forest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Decoupling the effects of logging and hunting on an Afrotropical animal community

Poulsen

Clark

Bolker

2011

Ecological Applications

109

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Abstract. In tropical forests, hunting nearly always accompanies logging. The entangled nature of these disturbances complicates our ability to resolve applied questions, such as whether secondary and degraded forest can sustain populations of tropical animals. With the expansion of logging in central Africa, conservation depends on knowledge of the individual and combined impacts of logging and hunting on animal populations. Our goals were (1) to decouple the effects of selective logging and hunting on densities of animal guilds, including apes, duikers, monkeys, elephant, pigs, squirrels, and large frugivorous and insectivorous birds and (2) to compare the relative importance of these disturbances to the effects of local-scale variation in forest structure and fruit abundance. In northern Republic of Congo, we surveyed animals along 30 transects positioned in forest disturbed by logging and hunting, logging alone, and neither logging nor hunting. While sampling transects twice per month for two years, we observed 47 179 animals of 19 species and eight guilds in 1154 passages (2861 km). Species densities varied by as much as 480% among forest areas perturbed by logging and/or hunting, demonstrating the strong effects of these disturbances on populations of some species. Densities of animal guilds varied more strongly with disturbance type than with variation in forest structure, canopy cover, and fruit abundance. Independently, logging and hunting decreased density of some guilds and increased density of others: densities varied from 44% lower (pigs) to 90% higher (insectivorous birds) between logged and unlogged forest and from 61% lower (apes) to 77% higher (frugivorous birds) between hunted and unhunted forest. Their combined impacts exacerbated decreases in populations of some guilds (ape, duiker, monkey, and pig), but counteracted one another for others (squirrels, insectivorous and frugivorous birds). Together, logging and hunting shifted the relative abundance of the animal community away from large mammals toward squirrels and birds. Logged forest, even in the absence of hunting, does not maintain similar densities as unlogged forest for most animal guilds. To balance conservation with the need for economic development and wild meat in tropical countries, landscapes should be spatially managed to include protected areas, community hunting zones, and production forest.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Decoupling the effects of logging and hunting on an Afrotropical animal community

Poulsen

Clark

Bolker

2011

Ecological Applications

109

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“…Elephant avoidance of areas within 10 km of human settlements and roads has been reported elsewhere [23][24][25], along with a greater use of areas within 10 km of water sources [24,26,27]. We assessed elephant occurrence within 15 km of the highway, the nearest secondary road, unpaved park road, village, and Bénoué River.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Movement and Occurrence of Two Elephant Herds in a Human-Dominated Landscape, the Bénoué Wildlife Conservation Area, Cameroon

Granados

Weladji

Loomis

2012

Tropical Conservation Science

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Increasing human settlement and disturbance adjacent to protected areas have intensified competition between people and wildlife for resources and living space. In northern Cameroon, over 60,000 people live in villages surrounding Bénoué National Park. In that same area, as in other parts of Africa, savanna elephants damage crops, homes, water provision infrastructures, and grain stores. Using almost 1000 satellite-derived positions for two matriarch female elephants from 2007 to 2009, movement patterns were analyzed with respect to a highway, secondary roads, unpaved park roads, rivers, and villages through the use of log linear modeling. More than half of all locations and core areas occurred outside the park, while seasonal and individual differences in home range size and distribution were found within the protected area. Elephant occurrence within approximately 7 to 9 km of villages showed a decreasing trend with proximity. The highway appeared to act as a barrier to movement for one elephant herd, while the other did not come within 11 km of it. On the other hand, elephants remained close to the Bénoué River and secondary roads. Our findings show that in the Bénoué Wildlife Conservation Area, perennial water availability and human disturbance from the presence of villages can influence elephant spatial distribution in the protected area, and overlap of villages with elephant home range indicates a high potential for human-elephant conflict. This highlights the need for more effective land use planning to reduce such conflict and for additional research into movement patterns of the Bénoué National Park elephant population.

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“…The effect of human disturbance varies greatly, depending on its nature and intensity, and understanding this interaction is essential for managing protected areas (Prins & Reitsma, 1989;White, 1994;Fitzgibbon et al, 1995;Oates, 1996;Hall et al, 1998). However, large mammal densities and distribution are also influenced by a range of ecological factors, including vegetation (Barnes et al, 1991;White, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors influencing the distribution of large mammals within a protected central African forest

Blom

Zalinge

Heitkönig

et al. 2005

ORX

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This paper presents the analyses of data obtained from eight permanent 20 km transects to determine the relative effect of local human populations and ecological factors on the distribution of large mammals within the Dzanga sector of the Dzanga-Ndoki National Park and the adjacent area of the Dzanga-Sangha Dense Forest Special Reserve in south-west Central African Republic. Principal component analysis indicated that human activities significantly influence the distribution of large mammals, even within this protected area. Distance from the village and the main road as well as the distance from secondary roads appeared to have the greatest influence. Elephants in particular were significantly less common in areas related to human use. Our study showed that poachers use roads, both primary and secondary, to penetrate into the National Park. Thus increasing anti-poaching efforts along these roads could be an effective protection measure.

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Man determines the distribution of elephants in the rain forests of northeastern Gabon

Cited by 151 publications

References 8 publications

Decoupling the effects of logging and hunting on an Afrotropical animal community

Decoupling the effects of logging and hunting on an Afrotropical animal community

Movement and Occurrence of Two Elephant Herds in a Human-Dominated Landscape, the Bénoué Wildlife Conservation Area, Cameroon

Factors influencing the distribution of large mammals within a protected central African forest

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