Status of wildlife at trophy hunting sites in the Ugalla Game Reserve of Western Tanzania

Abstract

In western Tanzania's wildlife ecosystems, both commercial and subsistence uses of wildlife take place. Commercial use is largely through trophy hunting in designated hunting areas while subsistence use is predominantly carried out by local people for food and as a source of cash income. Assessing the status of wildlife populations in hunting areas is of supreme importance if unsustainable use is to be controlled. In this study, we carried out road transect surveys to estimate the density, group size and sex ratio of selected species of exploited wildlife in Ugalla Game Reserve, western Tanzania, to determine whether population characteristics differed between the Ugalla east and Ugalla west hunting sites. Overall, estimates of density and group size were higher at Ugalla east than Ugalla west. Of the individual species, the helmeted guineafowl had the highest population density, followed by impala and topi. Waterbuck had the lowest population density. When comparing our findings with population densities reported in other studies, especially in the more protected Katavi National Park in western Tanzania, our estimates were much lower. Sex ratios varied considerably among species although they were generally skewed towards females. Future studies should integrate data from subsistence and trophy hunting and evaluate the status of wildlife taking into account habitat characteristics.

RETRACTED: Population and Trophy Quality Trends of Three Gregarious Herbivores in an Insulated Semi-Arid Savanna Ecosystem (Cawston Ranch, Zimbabwe), 1997–2014

“…We further grouped data on population estimate and hunting pressure into three time intervals 2) one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to determine whether there were differences in (i) group size, animal density and population estimates for the three species, and (ii) population estimates and hunting pressure for the three time intervals; and (3) one sample t-test to ascertain whether there was a difference in the observed trophy quality, and (i) the known standard trophy sizes for impala: 26.4, greater kudu: 52 and sable: 41.88 inches respectively [32], and (ii) the SCI minimum score for impala: 52, greater kudu: 121 and sable 96 inches (http://www.scirecordbook.org). Bonferonni post-hoc tests were further computed for significant differences observed in the population parameters between the three species and time intervals.…”

“…Although the significance of trophy hunting in Africa is well documented, very little attention has been given to trends in trophy quality in African wildlife species other than lions (Panthera leo) [25,[29][30][31][32]. In Zimbabwe, a decline in the trophy quality of three hunted gregarious herbivores, impala (Aepyceros melampus), greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) and sable (Hippotragus niger) in Matetsi hunting area has been noticed [30].…”

Challenges facing the introduction of SMART patrols in a game reserve, western Tanzania

“…The management of Ugalla is administered by the newly formed Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (TAWA) through Ugalla's main office in Tabora. Ugalla mainly consists of miombo woodland with commercially valuable timber tree species (UGR, ) and supports a wide variety of wildlife, including African elephant and endangered African wild dogs ( Lycaon pictus , [Temminck, 1820]; Wilfred & MacColl, ). The reserve is also an important bird area (BirdLife International, ) and is part of the Malagarasi‐Muyovozi Ramsar Site (Kalumanga, ) that protects habitat for the vulnerable shoebill ( Balaeniceps rex , [Gould, 1850]) and wattled crane ( Bugeranus carunculatus , [Gmelin, 1789]; John, Nahonyo, Lee, & Msuya, ).…”

Trophy Hunting, Conservation, and Rural Development in Zimbabwe: Issues, Options, and Implications

“…Most of the experts viewed the quota setting process in Zimbabwe as overly relaying on opinions of stakeholders and not based on the monitoring data on population sizes thus compromising the sustainability of the process. Similarly there have been reports on the decline in trophy size of hunted species in some cases in Zimbabwe [97] as has also been the case with other regional countries, that is, South Africa [98,99,135], western Tanzania [136], and Zambia [137]. It is somehow believed that there seems to be a lack of implementation of age based harvesting strategies as required by the Zimbabwean policies on trophy hunting [58].…”