The ecological impact on the distribution of Pangolins in Deng-Deng National Park, Eastern Region, Cameroon

Abstract

One of the major impediments to studying wild pangolins has been the diffi culty in locating them. In many areas where biodiversity surveys have been conducted, no pangolins were recorded, despite extensive nocturnal searches. The main objective of this survey was to assess the role of ecological factors on the distribution of pangolins in deng-deng national park. The research data collection method used for this study constituted the laying of fi fteen 2-kilometre transects in the study area. The collection of relevant data such as pangolin feeding-material signs, burrows, trails, foot-prints together with ecological parameters such as vegetation type, weather conditions, landscape and forest canopy type. The survey revealed that weather conditions and Pangolin-sign encounter rate were signifi cant, χ 2 = 6.125df=9 P<0.05. Moreover, a signifi cant association was found between canopy-types and the animal species encounter rate, χ 2 = 27.006 df=8 P<0.05. There was also a signifi cant link between the age of pangolin-sign and the forest-type, χ 2 = 29.995 df=30 P<0.05. The recent pangolin-sign recorded the highest encounter rate frequency 42.67%, while the fresh-signs encounter rate recorded 34.67% in the survey. The gentle and steep slopes both recorded an animal occurrence frequency of 41.3%, as compared to the very steep slope landscape 17.3%. This study has revealed that the pangolin species in deng-deng national park have an ecological distribution infl uence. Hence, the protection of these pangolin species would be much enhanced by the proper conservation and national park management strategies put in place by the Cameroon government.

Psychotherapy Practice, Education, and Training During the Coronavirus Pandemic: Members of the Editorial Board of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Journal of Australia Share Their Experiences

“…There are the larger questions, too, about the correlation-if not causality-between climate emergency, biodiversity loss, and the origins of the pandemic (Grandcolas & Justine, 2020;Maurice et al, 2019;Turcios-Casco & Cazzolla Gatti, 2020). There are eco-socio-political questions about whether, for instance, international flight is sustainable in the long-term (Chaudhary & Bakhshi, 2020).…”

Do not blame bats and pangolins! Global consequences for wildlife conservation after the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

“…Similarly, pangolins are an endangered group of only 8 species that live in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. They are nocturnal and solitary animals in nature, they meet conspecifics only to mate and live in hollow trees or ground borrows (Maurice et al 2019). Therefore, their chances to get in contact with bats and become an intermediate host of pathogens is unlikely in nature.…”

Habitat preference and distribution of pangolin in Ala Forest Reserve and Onipanu Community Forest of Southwestern Nigeria

“…Author(s) agree that this article remain permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License pangolins in primary and secondary tropical forests, limestone forests, bamboo forests, grasslands and agricultural fields. Similarly, Maurice et al (2019) observed that pangolins have a wide distribution, covering an array of natural and man-made habitats including tropical rain forests, subtropical thorn forests, deciduous forests, open scrublands, grasslands, cultivated lands and human settlements in Africa, unlike what was observed in India where the presence of pangolin in the pine-dominated forest was reported (Pabasara et al, 2015;Perera et al, 2017) in a comparative.…”

“…The woody plants recorded in the pangolin habitat were supported by the findings ofOdewumi and Ogunsina (2018) and were also among the important woody species recorded byOgunjemite et al (2012) in Old Oyo National Park. The habitat characteristics of the study areas are in tandem with the description ofMaurice et al (2019) that pangolin was present in various woodland and forest habitat types. Palm trees and some woody species were important to the distribution and presence of pangolin in the study areas because ants and termites are always found on the tree which provides food for the pangolin.…”