The spatial and agricultural basis of crop raiding by the Vulnerable common hippopotamus <i>Hippopotamus amphibius</i> around Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Kendall, Corinne J.

doi:10.1017/s0030605310000359

Cited by 40 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(43 reference statements)

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“…At the heart of the Rungwa-Ruaha region is the Ruaha National Park (RNP), which at 20,226 km 2 is the largest park in Tanzania (Kendall, 2011). Large parks such as Ruaha play an important role in biodiversity connectivity, protecting wide-ranging and migratory species which could not be conserved in isolated and smaller areas, and safeguard functioning ecosystems and large-scale ecological processes (IUCN, 2009).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the relative importance of landscape and husbandry factors in determining large carnivore depredation risk in Tanzania’s Ruaha landscape

Abade

Macdonald

Dickman

2014

Biological Conservation

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the relative importance of landscape and husbandry factors in determining large carnivore depredation risk in Tanzania’s Ruaha landscape

Abade

Macdonald

Dickman

2014

Biological Conservation

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“…Some large mammals, however, including elephants ( Loxodonta africana , Elephas maximus ), buffalos ( Syncerus caffer ), hippos ( Hippopotamus amphibius ), baboons ( Papio spp.) and wild suids (Kendall, ), often consume fruits and tubers when foraging in cultivated landscapes, and thus, the FMH may be less useful for predicting spatiotemporal variation in crop‐raiding behaviour by these species. Fruit ripening generally occurs after the peak in photosynthetic activity (i.e., the peak in green biomass) when plants have begun to senesce and minerals and nutrients have been mobilized and translocated to the maturing fruit (or storage organ) from vegetative parts that will soon die off.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of elephant foraging behaviour in a coupled human‐natural system: Is brown the new green?

Branco

Merkle

Pringle

et al. 2019

Journal of Animal Ecology

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Crop raiding by wildlife poses major threats to both wildlife conservation and human well‐being in agroecosystems worldwide. These threats are particularly acute in many parts of Africa, where crop raiders include globally threatened megafauna such as elephants, and where smallholder agriculture is a primary source of human livelihood. One framework for understanding herbivore feeding behaviour, the forage‐maturation hypothesis, predicts that herbivores should align their movements with intermediate forage biomass (i.e., peak green‐up); this phenomenon is known as “surfing the green wave.” Crop‐raiding elephants, however, often consume not just foliage, but also fruits and tubers (e.g., maize and potatoes), which generally mature after seasonal peaks in photosynthetic activity. Thus, although elephants have been reported to surf the green wave in natural habitats, they may utilize a different strategy in cultivated landscapes by selecting crops that are “browning down.” We sought to understand the factors that underpin movement of elephants into agricultural landscapes. In Mozambique's Gorongosa National Park, we used movement data from GPS‐collared elephants, together with precipitation records, remotely sensed estimates of landscape greenness (NDVI), DNA‐based diet analysis, measurements of plant nutritional quality and survey‐based metrics of crop availability to understand spatiotemporal variation in elephant crop‐raiding behaviour. Elephants tracked peak NDVI while foraging inside the Park. During the dry season, however, when NDVI within the Park declined and availability of mature crops was high, crop raiding increased dramatically, and elephants consistently selected crop plants that were browning down while foraging in cultivated landscapes. Crops contained significantly higher digestible energy than wild food plants, but comparable (and sometimes lower) levels of digestible protein, suggesting that this foraging strategy maximized energy rather than protein intake. Our study is the first to combine GPS tracking data with high‐resolution diet analysis and community‐based reporting of crop availability to reveal fine‐scale plasticity in foraging behaviour of elephants at the human–wildlife interface. Our results extend the forage‐maturation hypothesis by showing that elephants surf waves of plant brown‐down in cultivated landscapes. These findings can aid efforts to reduce human–elephant conflict by enabling wildlife managers to prioritize mitigation actions in time and space with limited resources.

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“…For example, pathways to water in Northern Australia could lead a tourist into crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) habitat and, if they enter the water, there is a high risk of fatal attack [46]. Similarly, in Africa pathways in the vicinity of water made by night-grazing Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibious) may lead to an encounter with this aggressive and dangerous species [47]. Again, risk to the ambulatory tourist may be minimised by management of the timing of activities and education on the threats in the landscape.…”

Section: Tourists and Wildlife In Each Other's Footstepsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Walking in Each Other’s Footsteps: Do Animal Trail Makers Confer Resilience against Trampling Tourists?

Croft

2019

Environments

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Modern humans, and other hominins before them, have walked across the landscapes of most continents for many millennia. They shared these landscapes with other large animals, especially mammalian herbivores and their predators, whose footsteps defined trails through the vegetation. Most of the diversity in the wild species is now concentrated in protected areas and visited by large numbers of tourists who may walk amongst them. This review examines the literature about medium-large animal and tourist trampling impacts to uncover any marriage between animal ecology and nature-based tourism research. Methodology is comparable. Animal ecology has focused on the propagation of grazing and trampling effects from a point source (usually water). Tourism research has focused on trail structure (formal/informal, hardened, wide/narrow) and the propagation of effects (especially weeds) into the hinterland and along the trail. There is little research to substantiate an evolutionary view of trampling impacts. At least tourists venturing off formed trails may reduce impacts by following animal trails with caveats, such as risk of encounters with dangerous animals and disruption of animal behavior. This is an under-studied topic but a fertile ground for research, aided by modern tools like trail cameras and geographically enabled devices borne by tourists.

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The spatial and agricultural basis of crop raiding by the Vulnerable common hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius around Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Cited by 40 publications

References 29 publications

Assessing the relative importance of landscape and husbandry factors in determining large carnivore depredation risk in Tanzania’s Ruaha landscape

Assessing the relative importance of landscape and husbandry factors in determining large carnivore depredation risk in Tanzania’s Ruaha landscape

Determinants of elephant foraging behaviour in a coupled human‐natural system: Is brown the new green?

Walking in Each Other’s Footsteps: Do Animal Trail Makers Confer Resilience against Trampling Tourists?

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