Wildlife Threats and Their Relative Severity of Eastern Ethiopia Protected Areas

Abstract

Protected areas in Ethiopia faced a range of threats. However, little information is known about the type, pattern, and extent of these threats. Understanding these issues are crucial in prioritizing conservation strategies and to take appropriate mitigation measure for effective protection of wildlife. This study attempts to investigate the relative severity of threat to eastern Ethiopia protected areas and how these protected areas are threatened to the identified threats. A total of forty-five field officers from the five eastern Ethiopia protected areas were interviewed. Thirteen potential threats that affect the biodiversity of eastern Ethiopia were identified. The most important threats include grazing by domestic animal, shortage of funding, increased human population growth, expansion of invasive alien species, weak law enforcement, encroachment of human settlement, human wildlife conflict, lack of alternative livelihood activities and others. All of the protected areas are susceptible to most of the identified threats. Protected areas having acacia commiphora and scrub land a predominant ecosystem type and surrounded by settlement and agricultural land uses practice were the most susceptible to the threat factors. Babile elephant sanctuary and Yangudi-Rassa national park are the two most threatened protected areas. 58% of the threats showed strong positive and significant relationship with protected area relative threatened index. Thus, involvements of multi stakeholders including local community is essential to develop protected area management strategies by prioritizing the identified threats to reduce biodiversity loss in eastern Ethiopia protected areas.

Threats and their relative severity and driving forces in the African Elephant range wildlife protected areas of Ethiopia

“…), expansion of crop cultivation land (subsistence farming) and overgrazing by livestock being the top most severe and most widespread threat factors. These results agree with several similar reports in Ethiopia (e.g., Asefa et al, 2015;Wale et al, 2017;EWCA, 2018) and elsewhere in Africa (e.g., Kiringe and Okello, 2007). The implication of the findings is therefore; although most PAs are susceptible to all of the threats, dealing with poaching and human encroachment and associated activities (e.g., deforestation for cultivation and livestock grazing) in the studied PAs would secure critical habitats/ecosystems and elephant populations in the areas.…”

“…Thus, anthropogenic activities have adversely affected wildlife of the country directly through poaching/killing and indirectly by causing habitat loss and fragmentation. Such activities have resulted in a decline both in number and distributional ranges of populations of many of the most charismatic species in the country, such as Elephants (Loxodonta africana), Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis), Mountain Nyala (Tragelaphus buxtoni) and Walia Ibex (Capra walie) (Asefa, 2008;EWCA, 2015;Wale et al, 2017). The cumulative effects of biodiversity degradation brought about by human-induced threats have contributed to a continued decline in ecosystem functioning and processes and ecosystem service delivery of the PAs: For example, drying-out of perennial rivers, land degradation, erosion and flooding, heightening the vulnerabilities of Ethiopian people and the impacts of climate change (IBC, 2005;Wale et al, 2017).…”

“…However, only limited attempts have been made in Ethiopia to regularly evaluate the status and threats of the PAs (e.g. Asefa et al, 2015;Wale et al, 2017;Gebre, 2018). This lack of information on the nature and severity of threats across PAs of Ethiopia has led managers to apply the same threat mitigation strategies across the existing PAs; however, such application of similar strategies may not have any meaningful gains even in the years to come.…”

A preliminary survey of medium and large‐sized mammals from Lebu Natural Protected Forest, Southwest Showa, Ethiopia

“…Landscape modification and habitat fragmentation are major factors for species loss (Fischer & Lindenmayer, ; Johnstone, Reina, & Lill, ; Prugha, Hodgesb, Sinclairc, & Brasharesa, ). Expansion in agricultural schemes, deforestation, desertification, and hunting, resulting from economic activities which may cause loss to mammals (Bernardo & Melo, ; Kasso & Bekele, ; Wale, Kassie, Mulualem, Tesfahunegny, & Assefa, ). To overcome such enormous pressure from the mammals, conserving and managing them in and outside protected areas is a must among the nations of the world.…”

“…QUFA And BEKELE loss to mammals (Bernardo & Melo, 2013;Kasso & Bekele, 2014;Wale, Kassie, Mulualem, Tesfahunegny, & Assefa, 2017). To overcome such enormous pressure from the mammals, conserving and managing them in and outside protected areas is a must among the nations of the world.…”