Crop raiding around Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda

In areas around Lake Mburo National Park, large wild animals wander in close proximity to human settlements. This poses serious conflict in terms of crop damage. The integration of conservation with other land uses is difficult where densely settled agricultural land surrounds a protected area potentially containing problem animals, as is the case for several parks in Africa and Asia. The intensity of crop raiding was quantified through the use of random crop quadrants/plots and area estimation techniques in a portion of raided fields. The animal species concerned were documented from observations, footprints and any other marks left behind. Three variables were tested as predictors of damage: human population density, distance from the park boundary and season. In this study, data is presented regarding crop loss in the different seasons of the year, analysis of crop damage variation and animal species involved in crop loss. A diverse assemblage of animals foraged on subsistence crops and analysis of crop damage revealed significant crop depreciation by wildlife.     

Mitigating crop raiding by forest elephants and baboons at Kibale National Park

In Africa, most protected forests are in densely human-dominated landscapes where human–wildlife conflict is intense. We documented farmer perceptions and responses to crop-raiding wildlife from Kibale National Park, Uganda. Crop raiding was mostly (95%) by baboons (Papio anubis) and elephants (Loxodonta africana). While the financial loss caused by baboons and elephants did not differ, elephants were perceived as more damaging. Guarding and trenches were perceived as the most effective deterrent strategies for baboons and elephants, respectively. Distance from the park boundary and household income were significantly associated with a greater likelihood of crop raiding. Distance from the park, household head age and the species that raided crops, influenced whether a household applied one or more deterrent strategies. Households headed by women or older adults were most vulnerable, experiencing greater losses to raiding. Patterns of human–wildlife conflict around Kibale forest are complex, but the extent of crop damage was mostly determined by distance from the park and farm socio-economic status and thus their ability to mitigate or deter raiding. Managing crop raiding requires collaboration between the park and affected farmers to ensure that mutually managed deterrent methods, such as trenching (elephants) and guarding (baboons), are effectively shared, applied and maintained.     

Modelling the effectiveness of enforcement strategies for avoiding tropical deforestation in Kerinci Seblat National Park,Sumatra

As the tropical deforestation crisis continues, innovative schemes are being developed to reduce this loss, such as the sale of forest carbon credit. Nevertheless, to address this ongoing and pervasive loss, governments, protected area managers and donors need to know where to invest their limited conservation resources for greatest success. At the moment this prioritisation is rarely done objectively, so there is a need for new methods that predict the efficacy of different approaches. In this study, we focus on forest loss in and around one of Indonesia’s largest protected areas, Kerinci Seblat National Park (KSNP), and evaluate the effectiveness of several forest protection scenarios. First, forest loss patterns from 1985 to 2002 were mapped for the southern end of the KS region and the correlates of deforestation were determined using a logistic regression analysis. This highlighted the critical threat posed to the forest by its proximity to the forest edge and to settlements, as well as its elevation and slope. This regression model was then used to map the predicted risk of remaining forest being cleared and was combined with field data to model the results of three law enforcement scenarios up to the year 2020. This found that a strategy that concentrated patrol effort at the four main access points was found to avoid the most deforestation. These results show that modelling the impact of different protection strategies can provide important insights and could be used more widely in deforestation mitigation and designing conservation landscapes.     

Investigating the feasibility of a passive tracking index for monitoring wildlife in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia

In many places in Africa, constraints in human, financial and physical resources are common problems that limit the effectiveness of wildlife researchers and managers. In an attempt to identify a useful tool for monitoring African wildlife populations, we tested a passive tracking index (PTI) methodology on a unique wildlife resource area in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia. The methodology had previously proved valuable for monitoring a wide variety of wildlife species, including ungulates and carnivores in North America and Australia. Two ungulates (lesser kudu and dikdik), a carnivore (hyaena), a primate (baboon), and a ground foraging bird (guineafowl) were simultaneously indexed. In addition, single observations were recorded for genet, serval and caracal. The species indexed also represent the broad needs for monitoring wildlife. The mammal species are of economic importance to the region through sport hunting. Two of the species, hyaenas and baboons, potentially conflict with human agricultural interests through depredations on livestock and crop production. Anthrax periodically decimates the wildlife in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, but losses of many species are difficult to observe or quantitatively document. The PTI is a simple‐to‐apply, easy‐to‐calculate means to quantify simultaneously population trends for multiple species, and particularly applicable to sustainable harvest by sport hunting, human–wildlife conflicts, and impacts and recovery from wildlife disease.     

First palaeoecological evidence of buffalo husbandry and rice cultivation in the Kerinci Seblat National Park in Sumatra,Indonesia

Vegetation History and Archaeobotany - Rice is one of the most important subsidence crops, however evidence of the origin and domestication of rice cultivation is still scarce in Indonesia. This...     

钱江源国家公园红外相机监测平台进展概述

钱江源国家公园红外相机监测平台由钱江源国家公园管理局与中国科学院植物研究所、北京大学合作建立, 覆盖了钱江源国家公园全域和毗邻的安徽及江西省的部分区域。其中, 钱江源国家公园古田山片区的监测始于2014年5月, 其他区域的监测始于2018年7月; 毗邻的江西、安徽区域的监测分别始于2017年11月和2018年3月。截至2020年5月, 共在343个公里网格内完成了1,033个有效位点的调查, 总有效相机工作日331,834 d, 共获得兽类、鸟类的照片和视频718,515份, 独立有效探测数151,221次。其中, 658,644份照片和视频可鉴定到物种, 对应133,204次独立有效探测。记录到分属7目15科的野生兽类23种, 分属9目27科的野生鸟类75种。通过覆盖全域的长期监测, 完成了钱江源国家公园大中型兽类的本底调查, 开展了关键物种栖息地利用和种群动态等研究, 为国家公园的规划、保护管理措施的制定和保护管理成效的评估提供了数据支持。今后, 本监测平台将在时间和空间尺度上进一步拓展, 以服务于国家公园主要保护目标和生态系统的完整性保护, 并将研究成果转化为国家公园自然教育的案例和素材。     

大熊猫国家公园的地栖大中型鸟兽多样性现状: 基于红外相机数据的分析

生物多样性监测是国家公园保护的核心基础。大熊猫国家公园是我国首批5个国家公园之一, 系统的保护规划与有效的管理行动均有赖于对区内生物多样性本底、现状与动态的深入了解。为了解大熊猫国家公园范围内兽类与鸟类多样性本底与现状, 本研究系统检索了该区域内2005-2020年基于红外相机调查技术的野生动物研究论文、项目报告以及新闻报道, 并对区内原有保护地的红外相机监测历史与结果进行了问卷调查。结果表明, 2005-2020年期间, 在大熊猫国家公园范围内51个保护地的红外相机调查与监测中, 共记录到分属6目22科55属的71种野生兽类与分属13目45科132属的232种野生鸟类。在国家公园所覆盖的秦岭、岷山、邛崃山、相岭4大山系中, 邛崃和岷山记录到的大中型地栖鸟兽物种多样性最高(均为兽类40种, 鸟类12种), 相岭最低(兽类25种, 鸟类7种)。单个保护地中记录到的大中型地栖鸟兽物种数量与保护地面积、红外相机有效工作日及相机位点的海拔跨度均呈正相关, 国家级保护地中记录到的物种数(28 ± 8.3, mean ± SD)显著高于省级保护地(19 ± 8.9)。在大熊猫国家公园内共记录到猫科与犬科的4种大型食肉动物, 即豹(Panthera pardus)、雪豹(P. uncia)、狼(Canis lupus)和豺(Cuon alpinus), 主要来自于秦岭山系和邛崃山系, 而国家公园内的岷山山系则没有记录到大型食肉动物, 相岭山系中仅有1次狼的记录。本研究结果显示, 大熊猫国家公园内前期已经建立起的自然保护地网络与红外相机监测体系已积累大量区内野生兽类与鸟类的基础数据, 为国家公园的试点与建设提供了生物多样性编目与监测方面的可靠本底。在这些前期工作的基础上, 大熊猫国家公园应进一步规划、建设标准化的野生动物监测体系, 为今后国家公园的管理决策、成效评估提供坚实的科学支撑。     

Diet of wild boar Sus scrofa in Western Europe, with particular reference to consumption of agricultural crops

1. The diet of wild boar Sus scrofa in Western Europe is reviewed, paying particular attention to the consumption of agricultural crops and the implications of this from the point of view of crop damage. Data were taken mainly from 11 studies that provide quantitative information about the consumption of different food types, but we also list all the foods reported as being eaten by wild boar in a total of 21 studies. 2. Vegetable foods occurred more frequently in the diet than animal foods, and also constituted the bulk of the food ingested. Overall, there were four major vegetable food categories: mast, roots, green plant matter and agricultural crops. Depending on the study area, wild boar always consumed at least one energy‐rich plant food such as acorns, beechnuts, chestnuts, pine seeds, olives, cereal grains or other crops. The number and types of agricultural crops consumed varied between study areas but crops represent an important component of wild boar diet throughout its Western European range. Among animal foods, insects, earthworms, birds and mammals were eaten most consistently but the diet also included amphibians, reptiles, gastropods and myriapods. 3. Seasonal, interannual and regional differences in the diet, together with its striking overall breadth, indicate that wild boar are opportunistic omnivores whose diet, in any particular instance, is largely determined by the relative availability of different food types. Dependence on energy‐rich plant material as a major component of the diet, coupled with large body size and a propensity to trample crops as well as consume them, means that wild boar cause significant agricultural damage.     

Effects of human–carnivore conflict on tiger (Panthera tigris) and prey populations in Lao PDR

Unique to South-east Asia, Lao People's Democratic Republic contains extensive habitat for tigers and their prey within a multiple-use protected area system covering 13% of the country. Although human population density is the lowest in the region, the impact of human occurrence in protected areas on tiger Panthera tigris and prey populations was unknown. We examined the effects of human–carnivore conflict on tiger and prey abundance and distribution in the Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected Area on the Lao–Vietnam border. We conducted intensive camera-trap sampling of large carnivores and prey at varying levels of human population and monitored carnivore depredation of livestock across the protected area. The relative abundance of large ungulates was low throughout whereas that of small prey was significantly higher where human density was lower. The estimated tiger density for the sample area ranged from 0.2 to 0.7 per 100 km². Tiger abundance was significantly lower where human population and disturbance were greater. Three factors, commercial poaching associated with livestock grazing followed by prey depletion and competition between large carnivores, are likely responsible for tiger abundance and distribution. Maintaining tigers in the country's protected areas will be dependent on the spatial separation of large carnivores and humans by modifying livestock husbandry practices and enforcing zoning.     

Patterns of Land Cover Change in and Around Madidi National Park, Bolivia

This study examines how human land uses and biophysical factors serve as predictors of land cover change in and around Madidi National Park in Bolivia. The Greater Madidi Landscape ranges over an elevational gradient from < 200 m in the Amazon basin to 6000 m in the high Andes, contains more than ten major ecosystem types, and several protected areas and sustainable use zones. In this study, Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite images collected over the study area at the beginning of the 1990s and then the 2000s were classified according to broad land cover types. Below elevations of 3000 m, the landscape experienced equal rates of deforestation and secondary forest increases of approximately 0.63 percent annually, resulting in no significant net change. Below elevations of 1000 m, however, we found an annual net loss in forest cover of 0.11 percent. Across the landscape, land cover change was most likely to occur near areas previously deforested, near roads and population centers, and at low elevations. We found net deforestation rates to be inversely related to strength of natural resource protection laws in protected areas and other jurisdictions. Results suggest little net change for the landscape as a whole, but that local scale changes may be significant, particularly near roads. Management policies favorable for biodiversity conservation in this landscape should limit the building of new roads and immigration to biologically sensitive areas and continue to support protected areas, which are achieving a positive result for forest conservation.     

The poultry thief: Subsistence farmers' perceptions of depredation outside the Serengeti National Park,Tanzania

Improving the understanding of human–carnivore conflicts is fundamental for the effective management of interventions. However, earlier research has largely focused on conflicts caused by top carnivores, and there is a general lack of knowledge about the drivers behind conflicts caused by smaller carnivores. Here, we investigated the characteristics and spatial patterns of perceived predators that caused losses of poultry. We used a structured interview of 481 households across seven villages outside Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Most households kept poultry and livestock, and 48.4% of all households perceived to have lost poultry to predators, but it was unrelated to perceived livestock depredation. On average, predators killed almost one‐third of the poultry kept by each household, which is equivalent to an average annual economic loss of US $14.5 ± 18.6, or 10.4% of the cash income. Economic dependency did not influence the likelihood of perceiving depredation. The most parsimonious linear mixed‐effects model showed that the probability of claiming losses to predators increased with increasing flock sizes and distance to the nearest protected area. We discuss our findings in relation to the current interest in rural poultry production shown by conservation programmes in Africa.     

Abundance and diversity of rodents at the human–wildlife interface in Western Serengeti, Tanzania

Rodent species abundance and diversity in Western Serengeti are evaluated and discussed in relation to different levels of conservation status [Unprotected Area (UA), Game Reserve (GR) and National Park (NP)] and broad site differences in human livelihood activities. A total of 2170 individuals, spread over 16 rodent species, were caught in a capture‐mark‐recapture study which covered both the dry and wet seasons. The more humid site (Tabora B) in the northern part of Serengeti had the highest diversity of rodents followed by the Mihale site at the western extension. The driest site at Robanda had the lowest overall species diversity. Diversity also varied between the three levels of conservation status whereby the UA had the least diversity while the NP, which enjoyed the highest level of conservation status, had the highest diversity of rodents. Unprotected Area and NP plots at Tabora B showed a rodent species similarity index of 40%; all the other paired plots scored over 50% similarity indices, suggesting that, within a site, species composition did not vary significantly between the three levels of conservation status. The Robanda site had the highest (56%) overall abundance of rodents; Mihale and Tabora B sites had about the same level of rodent abundance (20 and 24% respectively). For the Mihale site, Mastomys natalensis ranked first followed by Arvicanthis niloticus and Tatera robusta, each of which contained 40, 38 and 16%, respectively, of all individuals caught at the site. For the Robanda site, the figures were 66%A. niloticus, 22%M. natalensis and 9%T. robusta; while for the Tabora B site the scores were 37%M. natalensis, 18%T. robusta and 11%Lemniscomys barbarus. The differences in diversity, species composition and population abundance appear to result largely from physiognomic vegetation types, and habitat perturbations caused by livelihood activities in Western Serengeti.     

Distribution and population density of badgers Meles meles in Luxembourg

1. The distribution and density of Eurasian badgers Meles meles in Luxembourg was estimated by gathering information about the location of badger setts with a questionnaire survey, by visiting 708 setts in order to classify them as ‘main setts’ or ‘outliers’, and by estimating social group size by directly counting emerging badgers. 2. Badgers were found to be widely distributed in Luxembourg, with a minimum main sett density of 0.17 setts/km². Setts were sited preferentially in forest habitat. The mean minimum group size was 4.6 badgers. 3. The Luxembourg badger population was conservatively estimated to contain at least 2010 adult and young badgers (95% CI 1674–2347) in spring 2002, equivalent to a density of 0.78 adult and young badgers/km² (95% CI 0.65–0.91). This is moderate compared to most of continental Europe.     

The Human–Macaque Interface: Conservation Implications of Current and Future Overlap and Conflict in Lore Lindu National Park, Sulawesi, Indonesia

Here, I examine overlapping resource use of forest and cultivated resources by villagers and tonkean macaques (Macaca tonkeana) in Lore Lindu National Park, Sulawesi, Indonesia. An integrative research design was employed, using methods from primatology and cultural anthropology, in conjunction with quantitative measurements of cacao crop loss. The results indicate that the current patterns of overlapping resource use may not be severely affecting the tonkean macaques or villagers in Lindu. The research does, however, point to possible future difficulty if cacao crop raiding by macaques increases, and as changing socioeconomic trends and loss of traditional folklore result in further modification of macaque habitat. Successful strategies to ameliorate human–macaque conflict may require efforts aimed at the adoption of alternative buffer zone crops that use shade-management systems, the deliberate protection of important macaque food species, and increasing local tolerance to crop raiding by exploring the role of macaques in forest regeneration.     

Zoning has little impact on the seasonal diel activity and distribution patterns of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in an UNESCO Biosphere Reserve

Understanding the spatio‐temporal distribution of ungulates is important for effective wildlife management, particularly for economically and ecologically important species such as wild boar (Sus scrofa). Wild boars are generally considered to exhibit substantial behavioral flexibility, but it is unclear how their behavior varies across different conservation management regimes and levels of human pressure. To analyze if and how wild boars adjust their space use or their temporal niche, we surveyed wild boars across the core and buffer zones (collectively referred to as the conservation zone) and the transition zone of a biosphere reserve. These zones represent low and high levels of human pressure, respectively. Specifically, we employed a network of 53 camera traps distributed in the Schaalsee UNESCO Biosphere Reserve over a 14‐month period (19,062 trap nights) and estimated circadian activity patterns, diel activity levels, and occupancy of wild boars in both zones. To account for differences in environmental conditions and day length, we estimated these parameters separately for seven 2‐month periods. Our results showed that the wild boars were primarily nocturnal, with diurnal activity occurring dominantly during the summer months. The diel activity patterns in the two zones were very similar overall, although the wild boars were slightly less active in the transition zone than in the conservation zone. Diel activity levels also varied seasonally, ranging from 7.5 to 11.0 h day⁻¹, and scaled positively with the length of the night (R ² = 0.66–0.67). Seasonal occupancy estimates were exceptionally high (point estimates ranged from 0.65 to 0.99) and similar across zones, suggesting that the wild boars used most of the biosphere reserve. Overall, this result suggests that different conservation management regimes (in this case, the zoning of a biosphere reserve) have little impact on wild boar behavior. This finding is relevant for wildlife management in protected areas where possibly high wild boar densities could interfere with conservation goals within these areas and those of agricultural land use in their vicinity.     

Visitor monitoring methods for managing public use pressures in the Danube Floodplains National Park, Austria

National parks in close proximity to large urban areas, such as the Danube Floodplains National Park near Vienna, need an intensive monitoring of recreational use due to the high number of visitors and the highly fragmented natural settings. Visitors in the National Park were monitored using an approach that integrated long-term video monitoring, counts by human observers, specific visitor interviews and route analysis by the application of GIS tools. The combination of monitoring and survey data allows a thorough analysis of public use patterns, as illustrated by a case study of dog walkers in the park. Results demonstrate the value of integrated monitoring approaches, and serve as a basis for improved sustainable management of the Danube Floodplains National Park.     

Conservation and management issues of Prespa National Park

The present article describes the human activities inthe area and their changes and trends, given that thecontemporary nature conservation key issues areclosely related to past and present socio-economic andcultural conditions, both within Prespa itself andoutside of it. The liberation of Prespa, a remote andrather socially isolated borderline area, from Ottoman occupation took place in 1912–13. Recentevents in its environmental history have been forestclearings and human depopulation in the Civil War(1944–49), irrigation system construction in the1960s, its discovery by ornithologists in the late1960s, the high emigration rates of 1960–1980, itsdesignation as a National Park in 1974, thedestructive development works of 1984–86 afterGreeces entry to the EEC and the conversion to intensivebean cultivation in the mid 1980s.The human population of ca 7000 at the start of thiscentury suffered an almost 80% decrease after theCivil War. A resettlement in the mid 1950s increasedthe population by 40% but in the 1970s emigrationreduced it to its previous size of around 1500, stillits present size. The extensive and diverse farmingsystems of previous centuries changed gradually afterthe construction of an irrigation network in the1960s, which twenty years later and along withinternational changes in production and economypatterns, made possible the present day domination ofa bean monoculture within irrigated croplands. Thiswas accompanied by increased energy inputs,mechanisation and the use of chemicals.Intensification of agriculture brought increasedincomes which attracted also livestock keepers,resulting in a 56% decrease in numbers of livestockin 1964–1993. Cattle are presently kept for meatproduction only. They graze on the mountains, and nolonger in the meadows around the lakeshore. A localshorthorn breed accounting for 93% of all cattle in1963 declined to less than 18% in 1993. Fishing aimedmainly at carp and Prespa bleak, continues today as inthe past to be a source of supplementary income.Eighty-six per cent of the – mainly oak and beech –forests are State owned and the rest belong to localmunicipalities. The forest area has not changedessentially in the last 40 years, but forest roadshave expanded. Forests provide mainly fuelwood forlocal needs and small quantities of industrial timber.No specific management is conducted to safeguard theconservation values of the forest, the majority ofwhich consists of even aged coppiced stands withlimited value for wildlife. Manufacturing never playedan important role for the economy of the area. Tourismhas increased in the last 20 years, concentratedmainly in summer and spring. Accommodation in thevillages is not yet satisfactory though it hasimproved enormously in recent years. The NationalParks infrastructure for visitors remains poor.Tourist pressure generally is not yet that high toimpact drastically the social and environmentalfabric. In places, hunting, angling and poaching cannegatively affect the target species. The constructionof the irrigation network in the eastern part of LakeMikri Prespa was the most important change to thelandscape and the habitats of Prespa the last 30years. It resulted in the embankment of free-flowingstreams, drainage of wet meadows and dramaticreduction of trees and hedges. In the last 15 years,the reedbeds, no longer burnt or mowed and assisted byincreased nutrient loadings from agricultural runoff,have expanded landward to occupy formerly open,periodically flooded, areas. The above changes inhabitats and land use have brought an impoverishmentof biodiversity which can be seen in the exterminationor the decrease in the numbers of certain plant andbird species.The problems preventing a better management of theNational Park and the perpetuation of its values areinappropriate legislation, the poor degree ofcoordination of the public services, the lack of botha specific National Park Service in Greece and amanagement authority for the Park and the hostileattitude of local people due to their limitedinformation and involvement. The scenic beauty, thewetlands and a number of rare habitats, the diversityof habitats, flora and fauna, the endemic life forms,the rare mammals and the colonial waterbirds, thelocal architecture and the cultural expressions suchas the Byzantine monuments, are the values of Prespathat must be preserved as a whole. The initialconservation efforts aimed at preserving biodiversitybut later it became apparent that not only are humansan inseparable part of the whole, but additionally,several of their extensive activities have contributedsubstantially to the rich biodiversity of the area.Through the prerequisites of keeping a balance betweenprimary and tertiary sector activities and ofrevitalizing the social fabric, the following are thekey management and conservation issues of today: anunequivocal agreement on the values to be preservedand their limits; the formation of a managementauthority; a new realistic protection and land usezoning; the diversification and extensification of allfarming activities; the restoration of the wet meadowhabitats; the ensuring of a high water level and agood water quality for both lakes through tri-lateralcooperation between Greece, Albania and FYROM; and theestablishment of a permanent environmental monitoringscheme.