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Community-based monitoring of primate populations in the Support Zone of Korup Project Area, SW Cameroon (1998 -2001)
Field Study in Africa
Location of Site: CAMEROON, Nguti, SW Province

Director: Lien (Biomonitoring Co-ordinator, Korup Project), K. Faber, (Advisor to Biomonitoring, Korup Project) and Dr. Matthias Waltert, Prof. Dr. M. Muehlenberg (Scientific backstopping, University of Goettingen)
E-Mail: jackylien@hotmail.com
SW Province Germany: Centre for Nature Conservation (Dept. I), University of Goettingen, Von-Siebold-Strasse 2, 37075 Goettingen; Cameroun: Korup Project, B.P. 2417 Douala CAMEROON
Institution: Korup Project & University of Goettingen

Sponsoring Institution(s): WWF, EU, GTZ, GOC

Research Objectives: The global objective of the Korup Project is to conserve the biodiversity of the Korup Project Area. The project purpose is: the different actors protect, develop and use the natural resources in an ecologically and economically sustainable and socially acceptable way. The majority of people living around the protected areas depend on animal wildlife, which is one of the main sources of protein. Community-based Biomonitoring is a tool to assess human impacts in the support zone. We want to gain long-term information on vertebrate population development in the area, and raise awareness of conservation issues in the local communities as well as in key stakeholders such as GoC (Government of Cameroon); The field study focuses on selected mammals and bird species. Focal species are surveyed by trained local staff from permanent line transects. Line transects cover forested parts of five village areas, in the northern and eastern part of the support zone of Korup National Park. The support zone biomonitoring team consists of twelve eco-staff (four teams), one field supervisor, one coordinator, one advisor and non-permanent consultants. The study is a collaboration between Korup Project and the Centre for Nature Conservation (Dept.I), University of Goettingen. Data from two years of field work suggest considerable range contractions of threatened species such as drill and Preuss' red colobus. Both species might face local extinction in the support zone of Korup National Park. Results suggest that a proper protection of the Park and a wildlife management programme in its support zone are necessary in order to maintain viable populations of range-restricted species.

Species Studied: Cercocebus torquatus (white-collared mangabey), Cercopithecus erythrotis (red-eared guenon), Cercopithecus mona (mona monkey), Cercopithecus nictitans (greater spot-nosed monkey), Cercopithecus pogonias (crested mona)

Other Species at Site: Mandrillus leucophaeus (drill), Pan troglodytes (common chimpanzee), Piliocolobus preussi (Preuss's red colobus)

Last Updated: 2002-10-24

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