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Ndiaye YH, Ndiaye PI, Lindshield SM, Pruetz JD. Updating Chimpanzee Nesting Data at Mount Assirik (Niokolo Koba National Park, Senegal): Implications for Conservation. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:553. [PMID: 38396522 PMCID: PMC10886333 DOI: 10.3390/ani14040553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2023] [Revised: 11/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The Niokolo Koba National Park (NKNP) is the largest protected area in Senegal and lies at the northern limit of the chimpanzee's range in West Africa. Recent information on nesting behavior and factors influencing nesting behavior is available for several sites outside NKNP. However, the information available for NKNP is obsolete. Considering that the adequate management of chimpanzee populations cannot be achieved without strong scientific knowledge, it is essential to update data on chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes verus, nesting behavior in NKNP. For this reason, we surveyed their habitat in Mt. Assirik and recorded 626 chimpanzee nests. The results of the study showed that chimpanzees nest more often in closed-canopy habitats such as gallery forests. The average nest height observed in this study was 8.07 ± 0.36 m, varying between 2 and 20 m, which is well below the heights described in most sites where chimpanzees cohabit with large carnivores. Botanical surveys confirmed that chimpanzees select tree species bearing their nests. In Assirik, 12 of the 37 tree species bearing nests are the most used. The nest decay rate (or the time it takes for a nest to go from the fresh to the skeletal stage) at Assirik averaged 68.8 ± 5.8 days.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaya Hamady Ndiaye
- Département de Biologie Animale, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar 5005, Senegal;
| | - Papa Ibnou Ndiaye
- Département de Biologie Animale, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar 5005, Senegal;
- Observatoire International Homme-Milieux Téssékéré, IRL3189 “Environnement, Santé, Sociétés”, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar 5005, Senegal
| | | | - Jill Daphne Pruetz
- Department of Anthropology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666, USA;
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Romani T, Mundry R, Shaban GM, Konarzewski M, Namaganda M, Hobaiter C, Gruber T, Hicks TC. Decay rates of arboreal and terrestrial nests of Eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) in the Bugoma Central Forest Reserve, Uganda: Implications for population size estimates. Am J Primatol 2023; 85:e23536. [PMID: 37504505 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Chimpanzees were once thought to sleep primarily in the trees, but recent studies indicate that some populations also construct terrestrial night nests. This behavior has relevance not only to understanding the behavioral diversity of Pan troglodytes, but also to the conservation of the species, given that nest encounter rates are often used to estimate great ape population densities. A proper estimate of decay rates for ground nests is necessary for converting the encounter rate of nests to the density of weaned chimpanzees. Here we present the results of the first systematic comparative study between the decay rates of arboreal and terrestrial chimpanzee nests, from the Bugoma Central Forest Reserve in western Uganda. We followed the decay of 56 ground and 51 tree nests in eight nest groups between April 2020 and October 2021. For 15 of the ground and 19 of the tree nests, we collected detailed information on the condition of the nests every two weeks; we checked the remaining 73 nests only twice. On average, ground nests lasted 238 days versus 276 days for tree nests (p = 0.05). Of the 107 total nests surveyed, 51% of tree and 64% of ground nests had disappeared after six months. Based on our results, we propose a modification of the formula used to convert nest density into chimpanzee density. Our results highlight the importance of taking into account potential differences in decay rates between ground versus tree nests, which will likely influence our understanding of the distribution of ground nesting behavior in chimpanzee across tropical Africa, as well as our estimations of the densities of ground nesting populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toni Romani
- The Faculty of 'Artes Liberales', University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
- CyberTracker Italia, Osoppo, Italy
| | - Roger Mundry
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
- Department for Primate Cognition, Georg-August-University, Göttingen, Germany
- Leibniz Science Campus Primate Cognition, Göttingen, Germany
| | | | - Marek Konarzewski
- The Faculty of 'Artes Liberales', University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
- The Faculty of Biology, University of Białystok, Białystok, Poland
| | - Mary Namaganda
- Department of Plant Science, Microbiology and Biotechnology, School of Biosciences, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Catherine Hobaiter
- Bugoma Primate Conservation Project, Hoima, Uganda
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland, UK
| | - Thibaud Gruber
- Bugoma Primate Conservation Project, Hoima, Uganda
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences and Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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Population size and habitat preference of the Omo River guereza (Colobus guereza guereza) in a multi-habitat matrix in the central highlands of Ethiopia. Primates 2022; 63:151-160. [PMID: 35038067 DOI: 10.1007/s10329-022-00972-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Given the current rate of habitat degradation and loss in the tropics, data on primate population densities and habitat use are indispensable for assessing conservation status and designing feasible management plans for primates. The Omo River guereza (Colobus guereza guereza) is a subspecies of the eastern black-and-white colobus monkey endemic to the western Rift Valley forests of Ethiopia. Their restricted distribution along with habitat loss and hunting within their range render them vulnerable to local extirpation and extinction. Furthermore, there are no published data available on the population status and habitat use patterns of the Omo River guereza. We therefore aimed to assess the population size of Omo River guerezas in different habitats (Erica-Juniperus mixed forest, mixed plantation forest, undisturbed natural forest, disturbed natural forest) using transect surveys at Wof-Washa Natural State Forest (WWNSF) in central Ethiopia. Our surveys covered a cumulative distance of 88.5 km in four different habitats, during which we recorded a total of 140 Omo River guereza groups. The average group density was 14.3 groups/km2, average individual density was 94.4 individuals/km2, and we estimated the total population size within WWNSF to be 2549 individuals. The sex ratio of the population was split evenly between males and females, though the age classes skewed strongly towards adults. Of the habitats surveyed, the highest group encounter rate (1.83 groups/km) occurred in the disturbed natural forest. However, the highest individual density (110.1 individuals/km2) was recorded in undisturbed natural forest. Still, sizable densities (group and individual) were recorded in three of the disturbed habitats (disturbed natural forest, mixed plantation forest, and to a lesser extent Erica-Juniperus mixed forest). Our study offers the first baseline information with which to compare future population density estimates and habitat use in the range of Omo River guerezas.
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Hockings KJ, Parathian H, Bessa J, Frazão-Moreira A. Extensive Overlap in the Selection of Wild Fruits by Chimpanzees and Humans: Implications for the Management of Complex Social-Ecological Systems. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.00123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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