Article Critique - Thesis Proposal Example

Article Critique: “The importance of hunting and habitat in determining the abundance of tropical forest in Equatorial Guinea” Introduction Animal species are dwindling at a fast pace due to expansion of human populations and encroachment of forests worldwide, with many of them at the brink of extinction. In a comprehensive study, the authors have tried to determine the effect on populations of multiple species of animals residing in the forests of Equatorial Guinea by employing a twin approach of studying the impact of hunting and the preservation or loss of their natural habitat (Rist et al, 2009). The authors have based their study on the fact that hunting and deforestation are the two prime factors which threaten mammalian species, specifically in the uncontrolled and non regulated regions in Central and Western Africa. They believe that although such practices had been going on for millions of years, the present era is marked by socio economic and demographic trends which threaten to disturb the ecological balance due to the unsustainable character which is gradually percolating into both hunting and deforestation. In the introductory paragraphs, the authors have stressed on this particular aspect by explaining about the current trends in bushmeat hunting in the region which they believe has strained sustainability due to its multispecies nature. Variable life cycles and reproductive patterns in the mammalian and other species inhabiting the region have further complicated the issue. The authors have specifically focused on habitat disturbance attributed to activities such as agriculture and logging which in turn affect the hunting patterns of the inhabitants. The authors have gradually built up the necessity for the kind of study they conducted by highlighting the deficiencies in the methodologies employed so far by previous researchers. They have used a combination approach of examining the independent effects of current and past hunting as well as a range of habitat variables by employing a quantitative methodology, which they feel could answer the question in a more effective manner (Rist et al, 2009). Basis for the Present Study In the region where the authors conducted this study, the threat of extinction of many mammalian species, particularly the sub human primates has already been recognized as a grave ecological danger (Fish, undated). One third of the primate species have been considered critically endangered or vulnerable to being so from as far back as 1996, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) (Fish, undated). 90% of the primate population is located in tropical forests areas in which the present study was conducted. Programmes have been initiated by pertinent international authorities for conservation of ecology in these areas and one of the prominent programmes is the US aided ‘Central African Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE) which is a long term initiative (carpe.umd.edu). The impact of bushmeat hunting has been recognized as a grave threat to wildlife populations across West-Central Africa and degradation of forests and habitat loss is indirectly threatening the primate populations (Kumpel et al, 2008). Level of hunting and species vulnerability depending upon the hunter’s choice of animals are the recognized factors which affect the risk to their respective populations. Although most bushmeat hunting is done primarily by laying out traps, the gradually increasing levels of gun hunting have started affecting the population size substantially ( Kumpel et al, 2008). Kumpel et al (2008) carried out a similar study to the one being discussed in Monte Mitra area of Equatorial Guinea and discovered that some species of primates were virtually absent in areas where the use of guns had been made for hunting for a considerable length of time. In the same region, a species wise survey of hunting patterns revealed that 73.2% of the hunted animals were ungulates, 12.2% were rodents and 12% were primates (Fa et al, 2004). Large bodied species represented almost 50% of the total biomass of the hunted species. Methods The present study has taken into account the various limitations in previous literature due to their qualitative modes of evaluation and adopted a quantitative method for their study. Analysis of the hunting patterns was facilitated by short listing the village of Midyobo Anvom in the Centro Sur Province of Rio Muni in mainland Equatorial Guinea ,whose remoteness and isolation from the populous areas of the region were considered as ideal (Rist et al, 2009). The identified village had a large hunting catchment area and was found to be most suitable for accurate quantification of spatial and temporal patterns of hunting (Rist et al, 2009). The region’s vegetation and climate has been minutely examined and described in the paper and the total number of operational hunters identified as falling between the figures of 50 to 80 hunters. The total area accessed for hunting in the village was 300 square kilometres and the operations were carried out from temporary shelters described as hunting camps. The authors initially carried out line transect surveys in which they earmarked six sites within the total hunting catchment areas for estimating the abundance of the diverse assemblage of the mammalian species (Rist et al. 2009). The six carefully identified sites were surveyed in three pairs by teams of researchers who made use of visual, acoustic and olfactory cues to record data of the encountered animal populations. Vegetation type and habitat disturbance factors were considered for obliterating any discrepancies due to these variables. Habitat measures were short listed into three broad categories which included areas around large rivers, areas where logging had been recorded and areas where agricultural habitat disturbance had occurred. The local hunters were taken into confidence and personal interviews were conducted which yielded the data of the total hunting in the region during the period of this study. Discussion The authors of this study have given concrete statistical proof of the relationship between hunting patterns and habitat which exert a definite effect on animal populations in the tropical forests of Equatorial Guinea. The authors employed appropriate and proven statistical models for evaluation of the collected data. The results revealed that there were fifty one mammalian species in the region, of which one was critically endangered (Gorilla gorilla), two were endangered (Pan troglodytes and Potomogale velox) and 2 others were vulnerable (Rist et al, 2009). Hunting effort was highly variable between the six surveyed sites and the modes used were trapping as well as gun hunting. The presence of logging roads was a factor which encouraged gun hunting and agricultural disturbance was a factor which facilitated trap hunting. The hunting effort was established as a predictor for animal abundance and low gun hunting effort was particularly associated with higher abundance of primates in the region. Similarly higher abundance of primates was also associated with low agricultural disturbance. Thus, habitat was also established as a predictor for animal abundance as larger populations were encountered in areas where there was no history of agricultural activity. The abovementioned results are all the more relevant as past studies had concentrated on qualitative methods alone which missed the impact of life cycles of animals, reproduction patterns and breeding intensity which work together in a cohesive manner to influence the total wildlife populations of remote sparsely populated areas of the world. The intensity of bushmeat trade in such areas needs to be regulated in accordance with the current animal populations, species and breeding intensity and the habitat needs to be preserved in order to sustain the ecological balance in Tropical and Equatorial forests. Conclusion The above study has comprehensively established that hunting patterns and habitat can both be exploited for estimating mammalian abundance in a region but confounding factors such as agricultural disturbance, logging activity and the geographical terrains and rivers can interfere with gathering of such data. In addition hunting activity is species specific and the modes employed for hunting can also affect animal abundance, particularly as seen in primate populations which were less in regions where gun hunting was popular. The authors have used a comprehensive and quantitative approach by dividing the region being explored into specific sections through precise line transects which delineated specific terrains into three sections. These sections include area where agricultural had been practiced in the past as well as present, areas in which historical logging trails were present and lastly the areas which had extensive water tracts. The authors believe that due to these confounding factors, each aspect needs to be explored in an isolated manner to evaluate its actual effect on habitat. The data gathering procedure employed was appropriate as specific teams toured each earmarked area thoroughly and established personal contact with the hunters so as to elicit an honest response, eliminating prejudice and tendency to exaggerate in the local population. The quantitative approach employed by these authors is a more convincing and accurate analysis of the influence of hunting and habitat on animal abundance as compared to past studies, which were more qualitative in nature. References Central African Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE), online information accessed April, 5, 2010 at: http://carpe.umd.edu/ Fa, J E, Ryan, S F & Bell, D J (2005) Hunting vulnerability, ecological characteristics and harvest rates of bushmeat species in afro tropical forests, Biological Conservation, Volume 121, Issue 2, Pgs. 167-176 Fish, K Conservation Science Institute Primate Initiative, online article accessed April 5, 2010 at: http://www.conservationinstitute.org/primate_conservation/primate_conservation_home.htm Kumpel, N F, Millner-Gulland, E J, Rowcliffe, J M & Cowlishaw, G (2008) Impact of Gun-Hunting on Diurnal Primates in Continental Equatorial Guinea, International Journal of Primatology, Volume 29, Number 4, Pgs. 1065-1082 Rist, J, Milner-Gulland, E J, Cowlishaw, G & Rowcliffe, J M (2009) The importance of hunting and habitat in determining the abundance of tropical forest in Equatorial Guinea, BIOTROPICA 41(6): 700–710 Read More