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Spatial modelling of illegal hunting and chimpanzee distribution in the Seringbara region of the Guinean Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve

par Degrève, Lucas
Promoteur Dellicour, Simon
Co-Promoteur Koops, K.;Fitzgerald, Maegan;Kaszta, Zaneta
Publication Non publié, 2024-08-30

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Résumé :

The western chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus) is one of four chimpanzee subspecies.Between 1990 and 2014, its population declined by 80%, leading to its classification asCritically Endangered by the IUCN. This research focuses on the Seringbara region of theMount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve in Guinea. Despite being a UNESCO World Heritage Site,the area faces significant impacts from subsistence farming, illegal hunting, and industrialmining. The study aimed to understand chimpanzee habitat use and its relation to humanhunting activities. GPS locations of chimpanzee feeding/travelling, nesting sites, and illegalhunting evidence were analysed. Since organisms can respond to their environment atdifferent scales, a multi-scale modelling framework was used to examine space use patternsof chimpanzees and humans. Separate single-scale and multi-scale ecological niche modelswere developed for each activity type using Generalised Linear Models (GLM) and BoostedRegression Trees (BRT), with methodologies compared. Multi-scale BRT modelsoutperformed single-scale BRT models across all activities, and similar trends were observedin GLM hunting models. However, single-scale GLM models for chimpanzee activitiesunderperformed compared to their multi-scale counterparts. Analysis of spatial predictionsidentified potential high-risk hunting areas and zones of high chimpanzee ecologicalsuitability, as well as overlapping areas. Predicted chimpanzee activities were mainly above750 metres and on higher slopes, while predicted hunting activities were less prevalent inareas of high tree cover. Both chimpanzees and hunters avoided research camps. Thesefindings highlight potential zones for targeted conservation and monitoring.