April 20, 2022 As such, the regular need to access drinking water constrains the movement of herbivores, and hence their distribution in the dry season [9][12]. Chari has a length of 590 miles, part of which forms international border between Chad and Cameroon. Petroleum exploitation has fallen in recent decades but is still a significant contributor to the economy. Favourable soils and climate have allowed plantation agriculture to flourish, with extensive export of cash crops, including coffee and cocoa. The MCP method is the oldest one used among home range analysis methods ( Burt, 1943; Mohr, 1947), being the smallest convex polygon that encompasses all the lion locations, either using all the locations (MCP100%) or by first removing 5% of the outliers in the dataset (MCP95%) ( Powell, 2000 ). Here, we investigate the seasonal contribution of the different herbivore species, prey preference and distribution of kills (i.e. doi.org/10.2166/wpt.2020.004, Return to the index pages: Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati-Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Tubney House, Abingdon, United Kingdom, Current address: Marwell Wildlife, Colden Common, Winchester, United Kingdom, Affiliations: We then calculated a Jacobs index with r being the proportion of the kills made within 2 km of a waterhole and p the proportional availability of surface within 2 km of a waterhole. Etosha 2013. Indeed, it has become apparent in Southern Africa that male lions hunt successfully and quite often in the absence of female lions [25], [26]. Contrary to our predictions, areas close to waterholes were highly selected for kills regardless of seasonal conditions. From just 26 in 1954, their numbers have swelled to over 2,500. The whole country suffered from droughts in 1981-87, 1991-1999, 2001-2005 . Water Practice and Technology. Large carnivores inhabiting ecosystems with heterogeneously distributed environmental resources with strong seasonal variations frequently employ opportunistic foraging strategies, often typified by seasonal switches in diet. 1). Even though it is difficult to know from which individual a faecal sample comes from, and male and female lions are sometimes found together at a kill, samples were mainly collected at female kills and hence the faecal approach can be considered as more representative of female lion diet. Andrew J. Loveridge, Lion prey species found at kills classified in 8 groups and their respective proportions relative to frequency of occurrence. Lake Jipe provides water for the wildlife species in the park like the lions, elephants and among others when they are thirsty. This is due to the lower contribution of buffalo to female diet in the early dry season which is compensated by an increase in other species consumption (Table 1). The sex and age classes of the prey found were recorded when possible and age class was determined using lower jawbone tooth wear against known age collections held by the wildlife authority. The deeper Cretaceous sandstones also form an important aquifer, hydraulically separated from the overlying Plio-Quaternary by mudstones. Water dependence varies between herbivore species [11], [13] but most species need to access drinking water on a few-day basis at the peak of the dry season, and herbivore aggregations frequently form around permanent water sources during dry seasons, as non-permanent sources further afield dry up [14], [15]. Cameroon has one of the strongest economies in sub-Saharan Africa. Jacobs indices revealed that lions of both sexes kill their prey preferentially within 2 km from a waterhole for all prey species except small antelopes (Fig. During this time game sightings were spectacular. _____ _____ abiotic factor environmental conditions biotic factor. Working to sustain the natural world for the benefit of people and nature. Hence, lions appear to respond to the high abundance of megaherbivores in this ecosystem. Lions were one of those species which were not spared from the curiosity of the world. 7 Stunning African Honeymoon Destinations. However, water quality in Cameroon has improved in the last decade. We systematically searched for potential lion kill sites by identifying clusters of x:y location coordinates including 4 hours of sequential locations within a defined proximity (150 m), and these were then investigated on foot (see also [4], [24]). 2009; Sigha-Nkamdjou et al. Analyzed the data: ZD MV. Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati-Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Tubney House, Abingdon, United Kingdom, The Kenya Water Resources Management Authority shall have the following powers and functions: United Nations. The upland areas have a mild climate with high rainfall. However, water quality in Cameroon has improved in the last decade. Here, we used a combination of the two approaches to provide the most complete description of lion diet in Hwange National Park, an approach that has already proved very useful for large carnivore diet in other systems [3][4], [38]. Of the 322 billion cubic meters of total available water resources, groundwater constitutes 21% (57 billion cubic meters) of this resource (Ako Ako et al. What are the major rivers in Cameroon? 2017. View our Cookie Policy. Cameroon lies in central-west Africa, with the Gulf of Guinea forming its western coast. Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. The Lake Chad basin contains three main geological units: a upper Quaternary-Lower Pliocene series; the Tertiary Continental Terminal; and the lower Cretaceous series of the Hamadien Continental and the Continental Intercalaire (GWP 2013). Cameroon has a dense network of perennial rivers. Jacobss index of seasonal prey preference estimated from confirmed lion kills and faecal samples. First, seasonal importance of each species was assessed by (i) investigating, for lion males and females separately, the frequency of occurrence of prey species at kills, and (ii) comparing seasonal results from faecal data with no sex differentiation. This is consistent with findings from Kruger National Park where GPS data from male and female lions suggest that males were only present with females at 10% of their kills [4]. For medium Bovidae in the early dry season, male lions killed the three prey recorded far from a waterhole (Fig. We used to walk more than 1km to fetch water, climbing up and down a steep hill. Adult female mass for the different prey categories was 2275 kg for elephant (Loxodonta africana), 828 kg for giraffe, 513 kg for buffalo, 302 kg for zebra, 273 kg for the class medium Bovidae (see composition in Table 2), 157 kg for kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros), 56 kg for the class Suidae (see composition in Table 2), and 11 kg for small antelopes (see composition in Table 2). Tsavo Parks and Chyulu Hills Complex - Unesco. Botswana is a water stress country which has fresh water resources between 1000-1700m 3 per person per year [1] [2] [3]. Leave a comment Four different kinds of cryptocurrencies you should know. For females, some seasonal differences were detected due to the lower contribution of buffalo to female diet in the early dry season, compensated for by an increase in secondary prey consumption, mainly kudu and medium Bovidae. The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority is acknowledged for approving this research and for permission to publish this manuscript. Artesian pressure is being reduced, possibly due to over pumping. Your email address will not be published. Yevalla, G-M S, Blaise B B, Emmanuel M, Seth R E, Beka T and Tabod T C. 2020. 1. The river has been exploited by local communities for transport, fish, and water for irrigation. Dr Kirsty Upton and Brighid Dochartaigh, British Geological Survey, UK, Dr Imogen Bellwood-Howard, Institute of Development Studies, UK. Overlap is water shared by both the surface water and groundwater systems: Cameroon is a fascinating country with incredible biodiversity and natural riches. For further information about transboundary aquifers, please see the Transboundary aquifers resources page. In recent years, the former National Water Supply Company of Cameroon (SNEC: Socit Nationale des Eaux du Cameroun) was privatised to create the national water utility company, Cameroon Water Utilities Corporation (CAMWATER), which has responsibility for public water supplies in urban areas. Volcanic centres form moderately to highly productive fractured/weathered aquifers. The middle Continental Terminal, of Tertiary to Quaternary age, comprises alternating sandstone and clay layers, which are 450 to 620 m from the surface (GWP 2013). For female lions, kudu and to a lesser extent the group medium Bovidae are the most important secondary prey. In both rural and urban areas, people suffer because of the poor water quality in Cameroon. The consequence of consumption of such poor quality water is the spread of related diseases such as cholera and typhoid. Felix Murindagomo, Samples were washed, sieved and sun dried to remove organic matter, and spread in a grid sampling tray. Jacobs index ranges between 1 (highly avoided), 0 (used in proportion to availability) and 1 (highly selected). Given the propensity of kill investigations to be biased towards large prey, this is likely an underestimation and it should be considered that juvenile zebra are highly selected for by lions. Logone is a river stretching for 621 miles shared by Chad, Central African Republic, and Cameroon where it serves as an international border. It provides fresh water for an entire community. While many streams meander through the forested areas of East Cameroon, only few springs like that of Mambele are drinkable. Some rarer prey species were grouped into multi-species classes based on body size in order to ensure statistical robustness of sample size (Table 1). Fish River Canyon There is no evidence for widespread inorganic contamination of groundwaters, even in urban areas, but there is widespread bacteriological contamination of shallow groundwater in urban areas, such as Yaound and Douala, derived from domestic, industrial and hospital waste (Mafany and Fandong 2006). Unfortunately, it is also a country where wildlife is subject to a wide and intense array of human pressures. We expected lion kill locations to be influenced by the trend in prey aggregation at artificial waterholes, resulting in seasonal variation in kill distribution; closer to waterholes in dry periods and further away in wet periods. Values>0 indicate preference, values<0 suggest use but avoidance. PLOS is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation, #C2354500, based in San Francisco, California, US. The field assistance of Dr. Daniel Parker, B. Stapelkamp, Nicholas Elliot, Jalle Claypole, Agrippa Moyo, Lowani Mpofu and the rangers of the Hwange National Park was invaluable. Required fields are marked *. A BGR project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) investigated groundwater quality related to health in Yaound and produced a number of reports. Overall, juveniles represented one third of the zebra carcasses found. Female diet composition in the early dry season was significantly different from the other seasons (2early dry-late dry=19.06, df=7, p=0.008; 2early dry-wet=20.34, df=7, p=0.005; 2late dry-wet=14.07, df=7, p=0.05). 1 More information on irrigation water use and requirement statistics. Others walk over two kilometres to get the precious liquid. Where is Cameroon in the World? Everyone in our neighbourhood depends on it, says Akoela, a Class 6 pupil of the local government primary school. 2017) and organic pollution (Sanou et al. Bundesanstalt fr Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR). They typically form small, local aquifers, limited to areas where the rock has been fractured and weathered to increase its permeability. Nasilele mubita says her family was always complaining of diarrhoea as they shared a water source. What water sources do lions exploit in zimbabwemaryland lacrosse camps 2021 Subscribe to the texas a&m today newsletter for the latest news and stories every week. Cameroons location on the atlantic coast in central africa between latitude 2 and 13north, has a huge and diversified water resources potential. Male lions showed a preference for medium Bovidae in the early dry and wet seasons, and for Suidae in the late dry and wet seasons (Fig. We recognise that there may have been a small number of instances where lions scavenged other predators kills, however, we assume this to be negligible based on our kill site classification methodology. Karoo UN Human Development Index (HDI) [highest = 1] (2014)*. David W. Macdonald, Contributed equally to this work with: We thank Matt Hayward, Craig Tambling and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on a previous draft. Many springs occur. Schoor Avenue, Bellville, Cape All necessary permits were obtained for the described field study from the appropriate agency (Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, 23(1) (c) (ii) 01/20052007). The rural population largely relies on groundwater for water supply, through springs, hand dug wells, and boreholes equipped with hand pumps (Ako Ako et al. PLOS ONE promises fair, rigorous peer review, Additionally, dry season scarcity of good quality forage, exacerbated by local depletion around water sources, tends to make certain herbivores more vulnerable to predation, particularly during low rainfall periods [16][19]. Most often asked questions related to bitcoin. The least mineralised groundwater overall is in basement aquifers. Cameroons national parks are vast and the dedicated wildlife authorities and staff on the ground oftentimes lack adequate financial support and resources to carry out effective management. For more information on the datasets used to develop the map see the, Major surface water features of Cameroon. A pint-sized antelope, often no taller than a big coffee-table book, with a squeaky cry and a zig-zagging escape tactic. The pools go by a variety of names: prairie potholes, whale wallows, hog wallows, sinks, and kettles. Where does the Cameroon River get its water? Swakopmund, Pretoria The Ministry of Water Resources and Energy / Ministere De Leau Et De Lenergie (MINEE) has responsibility for water supply and sanitation in both rural areas and towns through the Directorate of Directorate of Water (DE: Direction de lEau). They are the most recent available information in the Aquastat database. Kill sites were classified based on the forensic evidence of a kill. 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