Conservation overstretch and long-term decline of wildlife and tourism in
the Central African savannasPaul Scholte, Olivier Pays, Saleh Adam,
Bertrand Chardonnet, Hervé Fritz, Jean-Baptiste Mamang, Herbert H. T.
Prins, Pierre-Cyril Renaud, Patrick Tadjo & Mark MoritzConservation
BiologyNovember 12, 2021 Abstract
When in 2010 the world's governments pledge d to increase protected area
coverage to 17% of the world's land surface, several Central African
countries had already set aside 25% of their northern savannas for
conservation. To evaluate the effectiveness of this commitment, we analyzed
the results of 68 multispecies surveys conducted in the seven main savanna
national parks in Central Africa (1960–2017). We also assembled information
on potential drivers of large herbivore population trends (rainfall and
number of rangers) and on tourist numbers and revenues. In six out of the
seven parks, wild large herbivore populations declined dramatically over
time, livestock numbers increased severalfold, and tourism, the pillar
under a once thriving local wildlife industry, collapsed. Zakouma National
Park (Chad) stood out because its large herbivore populations increased, an
increase that was positively correlated with rainfall and number of rangers
(a proxy for management inputs). With increasing insecurity and declining
revenues, governments find themselves confronted with too few resources to
protect vast areas. To deal with this conversation overstretch, we propose
to extend the repeatedly promoted solutions––scaled up funding, enhanced
management––with a strategic retreat, focusing scarce resources on smaller
areas to save wildlife in the Central African savannas.
ABSTRACT
LINKhttps://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cobi.13860
https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cobi.13860