Nkemnyi Standly Nkengbeza
An assessment of anthropogenic impact on the ecology and conservation of Preuss’s monkey in the Ebo forest, Cameroon.
Cameroon —
Preuss’s monkey is a poorly-studied diurnal primate, classified as Endangered on the IUCN Redlist and a class A species in the Cameroon National Wildlife Legislation. The species is restricted to the Gulf of Guinea Forests, with subpopulations in Cameroon, Nigeria, and on the Bioko Island of Equatorial Guinea; that have been severely affected by habitat loss and fragmentation, and poaching. Most of the species’ range is outside protected areas making it vulnerable to habitat destruction and hunting pressure because of its semi-terrestrial behavior and relatively large-bodied size. This project aims to understand how anthropogenic activities affect the ecology and conservation of Preuss’s monkey in the Ebo forest. This area may be one of the species last strongholds, unfortunately is subjected to hunting pressures, exploitation concerns and road development recently. In light of this context, it is of great significance to collect quantitative and qualitative data on the ecology, distribution and status of the Preuss’s guenon in the Ebo forest to provide vital information for biodiversity conservation. This work will equally contribute to provide data for revising the IUCN conservation status of Preuss’s guenon given that little is known about the ecology and population status of this species in Cameroon.
This award was supported by JRS Biodiversity.