Lopé National Park
Central Africa > Gabon > Lopé National Park
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Summary
- Central chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes troglodytes) & Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) are present in Lopé National Park.
- The population sizes are unknown.
- The population trends are unknown.
- The site has a total size of 4,910 km².
- The site is part of the Ecosystem and Relic Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Site characteristics
Situated in central Gabon, Lopé National Park is part of the Ecosystem and Relic Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The site contains a special interface between dense tropical rainforest and relict savanna. The diversity of habitat types present at the park has contributed to the high floral diversity; over 1,550 plant species have been documented, including 40 never recorded before in Gabon. It is thought that, with the completion of all the floristic surveys and research, the number of plant species could reach over 3,000 (UNESCO). Well-preserved rock carvings and evidence of iron-working have been discovered in the area; these and other archaeological findings reflect a major migration route of Bantu and other peoples along the River Ogooué valley (UNESCO).
Table 1. Basic site information for Lopé National Park
| Species | Gorilla gorilla gorilla, Pan troglodytes troglodytes |
| Area | 4,910 km² |
| Coordinates | Lat: -0.442447 S , Lon: 11.524291 E |
| Type of site | Protected area (National Park) |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical dry forest, Savanna |
| Type of governance |
IUCN habitat categories Site designations
Ape status
Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Lopé National Park
| Species | Year | Abundance estimate (95% CI) | Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI) | Encounter rate (nests/km) | Area | Method | Source | Comments | A.P.E.S. database ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gorilla gorilla gorilla | Unknown | ||||||||
| Pan troglodytes troglodytes | Unknown |
Threats
Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Lopé National Park
| Category | Specific threats | Threat level | Description | Year of threat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Residential & commercial development | Unknown | |||
| 2 Agriculture & aquaculture | Unknown | |||
| 3 Energy production & mining | Unknown | |||
| 4 Transportation & service corridors | Unknown | |||
| 5 Biological resource use | Unknown | |||
| 6 Human intrusions & disturbance | Unknown | |||
| 7 Natural system modifications | Unknown | |||
| 8 Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Unknown | |||
| 9 Pollution | Unknown | |||
| 10 Geological events | Absent | |||
| 11 Climate change & severe weather | 12.1 Other threat | Present, but threat severity is unknown | Less fruits in the ecosystem due to climate change will affect gorilla and chimpanzee populations (Bush et al. 2020). | Ongoing (2020) |
| 12 Other threat | Absent |
Conservation activities
Table 4. Conservation activities reported for Lopé National Park
| Category | Specific activity | Description | Implementing organization(s) | Year of activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Protection & restoration | 5.10 Use prescribed burning within the context of home range size and use | Fire management programme to maintain the diversity of forest/savanna habitats in the park (Jeffrey et al. 2014). | Ongoing (2014) |
Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)
Challenges
Table 5. Challenges reported for Lopé National Park
| Challenges | Specific challenges | Source | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not reported |
Enablers
Table 6. Enablers reported for Lopé National Park
| Enablers | Specific enablers | Source | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Site management | |||
| 2 Resources and capacity | |||
| 3 Engaged community | |||
| 4 Institutional support | |||
| 5 Ecological context | |||
| 6 Safety and stability |
Research activities
The Station d’Etudes des Gorilles et Chimpanzes (SEGC) was established in 1983. In collaboration with the University of Stirling and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), the field site has developed one of the most valuable long-term ecological databases in the region. SEGC also supports the park management and guides conservation policy.The WCS also has a long-term project at the park doing mandrill research.
Documented behaviours
Table 7. Behaviours documented for Lopé National Park
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Ant fishing | University of Stirling 2020 |
| Honey extraction with tools | University of Stirling 2020 |
Exposure to climate change impacts
External links
Station d’Etudes des Gorilles et Chimpanzes
Foraging profiles of sympatric lowland gorillas and chimpanzees in the Lopé Reserve, Gabon
Relevant datasets
References
Bush, E. R., Whytock, R. C., Bahaa-el-din, L., Bourgeois, S., Bunnefeld, N., Cardoso, A. W., Dikangadissi, J. T., Dimbonda, P., Dimoto, E., Edzang Ndong, J., Jeffery, K. J., Lehmann, D., Makaga, L., Momboua, B., Momont, L. R. W., Tutin, C. E. G., White, L. J. T., Whittaker, A., & Abernethy, K. (2020). Long-term collapse in fruit availability threatens Central African forest megafauna. Science, eabc7791. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abc7791
Jeffery, K. J., Korte, L., Palla, F., Walters, G., White, L. J. T., & Abernethy, K. A. (2014). Fire management in a changing landscape: A case study from Lopé National Park, Gabon. PARKS, 20(1), 39-52. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.CH.2014.PARKS-20-1.KJJ.en
University of Stirling. (2020). Stirling expert informs new study on chimpanzee behaviour. Retrieved from: https://www.stir.ac.uk/news/2020/09/stirling-expert-informs-new-study-on-chimpanzee-behaviour/
UNESCO. (n.d.). Ecosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda. Retrieved from: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1147/
Page created by: A.P.E.S. Wiki Team Date: NA