Watalinga Forest

Central Africa > Democratic Republic of the Congo > Watalinga Forest

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Summary

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• Eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) are present in Watalinga Forest.
• It has been estimated that 645 individuals occur in the site.
• The chimpanzee population trend is unknown.
• The site has a total size of 2,256 km².
• Key threats to chimpanzees are hunting and charcoal production.
• Conservation activities are not documented.
• The site is found within Virunga National Park.

Site characteristics

Watalinga Forest is encompassed within the northern sector of Virunga National Park, in North Kivu province of eastern DRC. The site is bisected from north to south by the Semliki river (Nixon & Lusenge 2008). The site represents the southeastern limit of the extensive Ituri Forest. Mixed mature lowland tropical forest dominated by Cynometra alexandra are the principal vegetation types, but other habitats include riverine forest, broken canopy Marantaceae forest, seasonally-inundated swamp forest, papyrus swamps by the Semliki river, isolated secondary forest formations around tree falls and other sites of natural or anthropogenic disturbance (Nixon & Lusenge 2008). The forest cover is almost complete (Nixon & Lusenge 2008).

Table 1. Basic site information for Watalinga Forest

Species	'Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii
Area	2,256 km²
Coordinates	Lat: 0.813033 , Lon: 29.834703
Type of site	Protected area (National Park)
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest, Subtropical/tropical swamp forest
Type of governance

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

During a 2008 survey, chimpanzee sign was widespread but rare; in total 137 individual chimpanzee nests were observed in 30 nest group sites throughout the site (Nixon & Lusenge 2008). Mean nest group size was 4.9 individuals (range 1-12). Chimpanzees were not directly observed, but vocalisations were heard on six occasions. The highest nest encounter rates (1.77 nests/km) were observed in the Rwenzori mountains adjacent to Ndama village and on the east side of the Semliki river in the Mukakati South survey block (1.66 nests/km). Encounter rate (nests/km)s were lowest in the Ndama and Djuma survey blocks. On the Rwenzori recce, chimpanzee nests, dung and trail sign were recorded over a wide range of altitudes between 1010 m and 2400 m (Nixon & Luesenge 2008).

Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Watalinga Forest

Species	Year	Occurrence	Encounter or vistation rate (nests/km; ind/day)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Survey area	Sampling method	Analytical framework	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii	Unknown			0.29	645	Watalinga Forest 2,256 km2	Line transects & recces		Plumptre et al. 2010
Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii	2008		0.74			Watalinga Forest	Camera trap, Reconnaissance walk		Nixon & Lusenge 2008	survey effort: 216 km

Threats

During a 2008 okapi survey in Watalinga Forest, human activities were recorded throughout the site and hunting was the most frequently encountered of all activities recorded. Locals also reported that military stationed nearby had shot and eaten three chimpanzees one week before the survey (Nixon & Lusenge 2008). A significant amount of deforestation and land conversion has occurred along the base of the Rwenzoris at this site, and a lack of clarity concerning the boundaries of the park in the region was noted (Nixon & Lusenge 2008).

Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Watalinga Forest

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Description	Year of threat
10 Geological events		Absent
12 Other threat		Absent
5 Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Hunting signs were frequently found during a 2008 survey of the area (Nixon & Lusenge 2008).	Ongoing (2008)
5 Biological resource use	5.3 Logging & wood harvesting	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Charcoal production from primary forest trees (Cynometra alexandra) is widespread to the east of the park boundary and trade is greatly facilitated by the presence of the recently completed Mbau-Kamango road (Nixon & Lusenge 2008).	Ongoing (2008)
4 Transportation & service corridors	4.1 Roads & railroads	Present (unknown severity)	Mbau-Kamango road rehabilitated, facilitating access to forest (Nixon & Lusenge 2008).	Ongoing (2008)
1 Residential & commercial development		Unknown
2 Agriculture & aquaculture		Unknown
3 Energy production & mining		Unknown
6 Human intrusions & disturbance		Unknown
7 Natural system modifications		Unknown
8 Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases		Unknown
9 Pollution		Unknown
11 Climate change & severe weather		Unknown

IUCN Threats list

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Watalinga Forest

Challenges	Specific challenges	Source	Year(s)
6 Safety and stability	6.3 Civil unrest/war	Nixon & Lusenge 2008, Plumptre et al. 2010

Enablers

Table 6. Enablers reported for Watalinga Forest

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

Documented behaviours

Table 7. Behaviours documented for Watalinga Forest

Behavior	Source
bamboo feeding	Nixon & Lusenge 2008
ground nesting	Nixon & Lusenge 2008

References

Nixon, S.C., & Lusenge, T. (2008). Conservation status of okapi in Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. ZSL Conservation Report No. 9. The Zoological Society of London, London. Online: https://www.zsl.org/sites/default/files/Nixon%20and%20Lusenge%202008%20-%20Conservation%20status%20of%20okapi%20in%20Virunga%20National%20Park%2C%20DRC.pdf

Plumptre, A.J., Rose, R., Nangendo, G., Williamson, E.A., Didier, K., Hart, J., Mulindahabi, F., Hicks, C., Griffin, B., Ogawa, H., Nixon, S., Pintea, L., Vosper, A., McClennan, M., Amsini, F., McNeilage, A., Makana, J.R., Kanamori, M., Hernandez, A., Piel, A., Stewart, F., Moore, J., Zamma, K., Nakamura, M., Kamenya, S., Idani, G., Sakamaki, T., Yoshikawa, M., Greer, D., Tranquilli, S., Beyers, R., Furuichi, T., Hashimoto, C. and Bennett, E. (2010). Eastern Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii): Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan 2010–2020. IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland. 52pp. Online: https://www.iucngreatapes.org/eastern-chimpanzee

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