Korup National Park

Central Africa > Cameroon > Korup National Park

Summary

• Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes ellioti) are present in Korup National Park.
• It has been estimated that 167 (CI: 91-305) individuals occur in the site.
• The chimpanzee population trend is decreasing.
• The site has a total size of 1,260 km².
• Hunting is the main threat to chimpanzees.
• Conservation activities have focused on wildlife research and livelihood improvement initiatives.

Site characteristics

Korup National Park is located in western Cameroon, bordering Cross River National Park in southeast Nigeria (BirdLife International 2021). The site was established as a forest reserve in 1962 and upgraded to a national park in 1986 (Morgan et al. 2011, BirdLife International 2021). Altitudes range from just above sea-level to over 1,000 m but the terrain is generally flat, with hills and escarpments found only in the northern section of the park; the highest peak (Mount Ekundukundu) is situated in the centre of the park (BirdLife International 2021). The forests of Korup are floristically diverse and the annual average rainfall is approximately 5,460 mm. The diversity of birds is relatively well known, with some 320 species recorded in and on the margins of the site, including a large number of species of the Guinea–Congo Forests biome (BirdLife International 2021). Mammals of conservation concern found at the site include mandrills (Mandrillus leucophaeus), Preuss's monkey (Cercopithecus preussi), and forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis). The occurrence of Preuss's red colobus, Procolobus (badius) preussi, is of special importance (Morgan et al. 2011, BirdLife International. 2021).

Table 1. Basic site information for Korup National Park

Area	1,260 km²
Coordinates	5.354790 N, 8.977458 E
Designation	National Park
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

Two surveys were conducted in logged and unlogged sites in the Korup Project Area, which consists of the Korup National Park and the surrounding Support Zone (5,357 sq.km), where two logging concessions had been active between 1996-1998 (Waltert et al. 2002). The results of the survey showed that between 1999-2000 and 2000-2001, chimpanzee (as well as other primate) density decreased in the logged sites (Waltert et al. 2002).

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Korup 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
Pan troglodytes ellioti	1999-2000		0.55 (0.05–6.00)	0.14 (0.00–82)	Korup Project Area, logged sites	Line transects (Distance)	Waltert et al. 2002	Survey effort 96 km
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2000-2001			0.09 (0.02–0.34)	Korup Project Area, logged sites	Line transects (Distance)	Waltert et al. 2002	Survey effort 56 km
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2000-2001		0.16 (0.02–1.21)	0.08 (0.01–0.63)	Korup Project Area, unlogged sites	Line transects (Distance)	Waltert et al. 2002	Survey effort 86 km
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2007-2010	167 (91-305)	0.13 (0.07-0.24)		Korup National Park	Line transects (Distance)	Waltert 2012 as cited by Kupsch et al. 2014
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2016			Present	Korup National Park	Line transects (Distance)	Hofner et al. 2020	Acoustic and visual encounters.

Threats

Hunting is a major threat to chimpanzees and other mammals in Korup National Park (Morgan et al. 2011, Hofner et al. 2020). Pressure on the park's wildlife is high due to the dependence of local on bushmeat, and the demand for bushmeat in neighbouring Nigeria (Diotoh n.d.). In addition, 70,000 ha of the park's bufffer zone, which were once traditional hunting grounds, have been converted into oil palm plantations (Diotoh n.d.).

Table 3. Threats to apes in Korup National Park

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Quantified severity	Description	Year of threat
1. Residential & commercial development		Unknown
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	2.1 Annual & perennial non-timber crops	Present, but threat severity is unknown		Agricultural encroachment from industrial plantations and villages situated inside the park (BirdLife International 2021).	Ongoing (2021)
3. Energy production & mining		Unknown
4. Transportation & service corridors		Unknown
5. Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High		Illegal wildlife hunting for bushmeat is a serious threat (Morgan et al. 2011, Hofner et al. 2020).	Ongoing (2020)
6. Human intrusion & 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		Unknown
12. Other options		Absent

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

The Korup Rainforest Conservation Society (KRCS) is a community based organisation in Southwest Cameroon that was created in 2009. KRCS supports and implements various conservation activities, especially related to wildlife research and livelihood improvement initiatives such as donating farming equipment and community infrastructural development (KRCS).

Table 4. Conservation activities in Korup National Park

Category	Specific activity	Description	Year of activity
1. Residential & commercial development	Not reported
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	Not reported
3. Energy production & mining	Not reported
4. Transportation & service corridors	Not reported
5. Biological resource use	5.6. Conduct regular anti-poaching patrols	Anti-poaching patrols evaluation and design (KRCS n.d.).	Ongoing
	5.15. Implement monitoring surveillance strategies (e.g. SMART) or use monitoring data to improve effectiveness of wildlife law enforcement patrols	GPS and GIS training for KRCS members, wildlife monitoring (KRCS n.d.).	Ongoing
6. Human intrusion & disturbance	Not reported
7. Natural system modifications	Not reported
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	Not reported
9. Pollution	Not reported
10. Education & Awareness	10.1. Educate local communities about primates and sustainable use	Video shows on conservation, nature excursions for kids (KRCS n.d.).	Ongoing
	10.2. Involve local community in primate research and conservation management	Involvement in primate research, biomonitoring, and training in conservation project management (KRCS n.d.).	Ongoing
11. Habitat Protection	Not reported
12. Species Management	Not reported
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	13.2. Provide non-monetary benefits to local communities for sustainably managing their forest and its wildlife (e.g. better education, infrastructure development)	Farming equipment, scholarships, community infrastructure development, green initiatives e.g. bee farming, small scale poultry and non-timber products value chain improvement (KRCS n.d.).	Ongoing

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Conflicts between park staff and local communities due to inadequate flow of information (Diotoh n.d.).

Table 5. Challenges reported for Korup National Park

Challenge	Source
Lack of trust and support from local communities	Diotoh n.d.

Research activities

The KRCS conducts conservation research activities, mainly focused on biomonitoring, socio-economic surveys, and primate research (KRCS n.d.).

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Korup National Park

Behavior	Source
Not reported

External links

KRSC
Conservation Leadership Programme

Relevant datasets

A.P.E.S Portal

References

BirdLife International (2021) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Korup National Park. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 24/10/2021.
Morgan, B. J., Adeleke, A., Bassey, T., Bergl, R., Dunn, A., Fotso, R., ... & Williamson, E. A. (2011). Regional action plan for the conservation of the Nigeria–Cameroon chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes ellioti). IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group and Zoological Society of San Diego.
Diotoh, O.R. (n.d.).Action for primate conservation in Korup National Park, Cameroon. https://www.conservationleadershipprogramme.org/project/primate-conservation-korup-national-park-cameroon/
KRCS (n.d.).Activities.https://www.korup-conservation.org/activities/
Waltert, M., Faber, K., & Mühlenberg, M. (2002). Further declines of threatened primates in the Korup Project Area, south-west Cameroon. Oryx, 36(3), 257-265.
Hofner, A. N., Jost Robinson, C. A., Hall, E. S., Capel, T., Astaras, C., & Linder, J. M. (2020). Surveying primates in northeastern Korup National Park, Cameroon. A Longitudinal Comparison. African Primates, 14, 35-44.
Kupsch, D., Serge, B. K., Waltert, M., Chia, N. B., Brice, B. C. G., Abdoulaye, D., & Kalagan, D. (2014). Biodiversity, carbon stock and market value assessment for the SGSOC project area, Southwest region, Cameroon. World Wide Fund for Nature, Germany, and Greenpeace International.

Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 25/10/2021