Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Central Africa > Cameroon > Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Summary

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• Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) are present in Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary.
• The population size is unknown.
• The gorilla population trend is unknown.
• The site has a total size of 1,300 km².
• The main threats to gorillas in the site is poaching.
• Conservation activities have focused on capacity building and raising conservation awareness.

Site characteristics

Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary is located in southern Cameroon, bordering Gabon. The sanctuary was established in 2001 for the protection of Western lowland gorillas. The site protects 15 other primate species (African Conservation Foundation).

Table 1. Basic site information for Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Area	1300 km²
Coordinates	2.333975, 12.280413
Designation	Wildlife Sanctuary
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

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					Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Threats

Table 3. Threats to apes in Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Quantified severity	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	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High		Poaching is the main threat to gorillas in the area (WWF 2005, ACF).	Ongoing (2005)
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 sanctuary was established by the government of Cameroon, together with the logging company, SOFOPETRA, which initially ran the sanctuary. It was later taken over by Cameroon's Ministry of the Environment and Forestry (MINEF). In 2002, MINEF signed an agreement with the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) to fund a project to promote trans-boundary conservation of the lowland gorilla in Mengame. The Environment Ministry also signed an agreement with the Jane Goodall Institute in 2002 to carry out scientific studies that would provide information for the proper management of the sanctuary. In 2004, MINEF signed another agreement with WWF to provide technical assistance (WWF 2005).

Table 4. Conservation activities in Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

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	Not reported
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	The African Conservation Foundation conduct a Capacity Building and Education project (ACF).	Unknown
11. Habitat Protection	11.2. Legally protect primate habitat	The site is a protected area.	Ongoing (2023)
12. Species Management	Not reported
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	Not reported

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Challenge	Source
Lack of funding	WWF 2005

Research activities

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Mengame Gorilla Sanctuary

Behavior	Source
Not reported

References

WWF. (2005). Anti-poaching patrol saves gorilla in Cameroon. Online: https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?21899/b-Africa-Update-BBRAnti-poaching-patrol-saves-gorilla-in-Cameroon

Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 02/06/2023