Salonga National Park (North Block)
Central Africa > Democratic Republic of the Congo > Salonga National Park (North Block)
Summary
- Bonobos (Pan paniscus) are present in the north block of Salonga National Park.
- In 2006 it was estimated that 7,826 (CI: 3,814-10,618) individuals occur in the site.
- The bonobo population trend is unknown.
- The site has a total size of 17,000 km².
- Key threats to bonobos are poaching and habitat encroachment.
- Conservation activities have focused on anti-poaching interventions.
- The park was declared a World Heritage Site in 1984 and is the largest expanse of legally protected bonobo habitat.
Site characteristics
Salonga National Park is located in central Democratic Republic of the Congo. The park is formed by a north block and a south block, which are separated by a 45 km wide corridor (BirdLife International 2021). The national park, which is the largest in Africa, was created in 1970 and classified as a World Heritage Site in 1984 (WWF n.d.). Salonga is located in the largest block of intact lowland forest in the Congo Basin and it is only accessible by water or air (WWF n.d.). The north block of the park is directly linked to the Congo river basin (BirdLife International 2021). The park is very rich in biodiversity; in addition to bonobos, elephants, bongos, giant pangolins, and Congo peacocks are found here (WWF n.d.).
Table 1. Basic site information for Salonga National Park (North Block)
| Area | 17,000 km² |
| Coordinates | -1.732344 S, 21.827485 E |
| Designation | National Park |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest, savanna, subtropical/tropical swamp forest |
IUCN habitat categories Site designations
Ape status
Table 2. Ape population estimates in Salonga National Park (North Block)
| 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 paniscus | 2005-2006 | 2.29 | Lomela Block (2,750 sq.km) | Line transects (Distance) | Grossman et al. 2008 | Survey effort: 95.2 km | |||
| Pan paniscus | 2005-2006 | 1.8 | Lomela Block (2,750 sq.km) | Index survey (reconnaissance walk) | Grossman et al. 2008 | Survey effort: 515 km | |||
| Pan paniscus | 2006 | 7,826 (3,814-10,618) | Salonga National Park, North Block | Line transects (Distance) & Index survey (reconnaissance walk) | Grossman et al. 2008 |
Threats
Despite the park’s apparent inaccessibility, several navigable rivers provide access deep into the park (WWF n.d.). The demand for bushmeat from in the immediate area as well as in urban centres as far as Kinshasa, have driven bushmeat hunting and fishing in the park to critical levels (WWF n.d.). Commercial hunting for bushmeat in the park is intense, in part due to heavily armed poachers coming in search of ivory (IUCN & ICCN 2012).
Table 3. Threats to apes in Salonga National Park (North Block)
| 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 | High | Clearing land for agriculture (Salonga National Park). | Ongoing | |
| 3. Energy production & mining | Unknown | ||||
| 4. Transportation & service corridors | 12.1 Other threat | High | Nearly 85% of the north block is within 15 km of a river navigable by dugout canoe (Grossman et al. 2008). | Ongoing (2008) | |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | High | Poaching has led to declines of up to 70% in bonobo numbers in some areas of the park. Surveys in the corridor between the two blocks showed that bonobos were rare or absent within 10 km of villages and completely absent in most of the northern part of the corridor (IUCN & ICCN 2012, WWF n.d.). | Ongoing (2012) | |
| 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 |
Conservation activities
WWF has been working in Salonga since 2005, supporting the Congolese park authority ICCN (Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) in managing the park and engaging with local communities to identify and develop alternative livelihood opportunities (WWF n.d.). Since 2015, WWF is co-managing the park together with the ICCN (WWF n.d.). The site represents the largest existing expanse of legally-protected and intact bonobo habitat; protection of this park and it’s wildlife is therefore of paramount importance (IUCN & ICCN 2012). To control the increase in elephant poaching and the proliferation of military weapons in the region, government armed forces (FARDC) undertook a joint operation with ICCN, called Operation Bonobo, in 2011 (IUCN & ICCN 2012, Mukpo 2019). The operation was said to be successful in returning the ICCN control of the park. According to research by the Rainforest Foundation UK, the guards involved in the operation are culpable of human rights abuses, and the “poachers” targeted by Operation Bonobo and similar initiatives have mostly been local hunters rather than the heavily armed gangs that many people imagine to be accountable for poaching at the park (Mukpo 2019).
Table 4. Conservation activities in Salonga National Park (North Block)
| 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 | Eco-guards conduct anti-poaching patrols (WWF n.d.). | Ongoing |
| 5.15. Implement monitoring surveillance strategies (e.g. SMART) or use monitoring data to improve effectiveness of wildlife law enforcement patrols | Introduction of SMART to support anti-poaching efforts (WWF 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 | Not reported | ||
| 11. Habitat Protection | Not reported | ||
| 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 Salonga National Park (North Block)
| Challenge | Source |
|---|---|
| Corruption | WWF n.d. |
| Lack of technical means | WWF n.d. |
| Lack of capacity/training | WWF n.d. |
Research activities
Documented behaviours
Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Salonga National Park (North Block)
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Not reported |
External links
Salonga National Park - UNESCO
Salonga National Park - Official website
Relevant datasets
References
Grossmann, F., Hart, J. A., Vosper, A., & Ilambu, O. (2008). Range occupation and population estimates of bonobos in the Salonga National Park: application to large-scale surveys of bonobos in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In The bonobos (pp. 189-216). Springer, New York, NY.
BirdLife International. (2021). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Salonga National Park. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 11/11/2021.
WWF. (n.d.). Salonga Programme. Online: https://www.wwf-congobasin.org/where_we_work/democratic_republic_of_congo/salonga_programme/
IUCN & ICCN. (2012). Bonobo (Pan paniscus): Conservation Strategy 2012–2022. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group & Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature. 65 pp.
Mukpo, A. (2019, June 12). Did efforts to protect DRC’s elephants and bonobos leave a trail of abuses? Mongabay. https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/did-efforts-to-protect-drcs-elephants-and-bonobos-leave-a-trail-of-abuses/
Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 14/11/2021