Blei Community Forest
West Africa > Liberia > Blei Community Forest
Summary
- Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) are present in Blei Community Forest.
- The population size is unknown.
- The chimpanzee population trend is decreasing.
- The site has a total size of 6.29 km².
- Key threats to chimpanzees are iron ore mining and poaching.
- Conservation activities have focused on poaching patrols.
Site characteristics
The Blei community is adjacent to the east Nimba nature reserve. Characterised by the Blei Mountain, which harbours a chimpanzee population (Zansi 2022).
Table 1. Basic site information for Blei Community Forest
| Area | 6.29 km² |
| Coordinates | |
| Designation | Community Forest |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest |
IUCN habitat categories Site designations
Ape status
Table 2. Ape population estimates in Blei Community Forest
| 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 verus | 2009 | ABUNDANCE ESTIMATE | DENSITY ESTIMATE | ENCOUNTER RATE | AREA | METHOD | SOURCE | COMMENTS |
Threats
Mining of iron ore and poaching (Zansi 2022).
Table 3. Threats to apes in Blei Community Forest
| Category | Specific threats | Threat level | Quantified severity | Description | Year of threat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Residential & commercial development | Unknown | ||||
| 2. Agriculture & aquaculture | Unknown | ||||
| 3. Energy production & mining | 3.2 Mining & quarrying | High | Iron ore exploration by Solway Mining Company (Zansi 2022). | 2019 | |
| 4. Transportation & service corridors | Unknown | ||||
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | Medium | Gun and snares hunting (Zansi 2022). | Ongoing (2022). | |
| 5.2 Gathering terrestrial plants | Medium | Collection of NFTPs (Zansi 2022). | Ongoing (2022). | ||
| 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
Table 4. Conservation activities in Blei Community Forest
| 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 | Regular anti-poaching patrol, community awareness and livelihood program for forest dependent supported by AML in partnership with FDA (Zansi 2022). | Ongoing (2022) |
| 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
No funding to conduct research, limited capacity (Zansi 2022).
Table 5. Challenges reported for Blei Community Forest
| Challenge | Source |
|---|---|
| Lack of financial means | Zansi 2022 |
| Lack of capacity/training | Zansi 2022 |
Research activities
Ongoing chimpanzee and large mammals survey (Zansi 2022).
Documented behaviours
Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Blei Community Forest
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Not reported |
External links
References
Page completed by: Grace Kotee Zansi Date: 19/12/2022