Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
West Africa > Republic of Guinea > Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
SITE UNDER PROGRESS
Summary
- Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) are present in Gadha Woundou Classified Forest.
- Estimates for the chimpanzee population range between 50 and 500 individuals.
- The chimpanzee population trend is unknown.
- The total size of the area is unknown.
- Agriculture and roads are the most prevalent signs of human activity in Gadha Woundou.
- Local residents have established forest monitoring committees.
Site characteristics
Gadha Woundou is a sub-prefecture located in Northern Guinea in the prefecture Koubia in the Fouta Djallon. Two classified forests, located right next to each other separated by the river Gambie, were established in 1952, Woundou North and Woundou South (WCF 2012). Gadha Woundou does not have a designated IUCN category nor is it listed in the World Database on Protected Areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2018). The habitat is characterized by a mosaic of wooded savanna, savanna grassland, gallery forests and bamboo forests (WCF 2012). The presence of jackals, leopards, green monkeys, Guinea baboons, and patas monkeys has also been confirmed (WCF 2012).
Table 1: Basic site information for Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
| Area: | unknown |
| Designation: | none |
| Habitat types: | Dry savanna, subtropical/tropical dry shrubland |
Ape status
In 1997 Rebecca Kormos conducted reconnaissance surveys in Gadha Woundou and confirmed the presence of western chimpanzees (Ham 1998). I.S. Camara surveyed Woundou North Classified Forest and estimated the chimpanzee population at more than 500 individuals (Camara 2007, report not in the public domain, details cited here were taken from WCF 2012). In 2011 the Wild Chimpanzee Foundation also surveyed Woundou North in collaboration with the Office for Biodiversity and Protected Areas Guinea (OGuiBDPA) (WCF 2012). They estimated that around 50 chimpanzees occur in the area, but noted that this was an underestimate because they encountered a group of 50 individuals while other survey teams noticed two additional chimpanzee groups (WCF 2012). In savanna mosaics chimpanzee nests are mainly found in gallery forests and a systematic survey design can lead to underestimations in such fragmented habitat (WCF 2012).
Table 2: Great ape population estimates in Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
| Species | Year | Abundance estimate (95% Confidence Intervall) | Density estimate (per km2) | Encounter rate | Area | Method | Source | Comments | A.P.E.S. database ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western chimpanzee | 1997 | present | reconnaissance survey | Ham 1998 | |||||
| Western chimpanzee | 2007 | > 500 individuals | 55.74 nests/km | Woundou North (appr. 280km2) | Camara 2007 (as found in WCF 2012) | Total survey effort: 30.5km | |||
| Western chimpanzee | 2011 | 47 individuals (CI: 25-95) * | 0.167 individuals/km2 (CI: 0.091-0.306) | Woundou North (appr. 280km2) | transect survey, DISTANCE analysis | WCF 2012 | Total survey effort: 83.5 km, * report stated that total abundance was likely strongly underestimated |
Threats
Around 5.600 people are living in proximity to Gadha Woundou (Camara 2007). Human density in Woundou North Classified Forest is low with seven villages around the site (WCF 2012). Roads to these villages are, however, not passable year round. A survey of anthropogenic signs found paths to be most prevalent, followed by slash and burn agriculture, traditional hunting and wood extraction (WCF 2012). Chimpanzees are not hunted and there were no signs of commercial hunting (WCF 2012).
Table 3: Threats to great apes in Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
| Category | Specific threats | Threat level | Description | Year of threat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Residential & commercial development | absent | |||
| 2. Agriculture & aquaculture | 2.1. Annual & Perennial Non-Timber Crops | medium | signs of agriculture were found in 12% of Woundou North [4] | on-going |
| 3. Energy production & mining | absent | |||
| 4. Transportation & service corridors | 4.1. Roads & railroads | medium | paths were the most prevalent sign of anthropogenic activities [4] | on-going |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.1. Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | low | signs of traditional hunting were found but there were no signs of commercial hunting [4] | on-going |
| 5.3. Logging & wood harvesting | low | signs of wood extraction for local use were recorded [4] | on-going | |
| 6. Human intrusion & disturbance | absent | |||
| 7. Natural system modifications | absent | |||
| 8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases | unknown | |||
| 9. Pollution | absent | |||
| 10. Geological Events | absent | |||
| 11. Climate change & severe weather | unknown | |||
| 12. Other options | absent |
Conservation activities
According to local authorities monitoring committees have been established by local residents and are responsible for forest monitoring to deter poachers (WCF 2012).
Table 4: Conservation activities in Gadha Woundou Classified Forest
| Category | Specific activity | Description | Year of activity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Residential & commercial development | absent | ||
| 2. Agriculture & aquaculture | absent | ||
| 3. Energy production & mining | absent | ||
| 4. Transportation & service corridors | absent | ||
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.16. Implement community control of patrolling, banning hunting and removing snares | local residents established monitoring committees that are responsible for forest monitoring to deter poachers [4] | on-going |
| 6. Human intrusion & disturbance | absent | ||
| 7. Natural system modifications | absent | ||
| 8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases | absent | ||
| 9. Pollution | absent | ||
| 10. Education & Awareness | absent | ||
| 11. Habitat Protection | absent | ||
| 12. Species Management | absent | ||
| 13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives | absent |
Impediments
No information on impediments has been documented.
Research activities
From 1996 to 1997 Rebecca Kormos (née Ham) did a nationwide surveys on chimpanzees across Guinea and also surveyed Gadha Woundou (Ham 1998). Woundou North was surveyed by I.S. Camara (Camara 2007) and the Wild Chimpanzee Foundation (WCF 2012).
Documented behaviours
• none documented
Relevant datasets
References
[1] Camara (2007) Inventaire des chimpanzes pan troglodytes verus dans la foret classée de la Woundou –nord, Prefecture de Koubia. Mémoire de fin d’études Supérieures, 41ème promotion, Institut Supérieur agronomique et vétérinaire Valéry Giscard d’Estaing de Faranah.
[2] Ham (1998) Nationwide chimpanzee census and large mammal survey Republic of Guinea
[3] UNEP-WCMC and IUCN (2018) Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA), Cambridge, UK: UNEP-WCMC and IUCN Online: www.protectedplanet.net
[4] WCF (2012) Etat de la faune et des menaces dans les aires protégées terrestres et principales zones de forte biodiversité de Rep. de Guinée. Report. Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, Sangaredi, Republic of Guinea. Online: Wild Chimpanzee Foundation
Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki Team Date: 11/01/2019