Atewa Range Forest Reserve
Summary
- Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) are no longer present in Atewa Range Forest Reserve.
- Chimpanzees have been extirpated from the site.
- The site has a total size of 258 km².
- Chimpanzees were mainly threatened by hunting.
- Conservation activities have focused on patrolling and controlling poaching.
Site characteristics
Atewa Range Forest Reserve is located in southeastern Ghana. The reserve is on a mountain range, which peaks at 842 m a.s.l., (Kusimi 2015). Atewa is unique because of its Upland Evergreen forest, which is an important reservoir of biodiversity. It was established as a national forest reserve in 1926, a Special Biological Protection Area in 1994, a Hill Sanctuary in 1995, as one of Ghana’s 30 Globally Significant Biodiversity Areas (GSBAs) in 1999, and an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International in 2001 (RAP 2007). In 2021, a new frog species was discovered in the site; it was given the common name Atewa Slippery frog, Conraua sagyimase (A Rocha Ghana).
Table 1. Basic site information for Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| Area | 258 km² |
| Coordinates | 6.170532, -0.600267 |
| Designation | Forest Reserve |
| Habitat types | Tropical Moist Montane Forest |
Ape status
No chimpanzees have been found in the reserve. An old chief hunter reported that he has not seen a chimpanzee in the forest since he started hunting over 40 years ago (Ofori-Amanfo pers. comm. 2023). During a 2006 Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) survey of the site, most nearby communities said that chimpanzees were not present; this was in line with the RAP’s transect and recce survey results, which found no evidence of chimpanzees (McCullough et al. 2007).
Table 2. Ape population estimates in Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| 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 | 1980-2023 | 0 | Atewa Range Forest Reserve | (Ofori-Amanfo pers. comm. 2023). | |||||
| Pan troglodytes verus | 2006 | 0 | Atewa Range Forest Reserve | Index survey (reconnaissance walk) and line transect survey | McCullough et al. 2007 |
Threats
Chimpanzees were mainly threatened by the high levels of uncontrolled hunting (Ofori-Amanfo pers. comm. 2023). A study by Kusimi 2015 also found that land cover (especially forest cover) in the reserve declined, while land use increased between 1986 and 2013. Parts of the forest degraded into bushes/shrubs and the peripheral landscape was more affected due to intense human activities such as farming and illegal logging. Other activities such as expansion of settlements and illegal gold mining have also contributed to the negative impacts on the forest cover (Kusimi 2015). Atewa Forest is one of three possible sites where the government of Ghana is seeking to mine bauxite to develop an integrated bauxite-aluminium industry; up to this point it has not been exploited but the risk still exists (Purwins 2022).
Table 3. Threats to apes in Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| 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 | Low | Farmers encroach into the Forest Reserve for illegal subsistence farming (Kusimi 2015, Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 2014-Ongoing (2023) | |
| 3. Energy production & mining | 3.2 Mining & quarrying | High | Illegal mining can be found in the Forest Reserve, specifically gold mining (Kusimi 2015, Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 2014-Ongoing (2023) | |
| 3.2 Mining & quarrying | High | In June 2019, in the absence of an environmental impact assessment, the Ghanaian authorities started clearing access roads to Atewa Forest to allow test-drilling for bauxite (IUCN Congress 2020). Bauxite deposits have been assessed several other times at the site by prospective companies, but bauxite mining has been so far met with strong opposition (Lindsell et al. 2019). | 2019 | ||
| 4. Transportation & service corridors | Unknown | ||||
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | High | Poaching of wild animals in the Forest is common (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 1926-Ongoing (2023) | |
| 5.2 Gathering terrestrial plants | High | The communities around the Forest Reserve enter and collect non timber forest products for domestic and commercial purposes (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 1926-Ongoing (2023) | ||
| 5.3 Logging & wood harvesting | High | Legal logging was permitted between 1966 and 1998 (Lindsell et al. 2019). | 1966-1998 | ||
| 5.3 Logging & wood harvesting | Medium | Illegal logging still goes on in the Reserve, even after the 2003 management plan made no provisions for timber harvesting (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023, Lindsell et al. 2019). | 2003-Ongoing (2023) | ||
| 6. Human intrusion & disturbance | Unknown | ||||
| 7. Natural system modifications | 7.1 Fire & fire suppression | Medium | The Forest Reserve has a long boundary, where periodic fires occur due to farming practices around the reserve (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 2016-Ongoing (2023) | |
| 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
Some organisations are advocating that the Atewa Forest Reserve should be upgraded to National Park status, including the NGO Ghana A Rocha and the IUCN (Lindsell et al. 2019).
Table 4. Conservation activities in Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| 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 | 5.1. Implement no-hunting seasons for primates | Ghana has a closed season from 1st August to 1st December for all wild animals, including primates in Ghana | Ongoing (2023) |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.6. Conduct regular anti-poaching patrols | The Forestry Commission used to carry out patrols in the Forest and has increased the number of Rapid Response Teams (RRT) to undertake regular patrols in important Forest Reserves (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 1926-Ongoing (2023) |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.8. Inspect bushmeat markets for illegal primate species | The Forestry Commission carries out checks on illegal trade in bush meat (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | Ongoing (2023) |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.9. Regularly de-activate/remove ground snares | All snares seen in the Reserve by patrol teams and researchers are removed (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | Ongoing (2023) |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.10. Provide better equipment (e.g. guns) to anti-poaching ranger patrols | New and better weapons have been acquired for the RRT (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | 2023 |
| 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 | NGOs such as A Rocha Ghana, Conservation International etc. undertake conservation education around the Forest Reserve (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | Ongoing (2023) |
| 10. Education & Awareness | 10.2. Involve local community in primate research and conservation management | Local communities are involved in research activities in the Forest Reserve (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | Ongoing (2023) |
| 11. Habitat Protection | 11.2. Legally protect primate habitat | The site has been a Forest Reserve since 1926. | 1926-Ongoing (2023) |
| 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) | Communities are provided livelihood support programmes to increase their support for conservation (Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023). | Ongoing (2023) |
Challenges
The main challenges to conservation include lack of vigorous law Enforcement activities in the Forest Reserve, lack of logistics and low staff (Kusimi 2015).
Table 5. Challenges reported for Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| Challenge | Source |
|---|---|
| Lack of law enforcement | Ofori-Amanfo pers. obs. 2023, Kusimi 2015 |
| Lack of logistical means | Kusimi 2015 |
| Lack of human resources | Kusimi 2015 |
Research activities
Studies have been carried out in the Forest Reserve on its biodiversity since 2003, for management plans, biodiversity assessments and threat assessments.
Documented behaviours
Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Atewa Range Forest Reserve
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Not reported |
External links
References
McCullough, J., Alonso, L. E., Naskrecki, P., Wright, H. E., & Osei-Owusu, Y. (2007). A rapid biological assessment of the Atewa Range Forest Reserve, eastern Ghana. RAP Bulletin of Biological Assessment, 47, 1-191.
Kusimi, J. M. (2015). Characterizing land disturbance in Atewa range forest reserve and buffer zone. Land Use Policy, 49, 471-482.
Rapid Assessment Program. (2007). Biodiversity in the Atewa Range Forest Reserve, Ghana. Conservation International, Arlington, VA, USA.
Purwins, S. (2022). Bauxite mining at Atewa Forest Reserve, Ghana: a political ecology of a conservation-exploitation conflict. GeoJournal, 87(2), 1085-1097.
J. Lindsell, R. Agyei, D. Bosu, J. Decher, W. Hawthorne, C. Marshall, C. Ofori-Boateng, M.-.O. Rodel (2019). The Biodiversity of Atewa Forest. Technical Report to A Rocha, January 2019.
Page completed by: Richard Ofori-Amanfo & APES wiki team Date: 10/11/2023