Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
Central African Republic > Republic of the Congo > Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
Summary
- Central chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes troglodytes) & western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) are present in the Ndoki-Likouala Landscape.
- It has been estimated that 11,541 (CI: 8,651‐15,396) chimpanzees and 46,264 (CI: 34,607‐61,849) gorillas occur in the site.
- The population trends are unknown.
- The site has a total size of 30,000 km².
- Key threats to great apes are hunting and logging.
- Conservation activities have focused on anti-poaching patrols, employing hunters, road planning, environmental education, tourism, and providing domestic meat.
Site characteristics
The site is located in northern Republic of the Congo, extending over 30,000 sq. km. The landscape includes Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park, Lac Télé Community Reserve, Bailly swamps, as well as Kabo, Pokola, Mokabi, and Loundougou Forest Management Units (Stokes 2007). Endangered species inhabiting the landscape include central chimpanzees, western lowland gorillas, forest elephants, and bongo. The Ndoki-Likouala Landscape is part of the Wildlife Conservation Society's (WCS) Biodiversity Conservation at the Landscape Scale (BCLS) Program (WCS n.d.). The WCS has been working in Ndoki-Likouala since the creation of the Nouabalé-Ndoki Project in 1991, which resulted in the creation of the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park in 1993 (WCS n.d.).
Table 1. Basic site information for Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
| Area | 30,000 km² |
| Coordinates | |
| Designation | Protected Landscape |
| Habitat types | Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical/tropical swamp forest, Wetlands (inland) – Bogs, marshes, swamps, fens, peatlands |
IUCN habitat categories Site designations
Ape status
Table 2. Ape population estimates in Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
| 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 troglodytes | 2006 | 11,541 (8,651‐15,396) | 0.41 (0.31‐0.55) | Ndoki-Likouala Landscape | Line transects (Distance) & reconnaissance walk | Stokes 2007 | |||
| Gorilla gorilla gorilla | 2006 | 46,264 (34,607‐61,849) | 1.65 (1.24‐2.21) | Ndoki-Likouala Landscape | Line transects (Distance) & reconnaissance walk | Stokes 2007 |
Threats
The following key direct threats have been identified at the site: unsustainable hunting (by villagers and also commercial hunting), timber offtake, forest loss, bai disturbance and damage. These threats are mostly caused or exacerbated by commercial timber extraction and the linked increase in human populations and access to the forest via new roads (WCS n.d.).
Table 3. Threats to apes in Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
| 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 | Unsustainable hunting, both commercial & subsistence (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing | |
| 5.3 Logging & wood harvesting | High | Commercial timber extraction is increasing across the region, causing direct forest loss but also exacerbating hunting and habitat destruction (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing | ||
| 6. Human intrusion & disturbance | Absent | ||||
| 7. Natural system modifications | 7.3 Other ecosystem modifications | High | Bai disturbance and physical damage (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing | |
| 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
The main goal of the Ndoki-Likouala Landscape project is to conserve biodiversity applying the Landscape Species Approach. Fundamental to this approach is the concept of Landscape Species, whose ecological roles and requirements help determine key management strategies across a mosaic of land-use-zones. For the Ndoki-Likouala Landscape, the selected Landscape Species include forest elephant (Loxodonta Africana cyclotis), chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), forest buffalo (Syncerus caffer), bongo (Tragelaphus euryceros) and dwarf crocodile (Ostaeolaemus tetraspis). These species represent the main habitat types and key threats across the landscape (WCS n.d.). In addition to the objectives formulated according to the Landscape Species Approach, the implementation of conservation activities in Ndoki-Likouala involve three main approaches: management of the protected areas, implementation of conservation on the broader lanscape, and addressing policy issues and forming government partnerships (WCS n.d.).
Table 4. Conservation activities in Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
| 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 | 4.7. Implement a minimum number of roads (& minimize secondary roads) needed to reach mining extraction sites | Road planning and close old roads (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing |
| 5. Biological resource use | 5.6. Conduct regular anti-poaching patrols | Anti-poaching patrols (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing |
| 5.11. Provide training to anti-poaching ranger patrols | Guard training (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing | |
| 5.18. Employ hunters in the conservation sector to reduce their impact | Hire locals/hunters (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing | |
| 5.36. Provide domestic meat to workers of the logging company to reduce hunting | Supply beef (WCS 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 | 10.1. Educate local communities about primates and sustainable use | Environmental education (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing |
| 11. Habitat Protection | Not reported | ||
| 12. Species Management | Not reported | ||
| 13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives | 13.4. Run tourist projects and ensure permanent human presence at site | Tourism (WCS n.d.). | Ongoing |
Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)
Challenges
Table 5. Challenges reported for SITE NAME
| Challenge | Source |
|---|---|
| Lack of law enforcement | WCS n.d. |
Research activities
Documented behaviours
Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
| Behavior | Source |
|---|---|
| Not reported |
External links
WCS monitoring Ndoki-Likouala Landscape
Relevant datasets
References
WCS. (n.d.). Achievements and Lessons Learned from 10 Years of Support for Threats-based Conservation at a Landscape and Seascape Scale: Ndoki-Likouala Landscape Conservation Area (Republic of Congo). WCS report.
Stokes, E. (2007). Ecological monitoring program Ndoki-Likouala Landscape. WCS report.
Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 29/12/2020