Mount Cameroon National Park

Central Africa > Cameroon > Mount Cameroon National Park

Summary

• Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes ellioti) & Cross river gorillas (Gorilla gorilla diehli) are present in Mount Cameroon National Park.
• It has been estimated that 130 (79-215) chimpanzees occur in the site; the gorilla population size is unknown.
• The chimpanzee population trend is stable.
• The site has a total size of 581.78 km².
• Key threats to great apes are hunting and logging.
• Conservation activities have focused on community-based projects, eco-tourism and biomonitoring.
• At 4,070 m in altitude, Mount Cameroon is the highest peak in sub-Saharan western and central Africa.

Site characteristics

Established in 2009, Mt. Cameroon National Park lies near the coast, in western Cameroon (Eno-Nku 2013). Harboring a very rich and diverse flora and fauna, the site is part of a biodiversity hotspot in the Gulf of Guinea Forests (MNCP). Reaching 4,070 m in altitude, Mount Cameroon, also known as Mount Fako, is an active volcano and the highest peak in West and Central Africa, as well as the fourth most prominent peak in Africa (MNCP). The western slope of the park is one of the wettest places in the world, with 10,000 mm rainfall (MNCP). The park is home to forest elephants, chimpanzees, drills, and over 330 bird species, including two endemic species, the Mt. Cameroon francolin, Pternistis camerunensis and Mt. Cameroon speirops, Zosterops melanocephalus (WWF).

Table 1. Basic site information for Mount Cameroon National Park

Area	581.78 km²
Coordinates	4.218726 N, 9.146500 E
Designation	National Park
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical dry forest, subtropical/tropical dry grassland,subtropical/tropical moist montane forest, subtropical/tropical high altitude grassland

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

A survey in 2013 estimated an abundance of 130 (95% CI: 79-215) chimpanzees; nests and signs of gorillas were not found (Eno-Nku 2013). Based on the 2013 estimates together with results from a 2007 survey, the chimpanzee population appears to be stable (Eno-Nku 2013).

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Mount Cameroon National Park

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 ellioti	2007		0.47 (0.17-0.136)		Mt. Cameroon proposed National Park	Line transects (Distance)	Eno-Nku 2013
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2013	130 (79-215)	0.67 (0.41-1.11)	1.21	Mt. Cameroon National Park, excluding southwest block	Line transects (Distance)	Eno-Nku 2013

Threats

Main threats to great apes include hunting and logging. Encounter rates of human pressure threats within the park decreased between 2007 and 2013 (Eno-Nku 2013).

Table 3. Threats to apes in Mount Cameroon National Park

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	Present, but threat severity is unknown		Agricultural encroachment (Eno-Nku 2013).	Ongoing (2013)
3. Energy production & mining		Unknown
4. Transportation & service corridors		Unknown
5. Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High		Signs of snares, gun shells, gun shots, hunting trails had the highest encounter rate for human activities (Eno-Nku 2013).	Ongoing (2013)
	5.3 Logging & wood harvesting	High			Ongoing (2013)
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

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

The National park is working with Village Forest Management Committees (VFMCs) of the 41 communities around the park. These communities have been regrouped into clusters. Each cluster has a cluster facilitator, a person who maintains communication between the park and the cluster. Inside the National Park territory each cluster is co-responsible for the management of a “Cluster Conservation Zone” (MNCP). On half-yearly cluster platform meetings representatives of the VFMCs plan and agree on co-management activities (e.g. boundary opening and monitoring activities), and evaluate past performance (MCNP). The communities equally receive a conservation bonus, depending on their performance in co-management activities and the occurrence of illegal activities in their cluster conservation zone. The conservation bonus is used to sponsor small community projects. The National park is managing the Non-Timber Forest Product (NTFP) of ``Prunus Africana`` bark in a sustainable way. Local communities insisted on further exploitation of the Prunus Resource as a user right during the process leading to the creation of Mt. Cameroon National Park. Mount Cameroon hosts one of the largest populations of ``Prunus africana`` in Cameroon. The tree is occurring mainly in the mountain forest close to the border of the savannah. The Prunus bark is used as traditional medicine and since the 1970s in the pharmaceutical industry in Europe to treat benign prostate (MNCP).

Table 4. Conservation activities in Mount Cameroon National Park

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 patrol park (MCNP).	Ongoing
	5.15. Implement monitoring surveillance strategies (e.g. SMART) or use monitoring data to improve effectiveness of wildlife law enforcement patrols	Regular wildlife surveys are conducted (MCNP).	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	11.2. Legally protect primate habitat	The park was established in 2009.	Ongoing
12. Species Management	Not reported
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	13.4. Run tourist projects and ensure permanent human presence at site	The park has authorized local tour operators and activities such as trekking, bird watching and viewing wildlife (MCNP).	Ongoing

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Mount Cameroon National Park

Challenge	Source
Not reported

Research activities

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Mount Cameroon National Park

Behavior	Source
Not reported

External links

Mount Cameroon National Park - Official Website)

Relevant datasets

A.P.E.S Portal

References

Mount Cameroon National Park. (n.d.). Mount Cameroon National Park. https://www.mtcameroonnationalpark.org/
Mt Cameroon National Park (58,154 ha). (n.d.). WWF. https://cameroon.panda.org/places_landscapes/coastal_forests_programme/mt_cameroon_national_park/
Eno-Nku, M. (2013). Large mammal surveys of the Mt. Cameroon National Park, SW Region. WWF CCPO Coastal Forest Programme, Limbe, Cameroon.

Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date: 28/09/2021