Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

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Summary

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• Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) are present in Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve.
• It has been estimated that 70 (CI: 22-213) individuals occur at the site.
• The chimpanzee population trend is unknown.
• This site has a total size of 118.85 km².
• Key threats to chimpanzees are hunting and slash-and-burn agriculture.
• There is a lack of information on conservation interventions implemented at the site.
• The remote area is renowned for its batholiths.

Site characteristics

The site is located in eastern Sierra Leone, close to the border with Guinea. It is characterized by steep forested hills, which include the second highest peak in Sierra Leone, the Sankan Biriwa, at 1860 m (Brncic et al. 2010, BirdLife International 2019). The site is an Important Bird Area (IBA); more than 200 bird species have been recorded at the site, six of which are of global conservation concern, including the white-necked picarthes (BirdLife International 2019). Other species inhabiting the reserve include forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis), sooty mangabey (Cercocebus atys, BirdLife International 2019), and the endemic toad species Amietophrynus cristiglans, commonly known as the Tingi Hills toad (EPA 2017).

Table 1. Basic site information for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Species	'Pan troglodytes verus
Area	118.85 km²
Coordinates	Lat: 8.92 , Lon: -10.79
Type of site	Protected area (Forest Reserve)
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist montane forest, Shrubland, Grassland, Savanna, Rocky areas (inland cliffs, mountain peaks), Agricultural land
Type of governance

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

In 1979-1980, Teleki and Baldwin conducted a nationwide survey and reported high densities in Tingi Hills (Brncic et al. 2010). Decades later, in 2010, a line transect survey was conducted in Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve, which estimated approximately 70 individuals in the area; however, a higher survey effort would be needed to reduce uncertainty in this population estimate (Brncic et al. 2010).

Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Species	Year	Occurrence	Encounter or vistation rate (nests/km; ind/day)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Survey area	Sampling method	Analytical framework	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pan troglodytes verus	2010		1.91	0.59 (0.19-1.84)	70 (22-213)	Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve	Line transects		Brncic et al. 2010	Total survey effort: 24.55 km

Threats

Footpaths are present throughout the reserve, and hunting signs were frequently encountered during the chimpanzee survey in 2010 (Brncic et al. 2010). Bush fires are also a main concern, as they cause severe damage to the forest cover (BirdLife International 2019). The steep terrain offers protection to chimpanzees in the interior of the reserve, but the high demand for agricultural land means that farming is slowly reaching the steeper areas (Brncic et al. 2010).

Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Description	Year of threat
9 Pollution		Absent
10 Geological events		Absent
12 Other threat		Absent
2 Agriculture & aquaculture	2.1 Annual & perennial non-timber crops	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Agricultural practices are a main threat in the reserve, causing forest clearance and erosion of the soil (Brncic et al. 2010).	Ongoing (2010)
4 Transportation & service corridors	4.1 Roads & railroads	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Footpaths present (Brncic et al. 2010).	Ongoing (2010)
5 Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Hunting signs present in the reserve (Brncic et al. 2010).	Ongoing (2010)
7 Natural system modifications	7.1 Fire & fire suppression	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Bush fires occasionally cause severe damage to forest cover (BirdLife International 2019).	Ongoing (2019)
3 Energy production & mining	3.2 Mining & quarrying	Low (up to 30% of population affected)	Mining is a potential long-term threat and takes places along the river in the south of the reserve (BirdLife International 2019).	Ongoing (2019)
1 Residential & commercial development		Unknown
6 Human intrusions & disturbance		Unknown
8 Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases		Unknown
11 Climate change & severe weather		Unknown

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

In 2010, it was reported that seven forest guards were undergoing training for deployment in the site (Brncic et al. 2010). However, further information on conservation activities has been reported; in fact, there may be no management plan for the area or immediate development plans (BirdLife International 2019).

Table 4. Conservation activities reported for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Category	Specific activity	Description	Implementing organization(s)	Year of activity
5 Protection & restoration	5.2 Legally protect ape habitat	The site was designated a Forest Reserve in 1947 and Non-hunting Forest Reserve in 1973 (BirdLife International 2019)		Ongoing (2019)

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Challenges	Specific challenges	Source	Year(s)
	Not reported

Enablers

Table 6. Enablers reported for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Enablers	Specific enablers	Source	Year(s)
1 Site management
2 Resources and capacity
3 Engaged community
4 Institutional support
5 Ecological context
6 Safety and stability

Research activities

No information on research activities has been documented.

Documented behaviours

Table 7. Behaviours documented for Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve

Behavior	Source
Not reported

References

BirdLife International. 2019. Important Bird Areas factsheet: Tingi Hills Non-hunting Forest Reserve. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 19/09/2019.

Brncic, T.M., Amarasekaran,B. & McKenna,A. (2010) Final Report of the Sierra Leone National Chimpanzee Census Project. Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Environment Protection Agency (EPA). 2017. Sierra Leone’s Second National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2017-2026.

Page created by: A.P.E.S. Wiki Team Date: NA