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Anthropogenic pressures are driving major declines in mammals, especially in unprotected areas. However, our understanding of how mammals coexist with humans and adapt to hunting in human‐dominated landscapes remains limited. Here, we used long‐term data (2008–2023) from an unprotected biodiversity hotspot facing hunting pressure and impending logging to model how Nigeria‐Cameroon chimpanzees and African forest elephants respond to hunting. We found that elephant occurrence was mostly associated with higher elevations and greater village distance, declined with increasing terrain ruggedness, and was not sensitive to hunting. In contrast, chimpanzee occurrence increased strongly with terrain ruggedness, moderately with elevation, and non‐linearly with village distance. It decreased with increasing hunting intensity. During 2008–2023, elephant occurrence remained generally stable but increased in high elevations and near rivers. Concurrently, chimpanzee occurrence declined, especially in areas with high hunting intensity and the species occurred increasingly away from villages. Overall, our findings suggest that hunting may predominately impact chimpanzees. Meanwhile, elephants may be more vulnerable to industrial logging that began after this study, likely outcompeting them in flatter areas. Our results highlight the urgent need to identify and secure key areas for both species to ensure their long‐term persistence alongside other land uses in this biodiversity hotspot. We used long‐term data (2008–2023) from an unprotected African rainforest facing hunting pressure and impending logging to model how Nigeria‐Cameroon chimpanzees and African forest elephants respond to hunting. We found that elephant occurrence declined with increasing terrain ruggedness and was not affected by hunting. In contrast, chimpanzee occurrence increased strongly with terrain ruggedness, non‐linearly with village distance, and declined with increasing hunting intensity. We call for urgent action to identify and secure key areas for both species to ensure their long‐term persistence alongside other land uses in this biodiversity hotspot.

Aim The long‐term survival of many mammal populations relies on how effectively we mitigate the threat from unsustainable hunting. Yet, hunting activities are often cryptic, especially in unprotected forests. Here, we investigate whether hunting signs can help understand the spatiotemporal dynamics of hunting activities in an unprotected African rainforest and examine how landscape characteristics predict various indicators of hunting. Location Ebo forest, Cameroon, Central Africa. Methods We recorded hunting signs (e.g., shotgun cartridges, wire snares, direct sightings) systematically on 23 parallel recce lines across the Ebo forest from 2008 to 2023. We assigned hunting data and spatial covariates (e.g., elevation, distance to village) to 1 × 1 km grid cells and applied generalised linear mixed models to predict the effects of these covariates on hunting. Results We found that hunting was commonplace across the entire Ebo forest. The best‐fitting models for each hunting sign differed considerably. Shotgun cartridges and all hunting signs combined increased significantly from 2016 to 2023 and varied non‐linearly along the village‐distance gradient. We found a progressive inversion of hunting trends along the anthropogenic gradient; between 2016 and 2018, wire snares declined with the distance to road but from 2021, they increased along the road‐distance gradient. Wire snares showed a similar pattern along the river‐distance gradient. Our results also revealed differences between shotgun hunting and snaring along the altitudinal gradient; the effect of elevation was positive on shotgun cartridges and negative on wire snares. Hunting signs and trails decreased significantly with increasing terrain ruggedness. Main Conclusions Using long‐term monitoring data, we show how hunting patterns change dynamically with respect to human and landscape‐related features. We also demonstrate complex hunting patterns along the gradient of human influence, therefore questioning the use of proxies such as the distance to human settlements and even topography to account for hunting pressure. Overall, we show that hunting sign data can reveal the spatiotemporal patterns of hunting, crucial in evaluating the effectiveness of conservation interventions and guiding the prioritisation of limited conservation resources.

Accurate assessment of great ape populations is a prerequisite for conservation planning. Indirect survey methods using nest and dung, and a set of conversion parameters related to nest decay rates, are increasingly used. Most surveys use the standing crop nest count (SCNC) method, whereby nests are counted along transects and the estimated nest density is converted into chimpanzee density using an often non-local nest decay rate. The use of non-local decay rate is thought to introduce substantial bias to ape population estimates given that nest decay rates vary with location, season, rainfall, nest shape, and tree species used. SCNC method has previously been applied in Mbam-Djerem National Park (MDNP) in Cameroon, for chimpanzee surveys using a non-local nest decay rate. This current study aimed to measure a local nest decay rate for MDNP and implications for chimpanzee population estimates in the MDNP. The mean nest decay rate estimated using a logistic regression analysis was 127 [95% CI (100–160)] days. Moreover, the results suggested that rainfall strongly influenced the nest decay rate over the early stage of the lifetime of the nests. The study confirms that estimates of chimpanzee density and abundance using non-local decay rates should be treated with caution. Our research emphasized the importance of using local nest decay rates and other survey methods which do not depend on decay rates to obtain more accurate estimates of chimpanzee densities in order to inform conservation strategies of these great apes in MDNP.

This study explored local ecological knowledge held by local people bordering Cameroon’s Ebo forest, in view to evaluate the possible contribution of this set of knowledge to conserve the understudied Preuss’s monkey (Allochrocebus preussi). Data were collected through interviews using semi-structured questionnaires, administered to 262 households from 17 villages of permanent settlements purposely selected based on their closeness and dependence to the Ebo forest for livelihoods. We found that the log-odds of being in favor of conserving A. preussi in the area was significantly higher for participants of secondary school level of education, strongly increased when participants had last eaten this species ≥ 1 year ago and was higher for participants who use this species for subsistence. The log-odds of perceiving a decreasing trend of A. preussi in the area was significantly highest for participants who had last consumed this species ≥ 5 years ago compared to those who had recently consumed the species. Participants who used A. preussi for income generation were more likely to perceive decreasing trend, compared to those who used it for food. Overall, our study highlights the possible value of local ecological knowledge as a tool that can provide important information to conservationists and decision-makers useful to plan and prioritize conservation actions for A. preussi. Also, our findings suggest the urgency to monitor populations of A. preussi, assess the impact of hunting pressure on this species, and develop sustainable livelihood activities and community-based conservation education to strengthening the conservation of A. preussi in Ebo forest.

Background and Aim: Knowledge of population size is crucial for efficient conservation planning. Limited population survey data exist for the Endangered Preuss’s monkey in Cameroon’s Ebo forest, a stronghold for this species and several other IUCN RedList species. In this study, we assessed the population size of Preuss’s monkey in the Ebo forest. Methods: Ecological data on Preuss’s monkey and evidence of anthropogenic disturbances were collected based on recce surveys. Encounter Rate was used to assess abundance and distribution, and for comparing relative abundance among four survey sites. We employed ANOVA to test for significant differences in encounters with Preuss’s monkey across sites in the Ebo forest. We used regression analysis to identify possible relationships between encounters with Preuss’s monkey and anthropogenic activities recorded. Results: Based on direct sightings, we observed 66 individuals residing in 11 groups. This resulted in an encounter rate of 0.15_individuals/km, a sighting frequency of 0.024_groups/km, and an encounter frequency of 0.062_groups/km of Preuss’s monkeys. On average, an encounter rate of 2.4_signs of anthropogenic activities/km was documented. Our results revealed a negative and significant correlation between encounters of Preuss’s monkey and human activities such as hunting signs, logging signs, evidence of planted crops, collection of Non-Timber Forest Products, and fishing activity. Conclusion: Our investigation indicates that the population of Preuss’s monkey in the Ebo forest totals approximately 481 individuals, which is consistent with their Endangered status. Implications for Conservation: We recommend continued monitoring and research on this population to better determine the specific drivers of their population decline. We also advocate a community conservation approach to incentivize local communities to take a more active role in preserving the forest and protecting Preuss’s monkey. Equally important, are programs of conservation education and awareness, in an attempt to inspire local people to become involved in this species conservation.

Tropical rainforests are rich in vertebrates, the result of processes that generate and maintain biological diversity, and low extinction rates under relatively stable climatic conditions. The Gulf of Guinea in Central/West Africa is a biodiversity hotspot with several endemic species, including several primate species. The diversity of endemic species found in this region has been attributed to a complex forest history during the Pleistocene; habitat variation associated with the confluence of the Gulf of Guinea rainforest to the west with the Congo Basin rainforest to the south and drier savanna habitats to the north; and biogeographic barriers including the Cameroon Highlands and riverine barriers, such as the Sanaga River in Central Cameroon. The contributions of the Sanaga River and Cameroon Highlands in promoting species diversification have been examined in some detail, and a growing body of data, suggests that environmental variation, particularly in an ecotone area in southern Cameroon has been important in promoting the diversification of birds, lizards and insects. Little is known about whether ecological variation has contributed to the diversification of endemic mammals across this region. The chimpanzees of Cameroon present a unique opportunity to investigate how ecological variation contributes to promoting intraspecific divergence in the endemic mammals of the region. In addition to harboring two chimpanzee subspecies (Pan troglodytes troglodytes and P. t. ellioti), there are two distinct gene pools associated with P. t. ellioti. These two gene pools were previously shown to inhabit two significantly different niches – one associated with the mountainous rainforest habitats found in western Cameroon and one associated with the ecotone habitats found in central Cameroon. This thesis explores environmental and ecological differences between rainforest and ecotone habitats at a fine geographic scale, and compares and contrasts chimpanzee socioecology patterns between these habitats. Research was conducted from January 2016 to December 2017 at three study sites to represent a range of environments inhabited by P. t. ellioti. I completed surveys for 15 months (January 2016 to March 2017) at two rainforest sites (Njuma and Bekob) in Ebo forest. Njuma was selected for study because it represents relatively undisturbed lowland rainforest, whereas Bekob represents a regenerating human-modified lowland rainforest landscape. Complementary studies were also completed for 24 months (January 2016 to December 2017) at one ecotone site in Mbam & Djerem National Park (Ganga). Quantitative ecological methods were used to characterize habitats and the seasonal availability of fleshy fruits that are important to chimpanzees. Since chimpanzees across the sites are not habituated to humans, I used indirect methods (fecal samples and nests) to investigate chimpanzee diet and nesting patterns. The first aim of study was to examine whether and how the niches of P. t. ellioti in western Cameroon (Njuma and Bekob) differed from the niche occupied by P. t. ellioti in central Cameroon (Ganga) at fine geographic scale. The main variables that distinguished the rainforest from the ecotone habitats included rainfall (annual amounts are higher at the rainforest) and the diversity, density and size of trees (higher at the rainforest than the ecotone). On the other hand, the ecotone had a higher density of lianas and terrestrial herbaceous vegetation. The availability of fleshy fruits was higher at the ecotone, though with marked seasonality compared to the rainforest. At Bekob, there was the prevalence of introduced and secondary forest plant species that I predicted to be important in the socioecology of chimpanzees. The second aim of the study was to examine how occupying rainforest and ecotone niches impact chimpanzee feeding behavior. The main differences in the dietary ecology of the ecotone and rainforest chimpanzees were in the seasonal variation of fleshy fruits and fibrous foods in their diets. Fleshy fruits were the most important dietary component for rainforest chimpanzees in the dry season, whereas the diet of the ecotone chimpanzees was dominated by fibrous foods. Conversely, in the wet season, the proportion of fleshy fruits was more significant in the diet of the ecotone chimpanzees, while fibrous foods were of more significance for the rainforest chimpanzees. Consistent with other human-modified environments, introduced and secondary forest species including Elaeis guineensis and Musanga cecropioides were important dietary components for chimpanzees at Bekob, especially during periods of low fleshy fruit availability. Animal consumption, including vertebrates and invertebrates was more significant at Ganga, and was inversely associated with fleshy fruit consumption. Finally, the third aim of the study was to examine how occupying rainforest and ecotone niches impact chimpanzee nesting behavior. Fruit phenology was an important factor in nesting site selection at the ecotone while rainforest chimpanzees selected steep slopes, hypothesized as an antipredation strategy. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.)