Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa
Conflict with humans poses one of the greatest threats to the persistence and survival of all wildlife. In the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, human-baboon conflict levels remain high despite substantial investment by conservation authorities in a variety of mitigation measures. Here we explore how sp...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Resilience Alliance
2012-09-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Society |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol17/iss3/art13/ |
| _version_ | 1818893868600393728 |
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| author | Tali S. Hoffman M Justin. O'Riain |
| author_facet | Tali S. Hoffman M Justin. O'Riain |
| author_sort | Tali S. Hoffman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Conflict with humans poses one of the greatest threats to the persistence and survival of all wildlife. In the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, human-baboon conflict levels remain high despite substantial investment by conservation authorities in a variety of mitigation measures. Here we explore how spatial ecology can inform wildlife managers on the extent and severity of both current and projected human-baboon conflict. We apply conservative and generous densities - 2.3 and 5.9 baboons/km2 - to hypothetical landscape management scenarios to estimate whether the chacma baboon (Papio ursinus) population in the Cape Peninsula is currently overabundant. We correlate conflict indices with spatial variables to explain intertroop differences in conflict levels. We investigate how an understanding of key elements of baboon ecology, including sleeping-site characteristics and intertroop territoriality, can direct management efforts and mitigate conflict. Our findings suggest that the current population of 475 baboons is below even the most conservative density estimate and that the area could potentially sustain up to 799 baboons. Conflict levels correlated positively with the loss of access to low-lying land through habitat transformation (Pearson r = 0.77, p = 0.015, n = 9 troops), and negatively with the distance of sleeping sites from the urban edge (Pearson r = 0.81, p = 0.001, n = 9 troops). Despite the availability of suitable sleeping sites elsewhere, more than half of all troops slept |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T18:19:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0275e7d30b20495b92056bb33c2852e6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1708-3087 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T18:19:26Z |
| publishDate | 2012-09-01 |
| publisher | Resilience Alliance |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Society |
| spelling | doaj.art-0275e7d30b20495b92056bb33c2852e62022-12-21T20:11:01ZengResilience AllianceEcology and Society1708-30872012-09-011731310.5751/ES-04882-1703134882Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South AfricaTali S. Hoffman0M Justin. O'Riain1University of Cape TownUniversity of Cape TownConflict with humans poses one of the greatest threats to the persistence and survival of all wildlife. In the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, human-baboon conflict levels remain high despite substantial investment by conservation authorities in a variety of mitigation measures. Here we explore how spatial ecology can inform wildlife managers on the extent and severity of both current and projected human-baboon conflict. We apply conservative and generous densities - 2.3 and 5.9 baboons/km2 - to hypothetical landscape management scenarios to estimate whether the chacma baboon (Papio ursinus) population in the Cape Peninsula is currently overabundant. We correlate conflict indices with spatial variables to explain intertroop differences in conflict levels. We investigate how an understanding of key elements of baboon ecology, including sleeping-site characteristics and intertroop territoriality, can direct management efforts and mitigate conflict. Our findings suggest that the current population of 475 baboons is below even the most conservative density estimate and that the area could potentially sustain up to 799 baboons. Conflict levels correlated positively with the loss of access to low-lying land through habitat transformation (Pearson r = 0.77, p = 0.015, n = 9 troops), and negatively with the distance of sleeping sites from the urban edge (Pearson r = 0.81, p = 0.001, n = 9 troops). Despite the availability of suitable sleeping sites elsewhere, more than half of all troops slepthttp://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol17/iss3/art13/Cape PeninsulaSouth Africachacma baboonhuman-baboon conflicthuman-wildlife conflictmonkey managementspatial ecologywildlife management |
| spellingShingle | Tali S. Hoffman M Justin. O'Riain Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa Ecology and Society Cape Peninsula South Africa chacma baboon human-baboon conflict human-wildlife conflict monkey management spatial ecology wildlife management |
| title | Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa |
| title_full | Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa |
| title_short | Monkey Management: Using Spatial Ecology to Understand the Extent and Severity of Human-Baboon Conflict in the Cape Peninsula, South Africa |
| title_sort | monkey management using spatial ecology to understand the extent and severity of human baboon conflict in the cape peninsula south africa |
| topic | Cape Peninsula South Africa chacma baboon human-baboon conflict human-wildlife conflict monkey management spatial ecology wildlife management |
| url | http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol17/iss3/art13/ |
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