Preliminary Assessment of Diurnal Primate Community of Queen’s Plot, Akure Forest Reserve, Ondo State Preliminary Assessment of Diurnal Primate Community of Queen’s Plot, Akure Forest Reserve, Ondo State
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Abstract
Strict nature reserve is created and managed for research and protection of large, unspoiled areas of wilderness in other to preserve its biological diversity and as essential reference areas for scientific work and environmental monitoring. The assessment of the diurnal primate community of Queen’s plot in Akure Forest Reserve was carried out to evaluate the density and abundance of each primate species, determine the sighting frequencies and investigate their species composition using standard methods. A total of five line transects ranging between 0.6 km and 1.2 km were traversed in the morning and evening totaling 17.6 km. Four primate species in two families were present with red-capped mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus) and mona monkey (Cercopithecus mona) detected through direct sighting while interview schedule confirmed the presence of putty nosed monkey and chimpanzee in the study site. Sightings were frequent in the morning than the evening but were not statistically significant (Kruskal–Wallis = 0.43, P = 0.51). The estimated encounter rate, density, and abundance for C. torquatus were 0.17 animal km−1, 0.003 animals km−2, and 18 individuals, respectively, while C. mona had 0.85 animal km−1, 0.016 animals km−2, and 96 animals, respectively, in the queen forest with the total landmass of 6000 hectares. This finding recorded a very low encounter rate for the two primate species sighted, thereby casting doubt in the general well-being of the primate community in Akure Forest Reserve. It is, therefore, recommended that adequate protection which was enforced on the flora part of the reserve be extended to the fauna and the conflict of interest between forestry and wildlife management should be resolved so that both fields could complement each other in flora and fauna protection of the forest resources.
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