Drills and Diets, Consumption and Conservation– the Role of Primate Meat in Local Diets in and Around Cross River National Park, Nigeria

The study uses household level data from four villages inand around Cross River National Park (CRNP), Nigeria to assess therole of primate meat in local livelihoods and diets. Okwangwo is anenclave community within the national park, Butatong houses theCRNP headquarters. Kanyang1 and Abo Ebam are located fartheraway from the park. 149 respondents were surveyed. Sale ofbushmeat contributed 4 percent of total cash income on average, butis important as a source of protein in the context of poorly developedlivestock systems. 98 percent of the households ate bushmeat duringthe past year and 74 percent hunted for consumption. 77 percent atemeat from primates, although this varied from 53 percent in Butatongto 97 percent in Okwangwo. Differences emerge among the villageswith less reliance on bushmeat, less hunting and a dietary shifttowards poultry in Butatong. There is no correlation between incomelevels and consumption of primate meat. The overwhelming motivefor eating primate meat was taste preferences. Solutions tounsustainable extraction of primate meat must be sourced in relationto local consumption. Improving access to animal source foods,through widening the livestock basis of local agraria

Can I afford to publish? : a dilemma for African scholars

With open-access publishing authors often pay an article processing charge and subsequently their article is freely available online. These charges are beyond the reach of most African academics. Thus, the trend towards open-access publishing will shift the business model from a pay-wall model, where access to literature is limited, to a pay-to-publish one, where African scholars cannot afford to publish. We explore the costs of publishing and the ability of African scholars to afford to publish via open access in top journals. Three-quarters of the 40 top ecology journals required payment for open-access publishing (average cost $3150). Paying such fees is a hardship for African scholars as grant funding is not available and it is not feasible to pay the fees themselves as salaries are low. We encourage funders and publishers to facilitate an equitable publishing model that allows African scholars to make their research available through open-access publishing

The future of sub-Saharan Africa’s biodiversity in the face of climate and societal change

Many of the world’s most biodiverse regions are found in the poorest and second most populous continent of Africa; a continent facing exceptional challenges. Africa is projected to quadruple its population by 2100 and experience increasingly severe climate change and environmental conflict—all of which will ravage biodiversity. Here we assess conservation threats facing Africa and consider how these threats will be affected by human population growth, economic expansion, and climate change. We then evaluate the current capacity and infrastructure available to conserve the continent’s biodiversity. We consider four key questions essential for the future of African conservation: (1) how to build societal support for conservation efforts within Africa; (2) how to build Africa’s education, research, and management capacity; (3) how to finance conservation efforts; and (4) is conservation through development the appropriate approach for Africa? While the challenges are great, ways forward are clear, and we present ideas on how progress can be made. Given Africa’s current modest capacity to address its biodiversity crisis, additional international funding is required, but estimates of the cost of conserving Africa’s biodiversity are within reach. The will to act must build on the sympathy for conservation that is evident in Africa, but this will require building the education capacity within the continent. Considering Africa’s rapidly growing population and the associated huge economic needs, options other than conservation through development need to be more effectively explored. Despite the gravity of the situation, we believe that concerted effort in the coming decades can successfully curb the loss of biodiversity in Africa.National Research Foundation (ZA, Grant 98404)Wilson Cente

Employing Plant Functional Groups to Advance Seed Dispersal Ecology and Conservation

Seed dispersal enables plants to reach hospitable germination sites and escape natural enemies. Understanding when and how much seed dispersal matters to plant fitness is critical for understanding plant population and community dynamics. At the same time, the complexity of factors that determine if a seed will be successfully dispersed and subsequently develop into a reproductive plant is daunting. Quantifying all factors that may influence seed dispersal effectiveness for any potential seed-vector relationship would require an unrealistically large amount of time, materials and financial resources. On the other hand, being able to make dispersal predictions is critical for predicting whether single species and entire ecosystems will be resilient to global change. Building on current frameworks, we here posit that seed dispersal ecology should adopt plant functional groups as analytical units to reduce this complexity to manageable levels. Functional groups can be used to distinguish, for their constituent species, whether it matters (i) if seeds are dispersed, (ii) into what context they are dispersed and (iii) what vectors disperse them. To avoid overgeneralization, we propose that the utility of these functional groups may be assessed by generating predictions based on the groups and then testing those predictions against species-specific data. We suggest that data collection and analysis can then be guided by robust functional group definitions. Generalizing across similar species in this way could help us to better understand the population and community dynamics of plants and tackle the complexity of seed dispersal as well as its disruption

A Descriptive Analysis of Social Media Usage as Predictors of Study Habits among Students with Intellectual Disabilities in Calabar Metropolis: Implications for Inclusive Education

Aim: This study is a descriptive analysis of Facebook and WhatsApp as predictors of study habits among SSII students with disabilities in Public Secondary Schools of Calabar Metropolis of Cross River State, Nigeria: Implications for inclusive education. Two study objectives were stated to guide the study and achieve its goals. Two research questions were formulated. A literature review was carried out based on the variables under study, as research gaps were also stated. Method: The study utilised the descriptive survey research design. The population of Senior Secondary School II (SSII) students with disabilities in Calabar Metropolis comprises 3,814 from 24 public Secondary Schools. The study used a stratified random sampling technique. Out of 3,814 respondents, 763 respondents were sampled for the study. A validated 15-item four-point modified Likert scale questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The face and content validity of the instrument was established by experts in Test and Measurement from the University of Calabar, Calabar-Nigeria. The reliability estimates of 0.82 for the instruments were established using the Cronbach Alpha method. A descriptive analysis of frequency, percentages, mean, and standard deviation was used to test the research questions posed for the study. Results: The results obtained from the data analysis revealed there is a high extent of the impact of Facebook on study habits among SSII students with disabilities, and there is also a high extent of the impact of WhatsApp on study habits among SSII students with disabilities in Public Secondary Schools of Calabar Metropolis of Cross River State, Nigeria Conclusion: Based on the study's findings, it was concluded that Facebook and WhatsApp utilisation significantly impact study habits among SSII students with disabilities in Public Secondary Schools in the study area. Recommendation: Based on the result of the study, it was recommended that there should be a continuity of inclusive education policies and social media usage in Cross River State and Nigeria at large

Employing plant functional groups to advance seed dispersal ecology and conservation

Seed dispersal enables plants to reach hospitable germination sites and escape natural enemies. Understanding when and how much seed dispersal matters to plant fitness is critical for understanding plant population and community dynamics. At the same time, the complexity of factors that determine if a seed will be successfully dispersed and subsequently develop into a reproductive plant is daunting. Quantifying all factors that may influence seed dispersal effectiveness for any potential seed-vector relationship would require an unrealistically large amount of time, materials and financial resources. On the other hand, being able to make dispersal predictions is critical for predicting whether single species and entire ecosystems will be resilient to global change. Building on current frameworks, we here posit that seed dispersal ecology should adopt plant functional groups as analytical units to reduce this complexity to manageable levels. Functional groups can be used to distinguish, for their constituent species, whether it matters (i) if seeds are dispersed, (ii) into what context they are dispersed and (iii) what vectors disperse them. To avoid overgeneralization, we propose that the utility of these functional groups may be assessed by generating predictions based on the groups and then testing those predictions against species-specific data. We suggest that data collection and analysis can then be guided by robust functional group definitions. Generalizing across similar species in this way could help us to better understand the population and community dynamics of plants and tackle the complexity of seed dispersal as well as its disruption

Changes of community composition at multiple trophic levels due to hunting in Nigerian tropical forest

Hunting in tropical forests decimates large mammals, and this may have direct and indirect effects on other trophic levels and lead to trophic cascades. We compared replicated sites of hunted and protected forests in southeastern Nigeria, with respect to community composition of primates, other mammals, birds, plant seedlings, and mature trees. We make predictions regarding the community composition at the different trophic levels. In forests where large primates are rare, we hypothesize that their ecological role will not be fully compensated for by small frugivores. We apply multivariate methods to assess changes in community composition of mammals, birds, and seedlings, controlling for any differences between sites in the other groups, including mature trees. Medium and large (4–180 kg) primates were much rarer in hunted sites, while porcupine and rock hyrax increased in abundance with hunting. In contrast, the community composition of birds was similar in both types of forests. Seedling communities were significantly related to the community composition of mammals, and thus strongly affected by hunting. In protected forests primate dispersed plant seedling species dominated, whereas in hunted forests the seedling community was shifted towards one dominated by abiotically dispersed species. This was probably both a consequence of reduced seed dispersal by primates, and increased seed predation by rodents and hyrax. Hence we found no evidence for buffering effects on tree regeneration through functional compensation by non-hunted animals (such as birds). Our results highlight how seedling communities are changed by the complex plant–animal intera ctions, triggered by the loss of seed dispersers. The results predict a rarity of primate-dispersed trees in future tropical forest canopies; a forest less diverse in timber and non-timber resources

Data for analyses of number of seedlings

The response is No, the number of seedlings in each plot, as described in the paper

Survival data

Data for survival analysis in the paper. The response is obs, indicating if an individual seedling was observed on the second visit

Data from: Competition, seed dispersal, and hunting: what drives germination and seedling survival in an Afrotropical forest?

Disentangling the contributions of different processes that influence plant recruitment, such as competition and seed dispersal, is important given the increased human-mediated changes in tropical forest ecosystems. Previous studies have shown that seedling communities in an Afro-tropical rainforest in Southeastern Nigeria are strongly affected by the loss of important seed dispersing primates, including Cross River gorillas (Gorilla gorilla diehli), chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes elioti), and drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus). Here we study how germination and survival of tree seedlings are affected by competition and reduced seed-dispersal in three contiguous forest reserves, in Southeastern Nigeria, with similar mature tree species composition and structure. We use an experimental design aimed at manipulating the effect of competition among seedlings in three protected and three hunted sites within the reserves. We use a total of sixty 5×5 m plots of three types: plots cleared of all seedlings, plots selectively cleared of all primate-dispersed seedlings and control plots. All seedlings were identified, measured, assigned to dispersal mode, and tagged, and after one year we evaluated survival, mortality and new recruits. We found that in hunted sites germination of abiotically dispersed species was over four times higher in cleared plots compared to control plots, whereas germination of primate dispersed species was the same, which indicated that dispersal limitation was the dominant force in seedling recruitment in hunted sites. This was supported by the fact that the germination of all dispersal modes in the selectively cleared plots in protected sites was similar to the control plots in the same sites, but germination of abiotically dispersed species was significantly lower than in cleared plots in hunted sites. Competition among seedlings was mostly evident from the fact that 75% more seedlings of primate dispersed species germinated in cleared compared to control plots in protected sites. We conclude that inter-seedling competition may be irrelevant to seedling recruitment in hunted sites, where dispersal limitation appears to be a much stronger force shaping the seedling plant community, and thus hunting indirectly reverses the importance of competition and dispersal limitation in structuring seedling communities