Seasonal movements and habitat use of African buffalo in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania.

BACKGROUND:Assessing wildlife movements and habitat use is important for species conservation and management and can be informative for understanding population dynamics. The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) population of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania has been declining, and little was known about the movement, habitat selection, and space use of the population, which is important for understanding possible reasons behind the decline. A total of 12 African buffalo cows from four different herds were collared with satellite transmitters. Movements were assessed over 2 years from 11 animals. RESULTS:The space use of the individual collared buffaloes as an approximation of the 95% home range size estimated using Brownian bridge models, ranged from 73 to 601 km2. The estimated home ranges were larger in the wet season than in the dry season. With the exception of one buffalo all collared animals completed a wet season migration of varying distances. A consistent pattern of seasonal movement was observed with one herd, whereas the other herds did not behave the same way in the two wet seasons that they were tracked. Herd splitting and herd switching occurred on multiple occasions. Buffaloes strongly associated with habitats near the Great Ruaha River in the dry season and had little association to permanent water sources in the wet season. Daily movements averaged 4.6 km (standard deviation, SD = 2.6 km), with the longest distances traveled during November (mean 6.9 km, SD = 3.6 km) at the end of the dry season and beginning of the wet season. The shortest daily distances traveled occurred in the wet season in April-June (mean 3.6 km, SD = 1.6-1.8 km). CONCLUSION:The Great Ruaha River has experienced significant drying in the last decades due to water diversions upstream, which likely has reduced the suitable range for buffaloes. The loss of dry season habitat due to water scarcity has likely contributed to the population decline of the Ruaha buffaloes

Health and demographics of African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Presented at the 9th international wildlife ranching symposium: wildlife - the key to prosperity for rural communities, held on 12-16 September 2016 at Hotel Safari & the Safari Court, Windhoek, Namibia in conjuction with the IUCN 2nd African Buffalo Symposium.The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) population of Ruaha National Park may be in decline. Seasonal drying of the park's water source due to upstream irrigation may have caused loss of dry season habitat, increased pressure on remaining water sources, and possibly increased contact between wildlife and livestock at the park borders. The Health for Animals and Livelihood Improvement (HALI) project and Ruaha National Park are collaborating to investigate the health and population status of the African buffaloes. Between 2011 and 2015, this partnership resulted in testing 30 young and 25 adult African buffaloes for bovine tuberculosis (2011, 2014-15), conducting 4 dry season demographic surveys and herd level parasite screenings (2011, 2013-15), and conducting one aerial population survey in collaboration with the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (2013). In 2014-15, 12 adult female buffaloes were collared with satellite GPS collars to learn more about the seasonal movements, habitat preferences, and herd dynamics of Ruaha's buffalo herds. The research has shown that bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis is present in the buffalo population, that the population number appear to be reduced since the last total count in 2004, that the herd composition and seasonal movements may be influenced by rainfall, and the herd level gastrointestinal parasite counts generally are low. The data generated in this study will be used to inform management and conservation of Ruaha National Park's buffaloes

Restoring the perennial Great Ruaha River using ecohydrology, engineering and governance methods in Tanzania

The Great Ruaha River (GRR) in Tanzania was perennial before 1993. Its source, the Usangu wetlands, was also perennial. Since then, the GRR has started drying out during the dry season, with a trend towards earlier and longer periods of drying. This drying process degrades the surrounding ecosystems along the entire length of the GRR, including the Ruaha National Park (RNP) and impacts human livelihoods throughout its course; it also impairs the economy of Tanzania through reduced hydropower generation at the Mtera and Kidatu power plants. The Usangu wetlands dried up in 2000, 2002 and 2005 during the dry season and its areal extent has been shrinking. Intensive livestock grazing and both dry and wet season irrigated agriculture in the Usangu wetlands, were the main reasons for this water crisis. In 2006, the Government of Tanzania moved to address the crisis by removing livestock from the Usangu wetlands, attempting to regulate water use in the GRR catchment and expanding the RNP to include the Usangu wetlands

Epidemiological investigation into the introduction and factors for spread of Peste des Petits Ruminants, southern Tanzania

A study was carried out to confirm and identify sources and elucidate factors associated with the introduction of Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) in southern Tanzania. This study was conducted in Tandahimba and Newala districts of Mtwara region following suspected outbreak of PPR in the area. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured questionnaires and in-depth interviews of key informants who included goat and sheep owners with suspected cases of PPR and animal health service providers as well as local administrative authority. Additionally, 216 serum samples and 28 swabs were collected for serological and virological laboratory disease confirmation. The results show that PPR was first introduced in Likuna village of Newala district in February 2009 through newly purchased goats from the Pugu livestock market located about 700 km in the outskirts of Dar es Salaam city. Factors which contributed to spread of PPR included communal grazing and the cheap prices of sick animals bought by livestock keepers for slaughtering in other villages. Laboratory findings confirmed presence of PPR in the area by RT-PCR and serological analysis revealed that seroprevalence was 31%. These findings have confirmed, for the first time, introduction of PPR in southern Tanzania. The presence of PPR poses high risk of southward spread of the disease to other southern African countries in the SADC region thus calling for concerted and collaborative efforts in prevention and control of the disease to avoid losses. Further elaborate studies on the spread, prevalence and risk factors associated with the disease should urgently be investigated

Seasonal movements and habitat use of African buffalo in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Abstract Background Assessing wildlife movements and habitat use is important for species conservation and management and can be informative for understanding population dynamics. The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) population of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania has been declining, and little was known about the movement, habitat selection, and space use of the population, which is important for understanding possible reasons behind the decline. A total of 12 African buffalo cows from four different herds were collared with satellite transmitters. Movements were assessed over 2 years from 11 animals. Results The space use of the individual collared buffaloes as an approximation of the 95% home range size estimated using Brownian bridge models, ranged from 73 to 601 km2. The estimated home ranges were larger in the wet season than in the dry season. With the exception of one buffalo all collared animals completed a wet season migration of varying distances. A consistent pattern of seasonal movement was observed with one herd, whereas the other herds did not behave the same way in the two wet seasons that they were tracked. Herd splitting and herd switching occurred on multiple occasions. Buffaloes strongly associated with habitats near the Great Ruaha River in the dry season and had little association to permanent water sources in the wet season. Daily movements averaged 4.6 km (standard deviation, SD = 2.6 km), with the longest distances traveled during November (mean 6.9 km, SD = 3.6 km) at the end of the dry season and beginning of the wet season. The shortest daily distances traveled occurred in the wet season in April–June (mean 3.6 km, SD = 1.6–1.8 km). Conclusion The Great Ruaha River has experienced significant drying in the last decades due to water diversions upstream, which likely has reduced the suitable range for buffaloes. The loss of dry season habitat due to water scarcity has likely contributed to the population decline of the Ruaha buffaloes