Abstract
BackgroundIn sub-Saharan Africa, livestock transhumance represents a key adaptation strategy to environmental variability. In this context, seasonal livestock transhumance also plays an important role in driving the dynamics of multiple livestock infectious diseases. In Cameroon, cattle transhumance is a common practice during the dry season across all the main livestock production zones. Currently, the little recorded information of the migratory routes, grazing locations and nomadic herding practices adopted by pastoralists, limits our understanding of pastoral cattle movements in the country. GPS-tracking technology in combination with a questionnaire based-survey were used to study a limited pool of 10 cattle herds from the Adamawa Region of Cameroon during their seasonal migration, between October 2014 and May 2015. The data were used to analyse the trajectories and movement patterns, and to characterize the key animal health aspects related to this seasonal migration in Cameroon.ResultsSeveral administrative Regions of the country were visited by the transhumant herds over more than 6 months. Herds travelled between 53 and 170 km to their transhumance grazing areas adopting different strategies, some travelling directly to their destination areas while others having multiple resting periods and grazing areas. Despite their limitations, these are among the first detailed data available on transhumance in Cameroon. These reports highlight key livestock health issues and the potential for multiple types of interactions between transhumant herds and other domestic and wild animals, as well as with the formal livestock trading system.ConclusionOverall, these findings provide useful insights into transhumance patterns and into the related animal health implications recorded in Cameroon. This knowledge could better inform evidence-based approaches for designing infectious diseases surveillance and control measures and help driving further studies to improve the understanding of risks associated with livestock movements in the region.
Highlights
In sub-Saharan Africa, livestock transhumance represents a key adaptation strategy to environmental variability
Motta et al BMC Veterinary Research (2018) 14:214 In Cameroon, transhumance is an established practice among cattle herders to overcome the constrains of the dry season [7, 8], which usually extends from September/October through to April/May of the following year [3]
The objectives of this study were (1) to characterise the seasonal transhumance routes and daily movement patterns of a restricted pool of cattle herds normally grazing in the Adamawa Region, and (2) to describe the main animal health related issues and interaction patterns during this long-distance migration
Summary
In sub-Saharan Africa, livestock transhumance represents a key adaptation strategy to environmental variability. In Cameroon, transhumance is an established practice among cattle herders to overcome the constrains of the dry season [7, 8], which usually extends from September/October through to April/May of the following year [3] During this period, a large proportion of cattle herds from the main livestock production areas of the country migrate as a coping mechanism to the ecological and environmental constraints. While herds in the North and Adamawa Regions usually migrate extensively covering long distances from their Region of origin, in the North-West and West Regions of the country most cattle herds tend to undertake a more local migration, largely within the Region [9] Knowledge of these migratory routes and trajectories in Central Cameroon is limited to anecdotal and informal reporting. Characterizing the seasonal transhumance trajectories and the nomadic herding patterns is, of importance for better understanding interactions within the livestock population and, their potential implications for infectious diseases epidemiology and prevention
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