Abstract
Population size, structure, activity time budget and feeding behavior of Guereza (Colobus guereza) were studied in Borena-Sayint National Park (BSNP), Ethiopia, from August 2008 to March 2009. Line transect survey technique was applied to investigate the population size and structure. Guerezas were observed only in the forest habitat. The mean group size, group density and group encounter rate in the forest habitat were 7.7 individuals, 14.8 groups per km2 and 1.43 groups per km, respectively. In addition, the majority of the groups contained one adult male. The total population was estimated to be 2170 individuals. The population was skewed towards females. The ratio of male to female, young to adult and infant to female were 1.0:1.45, 1.0:4.16 and 1.0:4.9, respectively. The age structure was 47.9% adult, 32.7% sub-adult, 11.5% young, and 7.9% infant. No significant variation was observed in group size between seasons. Guereza consumed 31 plant species which consisted of 15 trees, 12 shrubs and 4 herbs. Dombeya torrida and Olinia rochetiana were the most consumed plant species which accounted for 18.2 and 12.6% of the diet of guereza. Leaves comprised of the largest proportion of the food items consumed (71.6%). Their diurnal activity is dominated by resting periods. This study contributes greatly to add information on the status of guereza in Ethiopia, and for its conservation and management. Key words: Activity, age structure, Borena-Sayint, diet, guereza.
Highlights
The Ethiopian highlands are extremely rugged and varied, with some regions characterized by steep escarpments and deep valleys (Yalden, 1983)
A total of 306 and 377 individuals were recorded from the forest habitat during the wet and dry seasons, respectively
Among the different sites sampled during the study period, the highest sample count was in the forest and no individuals were found in the Erica woodland and Festuca grassland habitats (Table 1)
Summary
The Ethiopian highlands are extremely rugged and varied, with some regions characterized by steep escarpments and deep valleys (Yalden, 1983). The Ethiopian biodiversity has high level of endemicity that needs much attention from government officials and other stakeholders for conservation because of the presence of a very diverse set of ecosystems (Bekele and Yalden, 2013). The country possesses high diversity of flora and fauna that occurs throughout the highland and lowland areas. Ethiopia consists of 315 species of mammals, out of these about 50 are endemic (Bekele and Yalden, 2013). 11 species of primates are known to occur in Ethiopia (Yalden and Largen, 1992), and more are being discovered (Mekonnen et al, 2012).
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