Recent distribution data and conservation status of the leopard (Panthera pardus) in the Niger Delta (Nigeria)

Abstract

The leopard (Panthera pardus) is increasingly threatened in West Africa, and is apparently very rare and has been driven to extinction across much of Nigeria. In the Niger Delta, where it is considered extremely threatened, with very few sightings in the last decades. In this study we document both direct (skins, footprints, scats, etc.) and indirect (village hunter’s interviews) signs of leopard presence in order to reconstruct leopard presence in the Niger Delta, across the period 2000–2015. Data were combined into three survey periods: 2000–2002, 2006–2008 and 2012–2015, and compared with literature data for 1996–1997. Recent skins were recorded in 2.2–4.3% of the villages (n = 39–62). In addition, the leopard was reported to be present by hunters in another 3.3–10.3% of the villages. Overall, some specific sectors of the Delta were recurrently target of both direct and indirect signs of leopard presence (barrier islands and flood forest along the central axis of the River Niger), but all direct sighti...