Abstract
Identifying the species distribution, diversity, and habitat association provides input to launch proper conservation interventions. A survey of medium- and large-sized mammal species was conducted in Chimit-Kolla area to assess their distribution, diversity, and relative abundance in November 2019 to September 2020. Line transect sampling and focus group discussions were used for data collection. Shannon diversity index and Sorenson’s coefficient were used to compute the diversity and habitat utilization of species. The association of species among habitats was tested using the chi-squared test. In the survey, 18 species of medium- and large-sized mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla (7 species), Carnivora (6 species), Rodentia (1 species), Primates (3 species) and Tubulidentata (1 species) were recorded. The association of mammalian species among the three habitats was not significant ( p > 0.05 ). However, the abundance of mammal species was significantly associated with forest habitats ( p < 0.05 ). There was a significant variation in abundance of medium- and large-sized mammal species observed in the dry season (157, 57.5%) as compared to the wet season (116, 42.5%) (χ2 = 6.17, df = 1, and p = 0.013 ). The most abundant species was olive baboon (Papio anubis), followed by grivet monkey (Chlorocebus aethiops) and crested porcupine (Hystrix cristata). While leopard (Panthera pardus), white-tailed mongoose (Ichneumia albicauda), and aardvark (Orycteropus afer) were the rarest mammalian species recorded. Forest habitat has the highest species diversity (H’ = 2.276) than riverine vegetation and wooded grassland. Mammal species showed a considerable similarity among habitats, and the highest similarity was recorded between forest and wooded grassland (S = 0.8). The study area relatively has considerable numbers of medium- and large-sized mammal species, and urgent conservation action is required to reduce the emerging threats (hunting, charcoal production, agriculture, and investment expansion) and ensure survival of mammal species.
Highlights
Ethiopia is a landlocked country located in the horn of Africa
50% the Afrotropical region’s land above 2000 m a.s.l. is found in Ethiopia [3]. ese altitudinal variations enable the country to have a range of climate zones, locally called Dega, Woina Dega, Kolla, and Bereha. e mean annual rainfall and temperature of the country range from 500 mm to 280 mm and from 10°C to 30°C, respectively [1]
E agroclimatic zone of Chimit-Kolla is mainly tropical hot, locally called Kolla [27], with an altitudinal range of 900 m a.s.l. near Abay River at southern edges and 2080 m a.s.l at the northern edges. e area received unimodal rainfall pattern, with May to September being the main rainy season, and the mean annual rainfall distribution ranges from 500 to 1500 mm. e mean annual temperature record of the study area is between 20°C and 35°C. e study area is located between coordinates of 10001’10.82”–10010’37.47” N and 37028’44.13”–37034’28.3” E
Summary
Ethiopia is a landlocked country located in the horn of Africa. It is known for having diverse ecosystems and altitudinal variation which ranges from Ras Dashen (4600 m a.s.l.) to Danakil Depression (126 m b.s.l.) [1, 2]. E presence of these altitudinal and climatic zonal variabilities in the country greatly contributed to immense diversity of plant and animal species in Ethiopia [3, 4]. According to reference [6], there are 311 mammal species in Ethiopia, which belong to 144 genera, 43 families, and 13 orders [5]. In Ethiopia, medium- and large-sized mammals are widely distributed in a wide range of ecosystem from desert to afro-alpine ecosystem [9]
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