Community Wildlife Management Research Articles

Inclement Entrepreneurial Gaps in Community Wildlife Management Business Model: A Case of Mbarang’andu and Tunduru Wmas in Southern Tanzania

Purpose: This study examined entrepreneurial gaps in Mbarang’andu and Tunduru Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) since their establishment during the 5 years of business plan operations and implications thereafter. Design/Methodology/Approach: The population of this study was five WMAs that formed the cases for the study, and for the case of WMA leaders, the population was 40 leaders. The sample size for the WMAs selected as the cases for the study were two (2), Tunduru and Mbarang’andu purposefully selected. Further, the sample size for WMA leaders was 20 (50% of the population) purposefully selected. Descriptive analysis was used to summarise demographic and revenue data, and a Pearson Chi-square test was performed on the demographic data. A paired samples T-test was used to compare the required business start-up and available funds to reveal the equity gap in the two WMAs and compare the level of implementation of planned business activities in the two WMAs. Research Limitation: The research was limited to two WMAs and a small sample size since the client determined its size, given that this paper emanated from the consultancy project. Findings: Findings indicate that both WMAs have a high potential for carbon trading, photographic tourism, beekeeping, fish farming, and heritage tourism. The difference in the required funding and available funds for various expenditures in business start-ups was found to be statistically significant in both WMAs. The difference in the level of implementation of planned business activities was also found to be statistically significant in the two WMAs. Practical implications: To bridge the entrepreneurial gaps in the WMAs, proactive fundraising, diversification of income-generating activities, including carbon trading, human resource capacity building, and appropriate marketing of tourism and nature-based products are needed. Social Implications: The results of this research will form the basis for bridging entrepreneurial gaps in the WMAs, hence fueling optimal exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities in wildlife that benefit the community at large in return. Originality: This paper is original; only some extracts were used in the conference proceedings for the University of Dodoma (UDOM) 2019. Its novelty is inclined to expose entrepreneurial gaps and the framework for bridging such gaps in wildlife businesses.

Economic Benefits, Local Participation, and Conservation Ethic in a Game Management Area: Evidence From Mambwe, Zambia

This study examines views on economic benefits, local participation in wildlife management and conservation ethic among 267 residents of three chiefdoms in Mambwe district, Eastern Zambia. Results show that 68% of the residents who live in the Lupande Game Management Area are not in any way involved in community wildlife management. For those involved, the main reason advanced for participating was economic benefit (79%). Only a small minority of 17% of the residents participated due to motivations to conserve wildlife. Human-wildlife conflicts induced by wild animal crop raiding, property destruction, and loss of human life, and perceived low or non-existent economic benefits seemingly precluded the development of a conservation ethic among residents. The local chiefs asserted wildlife ownership, lamented low wildlife benefits and justified its illegal uptake. Proponents of community conservation projects could encourage pro conservation attitudes among residents by addressing human-wildlife conflicts and raising awareness on intrinsic values of wildlife.

Integrating UAV Technology in an Ecological Monitoring System for Community Wildlife Management Areas in Tanzania

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) have recently emerged as a new remote sensing aerial platform, and they are seemingly advancing real-time data generation. Nonetheless, considerable uncertainties remain in the extent to which wildlife managers can integrate UAVs into ecological monitoring systems for wildlife and their habitats. In this review, we discuss the recent progress and gaps in UAV use in wildlife conservation and management. The review notes that there is scanty information on UAV use in ecological monitoring of medium-to-large mammals found in groups in heterogeneous habitats. We also explore the need and extent to which the technology can be integrated into ecological monitoring systems for mammals in heterogeneous habitats and in topographically-challenging community wildlife-management areas, as a complementary platform to the traditional techniques. Based on its ability to provide high-resolution images in real-time, further experiments on its wider use in the ecological monitoring of wildlife on a spatiotemporal scale are important. The experimentation outputs will make the UAV a very reliable remote sensing platform that addresses the challenges facing conventional techniques.

Evaluating conservation effectiveness in a Tanzanian community wildlife management area

ABSTRACTIn Tanzania, community‐based natural resource management (CBNRM) of wildlife occurs through wildlife management areas (WMAs). The WMAs consist of multiple villages designating land and managing it for wildlife conservation in return for a portion of subsequent tourism revenues. The ecological success or failure of WMAs for wildlife conservation is rarely quantified but is important for evaluating the efficacy of specific projects and the general concept of CBNRM. I used 3 analyses to evaluate the ecological effectiveness of wildlife conservation actions in the Burunge WMA. I compared wildlife and livestock densities inside and outside a WMA using 1 year of distance sampling data and compared wild and domestic ungulate densities before and after the implementation of management changes that increased wildlife protections within a subsection of Burunge WMA using 6 years of distance sampling surveys. I also compared giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) survival and population growth rate before and after the implementation of management changes that increased wildlife protections in a subsection of Burunge WMA using 5 years of photographic capture‐recapture data. I found greater densities of wildlife and lower densities of livestock inside the WMA compared with outside. After the management changes, I documented significantly higher densities of several wild ungulate species and lower densities of domestic ungulates in the WMA. I found giraffe survival and population growth rate both increased in response to the management changes. Results indicated the WMA is effectively providing habitat and protection for wild ungulates while generally excluding domestic livestock. Ungulate densities, and giraffe survival and population growth rate over time indicated the management changes enacted in 2014–2015 resulted in positive effects for wild ungulates. These combined results indicate the ecological effectiveness of Burunge WMA and provide evidence that CBNRM can have positive effects on wildlife populations, particularly when support to grassroots law enforcement is provided. © 2018 The Wildlife Society.

Micro-Credit and Community Wildlife Management: Complementary Strategies to Improve Conservation Outcomes in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania.

Community wildlife management programs in African protected areas aim to deliver livelihood and social benefits to local communities in order to bolster support for their conservation objectives. Most of these benefits are delivered at the community level. However, many local people are also seeking more individual or household-level livelihood benefits from community wildlife management programs because it is at this level that many of the costs of protected area conservation are borne. Because community wildlife management delivers few benefits at this level, support for their conservation objectives amongst local people often declines. The study investigated the implications of this for reducing poaching in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Three community wildlife management initiatives undertaken by Park management were compared with regard to their capacity to deliver the individual and household-level benefits sought by local people: community conservation services, wildlife management areas and community conservation banks. Interviews were carried out with poachers and local people from four villages in the Western Serengeti including members of village conservation banks, as well as a number of key informants. The results suggest that community conservation banks could, as a complementary strategy to existing community wildlife management programs, potentially provide a more effective means of reducing poaching in African protected areas than community wildlife management programs alone.

Untangling the links between wildlife benefits and community-based conservation at Torra Conservancy, Namibia

Community wildlife management programmes in southern Africa typically offer residents benefits such as meat, money and jobs in the hopes of improving both conservation outcomes and local welfare. This article examines this assumption on the basis of a case study in northwest Namibia. The study suggests the importance of direct benefits in shaping support for and commitment to conservation. However, the study's analytical framework also opens up the ‘black box’ linking benefits to conservation and demonstrates that the link of benefits to attitudes and behaviours cannot be understood without taking into consideration three underlying factors: the appropriateness and equitability of benefits, the level of local control, and the broader context of peoples' values, their sense of identity and their development aspirations.

Drive counts for grey brocket deer Mazama gouazoupira in the Bolivian Chaco / Estimation de la population du cerf brun Mazama gouazoupira dans le Chaco de Bolivie par la méthode du dénombrement total

AbstractIn the context of a community wildlife management program with the Isoseño communities of the Bolivian Chaco, we tested drive sample counts as a method for estimating densities of grey brocket deer ( Mazama gouazoupira ). Drive count density estimates of 12–14/km

Drive counts for grey brocket deer Mazama gouazoupira in the Bolivian Chaco / Estimation de la population du cerf brun Mazama gouazoupira dans le Chaco de Bolivie par la méthode du dénombrement total

AbstractIn the context of a community wildlife management program with the Isoseño communities of the Bolivian Chaco, we tested drive sample counts as a method for estimating densities of grey brocket deer ( Mazama gouazoupira ). Drive count density estimates of 12–14/km

Hunter Self-monitoring by the Isoseño-Guaraní in the Bolivian Chaco

Declared in 1995, the 34,400 km 2 Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park is the first protected area in South America co-managed by an indigenous organization, the Capitania del Alto y Bajo Isoso (CABI). In 1997, based on historical occupation by the Isoseno-Guaraniover the past 300 years, CABI formally demanded a 19,000 km 2 'Tierra Comunitaria de Origen' (TCO) that adjoins, but does not overlap, the national park. The creation of TCOs and the co-administration of protected areas are elements of decentralization processes in Bolivia, whereby the management of land and natural resources is devolving to departmental and municipal levels of government. This paper examines biodiversity monitoring in the context of a community wildlife management program developed with CABI. Hunter self-monitoring (100-150 hunters per month) combined with monthly activity records for potential hunters (7637 observed hunter-months) permit esti- mations of total offtakes of subsistence game species for 1996-2003, as well as catch-per-unit-effort over the same time period. These data show considerable fluctuations from year to year and no declining trends that would suggest over-hunting. Monitoring populations of multiple game species can be relatively expensive, even with the voluntary support of hunters, considering data collection and analysis, as well as presentation and discussion through community meetings. At the same time, monitoring does not provide highly accurate assessments of short-term changes in wildlife resources. However, relatively simple participatory methods are important for generating infor- mation on long-term trends and for creating a context for community discussion of formal wildlife management.

An Evaluation of Hunter Self-Monitoring in the Bolivian Chaco

Community wildlife management is being tested across the tropics as a means of promoting the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife resources. Key to successful programs is the effective participation of local hunters and communities in monitoring, planning, decision-making and implementation. We evaluate one method to achieve this participation, namely hunter self-monitoring. Between 1997 and 2000, Izoceno hunters from 22 communities in the Bolivian Chaco have voluntarily participated in monitoring their hunting activities, measuring and recording data on captured animals and hunting methods in personal notebooks. Despite the lack of remuneration, participation exceeds 60% of active hunters. However, the written information and specimens provided are not complete, and are biased according to hunting methods and prey characteristics. Complementary research is essential to answer specific research questions. Nevertheless, hunter self-monitoring serves to raise awareness of wildlife management issues at the communal or indigenous territory level, as evidenced by preliminary actions taken by hunters and communities in the Izozog.

Resource Tenure and Power Relations in Community Wildlife: The Case of Mkambati Area, South Africa

Through a case study of Mkambati area, this article analyzes the prospects for community wildlife management (CWM) for communities that neighbor Mkambati Nature Reserve. Two clusters of issues are proposed as being crucial in any community-based resource management situation. The first cluster is centered on the idea of "resource tenures," and the need to locate wildlife in a fuller resource/livelihood/tenure institutional context. The second cluster is centered on power dynamics, the multilayered struggles between diverse sets of actors, and the process through which resource tenures are continuously renegotiated. It is argued that wildlife management must always be seen in these larger contexts, and that the prospects for successful community-based schemes will depend crucially on how wildlife tenure articulates with other resource tenures, on how it impacts on rural livelihoods considered holistically, and on the relationships that exist between local and nonlocal institutions.

Community attitudes towards wildlife management in the Bolivian Chaco

AbstractThe process of community wildlife management in the Izozog area of the Bolivian Chaco began with participatory field research – self-monitoring of hunting activities and research on key game species. On-going discussions in community meetings have elicited seven wildlife management recommendations: (1) establishing hunting zones, (2) hunting only adults, (3) hunting only males during the reproductive season, (4) hunting only for the family's needs, (5) hunting only abundant animals, (6) protecting plants that are important to wildlife, and (7) prohibiting hunting by outsiders. We compare community attitudes towards these management measures. A majority of communities favour, in decreasing order, measures 7, 4, 6 and 1, communities are divided with respect to measures 2 and 3, and most communities oppose measure 5. Two socio-economic characteristics of communities – location and ethnicity – are associated with patterns of attitudes towards wild-life management among communities, whereas religion, economic activity and community size are not. Izoceño communities are currently reinterpreting traditional beliefs both to support and to oppose active wildlife management measures.

Livelihood Opportunity and Diversity in Kalahari Wildlife Management Areas, Botswana: Rethinking Community Resource Management

The livelihood opportunities open to people, and the diverse portfolios of activities that make up a living, are now key areas of conceptual and empirical research. Similarly, community-based natural resource management initiatives are currently receiving widespread attention in both policy and academic circles. This paper draws on research conducted in western Botswana, which examined community development and wildlife management in a Kalahari Wildlife Management Area. It focuses on the livelihood dynamics of residents living in two remote settlements in the Wildlife Management Area. These livelihood dynamics are closely linked with the complex history of resource use and conflict in the area. Hunting and gathering, two key livelihood activities, are examined in detail. The paper argues that, although the natural resource base has changed, and use of natural resources has in many cases dwindled, livelihoods based on these resources remain important in terms of cultural identity, symbolic significance and as a real and perceived safety net in times of stress. These findings have both positive and negative consequences for the proposed community-based natural resource management initiatives in the area. The dynamics of people's livelihoods are not always recognised by those implementing the changes. Community-based natural resource management projects have the potential to embrace social justice and ecological sustainability. However they also have the potential to undermine rural populations' individual and collective actions to manage their resources base and maintain viable livelihood strategies at a range of levels.

The impact of wildlife-related benefits on the conservation attitudes of local people around the Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania

In recent years there has been a proliferation of projects aiming to integrate human development needs with conservation objectives, and to establish mutually beneficial relationships for the management of natural resources between rural communities and the state. This paper presents data from a case study of human-wildlife interactions in villages along the northern boundary of the Selous Game Reserve in south-east Tanzania. Since 1989, this area has been the site of a project working to promote community wildlife management (CWM). Questionnaire survey data were used to examine villagers' conservation attitudes towards wildlife, the Game Reserve, and the activities of the CWM project and state wildlife management authority. Despite local support for the conservation of wildlife, many respondents were either unaware or held negative views of the activities of the wildlife management institutions. Logistic regression analyses show that while access to game meat from the CWM project has had a positive influence on perceptions of wildlife benefits and awareness of the project's activities, it has had no significant effect on local perceptions of the Game Reserve and the activities of the state wildlife management authority. The factors underlying the observed pattern of conservation attitudes were identified as the inequitable distribution of benefits from the CWM project, and the limited nature of community participation in wildlife management. The importance of institutional issues for the future progress of participatory approaches to conservation with development is emphasized.