Park Rangers Research Articles

“Many have Spoken for us, Now we Speak for Ourselves:” Decolonizing Natures Through Ecotestimonies in Olosho

“Testimonies…are a means through which oral evidence is presented… Indigenous testimonies are a way of talking about an extremely painful event or series of events” (Smith 145). “For a colonized people, the most essential value, because it is the most meaningful, is first and foremost the land: the land, which must provide bread and, naturally, dignity” (Fanon 9). “Many have spoken for us, now we speak for ourselves” are the opening words of the Maasai film Olosho,1 which was produced in 2015 through a participatory workshop with Maasai communities from Loliondo (Tanzania) and the UK-based community development organization InsightShare.2 It was screened during the 11th Native Spirit Indigenous Film Festival 2017 at SOAS University of London. Olosho is an approximately 16-minute long film which features six community members (four women and two men) from five villages, representing three different Maasai clans, in Loliondo. Loliondo is an area adjacent to the Kenyan border, the Serengeti National Park, and the Ngorongoro Conservation area. The film discusses and contextualizes the ongoing struggle for land by the Maasai of Loliondo against the Ortello Business Corporation (OBC), a tourism and wildlife hunting company from the UAE which has cooperated with Tanzanian government bodies to seize Maasai land for its business operations through evictions, displacement, and overt violence. Although Olosho addresses specifically the 2007 and 2009 evictions by OBC and government forces, OBC has recently launched new attempts to occupy Loliondo and displace Maasai communities, continuing the long history of land grabbing, ecological degradation, and displacement of Maasai people from their lands. In August 2017, local police and park rangers burned 185 bomas (Maasai homesteads), rendering 6,800 people homeless. These evictions included harassments, threats, and caused the loss of thousands of livestock while people were forced to pay fines (Lang). In December 2018, two Maasai activists, Supuk Maoi and Clinton Kairung, were detained without bail and after being released a few days later, they were arrested again in January 2019 (IWGIA). These are contemporary snapshots of a history of violence and displacement experienced by the Maasai of Loliondo.

Activity overlap of carnivores, their potential wild prey, and temporal segregation, with livestock in a Biosphere Reserve in the Chihuahuan Desert

Abstract Daily activity is an important aspect of animal behavior and depends both on nutritional and reproductive demands. It also can be modified by—among other factors—interspecific competition, the need to minimize the risk of predation, and human disturbance, such as the presence of cattle. We studied the activity patterns and degree of overlap among carnivores, their potential wild prey, and livestock, in a Biosphere Reserve in the Chihuahuan Desert. There was no temporal segregation among the carnivores. Carnivores synchronized their activity with that of their main prey, the black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus). In contrast, we did observe temporal segregation between the puma (Puma concolor), coyote (Canis latrans), and bobcat (Lynx rufus), with mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). There was little activity overlap between predators and livestock (Bos taurus, Equus caballus). However, to avoid conflict resulting from livestock predation we suggest increasing and improving surveillance, and that calves and females close to calving be sheltered. More studies on the multi-niche interactions of livestock and their wild predators are needed to understand daily activity overlap in different seasons, and to better understand the mechanisms of coexistence in protected areas in order to make sound management recommendations to cattle growers and park rangers.

Sarcoptic mange: An emerging threat to Chilean wild mammals?

Sarcoptic mange has been anecdotally reported in Chilean wildlife during the last decade. Although this disease can have devastating outcomes for biodiversity, there is no comprehensive assessment of this potential threat in Chile. Because the current capacity to monitor sarcoptic mange and other wildlife diseases is limited in this country, we used abnormal alopecia to search for suspect cases across several sources of information to identify, to the extent available data allow, the location and temporal trends of wild mammals with this characteristic across Chile. We surveyed park rangers, examined rehabilitation center databases, and collated citizen and media reports. The information gathered suggests that observations of alopecic wild mammals, mainly foxes (Lycalopex sp.), their presence in the country, and the number of species fulfilling our case definition have increased over the last 15 years. Moreover, abnormally alopecic mammals are currently located broadly in Chile. We also confirmed the utility of abnormal alopecia to define a suspect sarcoptic mange case in the most commonly affected group, Lycalopex foxes. Our findings are highly concerning from a conservation perspective. We thus emphasize the need for an urgent surveillance and management plan for sarcoptic mange and other diseases that may be threatening Chilean biodiversity.

A participatory surveillance of marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) morbidity and mortality in Argentina: first results

BackgroundIn an era of unprecedented socio-ecological changes, managing wildlife health demands high-quality data collection and the engagement of local communities. Blastocerus dichotomus, the largest South American deer, is Vulnerable to extinction mainly due to habitat loss. Diseases have been recognised as a potential threat, and winter mortality has been historically described in marsh deer populations from Argentina. Field difficulties have, however, prevented in-depth studies of their health status.ResultsBetween May 2014 and April 2017, we investigated marsh deer morbidity and mortality in the two largest populations in Argentina. We collected data by means of a passive surveillance system that involved a network of researchers, field partners (veterinarians, park rangers, and local community), and decision makers. We sampled marsh deer during as well as outside mortality events. A total of 44 marsh deer with different body condition scores were evaluated. We obtained haematology and biochemistry values from animals with good body condition score. Marsh deer with poor body condition had a high burden of the ticks Amblyomma triste and Rhipicephalus microplus. Vector-borne agents such as Theileria cervi, Trypanosoma theileri, Trypanosoma evansi, Ehrlichia chaffeensis, Anaplasma platys, Anaplasma odocoilei, Anaplasma marginale, and Candidatus Anaplasma boleense were also found. Haemonchus spp., Ostertagia spp., and Trichostrongylus spp. were the most frequent gastrointestinal parasites in deer with poor body condition. A Multiple Correspondence Analysis reinforced a possible association of winter period with lower body score condition, high tick loads, infection with E. chaffeensis, and presence of harmful gastrointestinal parasites.ConclusionsOur approach allowed the establishment of a participatory surveillance network of marsh deer morbidity and mortality in Argentina. We report and analyse the first data obtained opportunistically within the framework of this network, providing information on the infectious and parasitic agents in marsh deer populations. The occurrence of Fasciola hepatica and Leptospira interrogans serovar pyrogenes is reported for the first time in wild marsh deer from Argentina. Our data will be useful to improve the interpretation of future mortality events. The field implementation of a surveillance network is key to a holistic approach to wildlife diseases.

A Multi-Scale, Participatory Approach to Developing a Protected Area Wetland Inventory in South Africa

Given limited time, staffing and specialist expertise, management of wetlands within biodiversity-rich protected areas of developing countries is often held back by a lack of information on the extent and nature of wetland resources. Rapid, realistic and effective wetland ecosystem assessment methods are needed to develop a baseline for monitoring that detects trends and guides management. Lack of available in-house wetland expertise stimulated a novel team which harnessed wide-ranging complementary and, ultimately, indispensable expertise, spanning all branches of the park, including park management and rangers, Scientific Services and Biodiversity Social Projects. Within a year, the team developed a sufficiently comprehensive inventory which captured the variation of wetlands present in Mountain Zebra National Park, South Africa. A total of 267 wetlands were mapped, while 62 were visited in the field and assessed through rapid verification. Careful collation of existing data and imagery informed a catchment approach, an emphasis on wetland-landscape connectivity, and strategic targeting of a sub-set of important and representative sites deserving of targeted, high effort field assessment. The remaining wetlands not visited in the field were subject to desktop review. Overall, this resulted in a comprehensive overview assessment of the entire Park at multiple scales. The approach of convening a multi-disciplinary team supports strengthened governance and integrated implementation of the findings into park planning, management and rehabilitation. The process provides a potential template for rolling out similar work in other parks and other areas that have limited funding and capacity.

Sister Forces: Park Rangers and Regime Security in African States

ABSTRACT In many African states, park rangers perform a variety of roles as armed state actors. Facing the overlapping challenges of wildlife management and regime security, many have become increasingly militarized, with significant degree of variation. Using case studies from Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan, this article provides an expanded conceptualization of militarization that configures two characteristics of Africa’s park rangers: 1) their integration into or insulation from the state security apparatus, and 2) their coercive roles of either law enforcement or combat. The article builds an argument that takes into account colonial institutions and civil-military relations.

Revealing the Unknown: Real-Time Recognition of Galápagos Snake Species Using Deep Learning.

Simple SummaryThe snakes in Galápagos are the least studied group of vertebrates in the archipelago. The conservation status of only four out of nine recognized species has been formally evaluated, and preliminary evidence suggests that some of the species may be entirely extinct on some islands. Moreover, nearly all park ranger reports and citizen/science photographic identifications of Galápagos snakes are spurious, given that the systematics of the snakes in the archipelago have just recently been clarified. Our solution is to provide park rangers and tourists with easily accessible applications for species identification in real time through automatic object recognition. We used deep learning algorithms on collected images of the snake species to develop the artificial intelligence platform, an application software, that is able to recognize a species of a snake using a user’s uploaded image. The application software works in the following way: once a user uploads an image of a snake into the application, the algorithm processes it, classifies it into one of the nine snake species, gives the class of the predicted species, as well as educates users by providing them with information about the distribution, natural history, conservation, and etymology of the snake.Real-time identification of wildlife is an upcoming and promising tool for the preservation of wildlife. In this research project, we aimed to use object detection and image classification for the racer snakes of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. The final target of this project was to build an artificial intelligence (AI) platform, in terms of a web or mobile application, which would serve as a real-time decision making and supporting mechanism for the visitors and park rangers of the Galápagos Islands, to correctly identify a snake species from the user’s uploaded image. Using the deep learning and machine learning algorithms and libraries, we modified and successfully implemented four region-based convolutional neural network (R-CNN) architectures (models for image classification): Inception V2, ResNet, MobileNet, and VGG16. Inception V2, ResNet and VGG16 reached an overall accuracy of 75%.

Beyond the “Pine Pig”

AbstractThis article shows how the US national park ranger comes to function simultaneously as friendly, educational caretaker and as policing authority forged through and upholding state violence. It argues that long-standing government and popular discourse distinguishing rangers from “real” police naturalizes and actively supports the ranger’s authoritative role in hierarchies of power. This framework further obscures the violent mechanisms of social and environmental control that underwrite the national parks as such. At the same time, however, the article suggests that persistent efforts to distinguish rangers from law enforcement create an opportunity to practice collaborative and anti-authoritarian forms of protection.

Ranger perceptions of the role of local communities in providing actionable information on wildlife crime

AbstractWildlife crime in protected areas remains a major challenge to conservation. However, little is known about the role of local communities in providing information on illegal activities to help improve law enforcement efforts in protected areas. As an initial exploration of this complex topic, we aimed to understand the perceptions of law enforcement authorities working directly with local communities on the conditions under which local people provide information to park rangers, using Murchison Falls Protected Area in Uganda as a case study. We used semi‐structured interviews and questionnaires to understand the perceptions of staff from the Uganda Wildlife Authority and nongovernmental organizations. There was consensus among participants that people who provide information are those who have trusted relationships with rangers; interact regularly with community outreach rangers (either formally through community programs or informal socializing); and believe that the protected area benefits them and their community. All respondents believed that information provided by local people can enable the success of wildlife crime investigations, but that associated ethical issues must be addressed. This study indicates that engaging communities in protected area conservation is crucial for law enforcement efforts to be effective in addressing wildlife crime.

A standardised monitoring protocol for the black caiman (Melanosuchus niger)

Abstract ContextEstimating population abundance can be plagued by the violation of methodological assumptions, which can be overcome with standardised protocols. The black caiman (BC) is considered a conservation-dependent species, and previous abundance estimates are surrounded by uncertainty and flaws in the survey (e.g. different survey design and efforts) and analytical approach used (e.g. relative abundance index, which ignores imperfect detection). Its conservation status assessment demands the implementation of a standardised monitoring protocol. AimsThe protocol provides guidelines to collect and analyse data in a consistent manner to survey BC. Besides accounting for imperfect detection to produce reliable abundance estimates, the protocol aimed to be easily implemented by park rangers, and to fit field observations into a hierarchical modelling approach to assess how environmental variables affects detectability and abundance. MethodsThe protocol subdivides a 20-km transect into 10 2-km segments; each transect is surveyed four consecutive nights, starting at 1900 hours and finishing when the 20km are completed. For each caiman detected, the observers estimated head size to classify the individual by age. We tested the protocol in Ecuador during January and December 2017, and field data were analysed using N-mixture models. We compared abundance estimates derived with this protocol with commonly used relative abundance indexes. Key resultsWe surveyed 460km that resulted in 177 detections. Percentage of moonlight and distance from human settlement best explained detectability and abundance respectively. Mean detection probability was 0.14 (95% BCI: 0.1–0.18), whereas absolute abundance was 196 (95% BCI: 147–370). The overall adult to immature ratio was 1:1.3. ConclusionsThis is the first estimate of detectability and absolute abundance for BC by using a standardised survey with a clearly defined and repeatable survey and analysis methods. Relative abundance indexes did not reflect absolute abundance estimates. We recommend the use of this protocol in future surveys across the Amazon region to effectively evaluate BC conservation status. ImplicationsPopulation size cannot be estimated from relative abundance indexes; they lead to bias estimates for ignoring imperfect detection. We discourage the use of relative abundance indexes to evaluate the conservation status of this species.

Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and Projections: Native American Rock Art in the Contemporary Cultural Landscape by Richard A. Rogers

Reviewed by: Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and Projections: Native American Rock Art in the Contemporary Cultural Landscape by Richard A. Rogers Phil R. Geib Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and Projections: Native American Rock Art in the Contemporary Cultural Landscape. By Richard A. Rogers. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2018. xv + 398 pp. Figures, color plates, references cited, index. $34.95, paper. Richard Rogers's "rock art" book is unlike any other. This is largely because it is not really about ancient images on stone, the petroglyphs and pictographs of the book title, but is rather a critical commentary on how those images get appropriated, commodified, and interpreted by the dominant Euro-American culture. This distinctive aspect is either its chief attraction or detraction depending upon the reader's point of view. Native American images from the Southwest serve as the raw material for Rogers's critique, no doubt in part because his home institution of Northern Arizona University is centrally located in this mecca for rock art enthusiasts. The issues that he talks about, such as turning ancient rock art images into commodities for sale, are also on full display in the Southwest—who doesn't have some tourist trinket, cup, or piece of clothing with rock art images on it? The source of his arguments might be localized, but his line of critical reasoning can be extended to all regions of the world. As such, this is a book intended for wide readership. A comment by Kelley Hays-Gilpin [End Page 108] on the back cover importunes archaeologists, historic preservation specialists, rock art enthusiasts, park rangers, and others to read the book for its "unsettling messages and useful critical methods." For those who heed this advice, be prepared to be unsettled and challenged, but also at times to simply laugh and muse, "that argument is quite a stretch." Linking the interpretive shift for some Great Basin rock art from hunting magic to shamanism as resulting from a contemporary "crisis of masculinity" is just one example. Still, Rogers presents much to think about. Polly Schaafsma's book Images and Power: Rock Art and Ethics (Springer, 2013) covers somewhat similar ground, but it does so in a slim volume roughly one quarter the size of Rogers's tome. More is not necessarily better, since Rogers could have expressed his cultural criticisms more succinctly. Some of this occurs because four of his eight chapters are expanded revisions of previously published papers, with most of the other chapters used to place them in context by introducing his theoretical approach and then summing up the arguments. The result is considerable redundancy and repetition of his main points. Rogers is keenly aware that criticism is easy (318) and that a critic who watches the game from a lofty booth rather than being down on the hot, muddy field of play is in something of an enviable position. There is critique aplenty but few or no remedies or suggested solutions, even for issues that a communications professor might be readied to attempt fixing, such as finding a suitable replacement for the term rock art. Rogers introduces the debate about this term but leaves it unresolved and sticks with it as part of an "uneasy consensus" rather than putting forward "appealing alternatives" (43). One result of taking Rogers's critique to heart, at least in the extreme, would be to cease all engagement with rock art. I doubt that he would actually advocate for this, and his final chapter makes it clear that he will continue to "collect" rock art and to write about it, at least as concerns its role in contemporary culture, in order to advance his academic career. I can easily envision using this book as a text for a student seminar on rock art and also using chapter 7, "Overcoming the Preservation Paradigm," as a means to foment discussion in a class on heritage resource management. Phil R. Geib Department of Anthropology University of Nebraska–Lincoln Copyright © 2020 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Biztos út..., avagy gondolatok az egyes rendészeti feladatot ellátók tevékenységéről

As a police chief, I have the opportunity to engage in ongoing dialogue with certain law enforcement employees, such as field rangers, park rangers, fishery rangers and while coordinating the activities of my staff, to gain insight into their activities and responsibilities. In this study, I intend to introduce partners with a legitimate police force, alongside the national police, from the perspective of a practicing police officer.

Walking in on people in parks: Demonstrating the orderliness of interactional discomfort in urban territorial negotiations

This article makes the case for the situated orderliness of social discomfort as a cultural resource for social actors in mundane public interaction. It does this by describing instances in which Urban Park Rangers ‘walk in on’ incumbent interlopers partaking in expectedly private activities in public park space. While social discomfort is often conceptualised as internal, personal, and ‘belonging’ to individuals, in attending to its orderly features in interaction, it is produced and realised as a public phenomenon available to be seen, managed, navigated, and contested in an orderly (and ordinary) way. The balance of discomfort in interaction becomes a situated resource for the management of urban territories, and the ability to ‘walk in on’ people in public park space speaks to the interactional accomplishment of privacy in such spaces. The unequal right to public space is shown to be contingent on categorisations of people and practice, complicated by the seeing of incongruity and the use of subtle interactional tactics to realise the balance of territorial power in situ. Territory is seen to be made and remade, and discursively ‘won’ and ‘lost’ in these brief encounters.

Assessment appraisal, disposal and transfer of neglected rangers’ diaries created from 1926 to 1930: case of the Kruger National Parks of South Africa

PurposeThis paper aims to assess the appraisal, disposal and transfer of records of the Kruger National Park (KNP) rangers’ diaries processes from 1926 to 1930 with a view to recommend best practices.Design/methodology/approachThe paper applied a qualitative methodology through document analysis, interviews and observations as data collection instruments to analyse contents of rangers’ diaries. The population of the study comprised rangers, a records manager and a representative from the National Archives of South Africa (NARSSA), a member of South Africa National Parks’ management and a scientist from South African National Biodiversity Institute.FindingsThe key findings revealed that rangers’ diaries contain historical, scientific and cultural information. However, such information is not disseminated to society. Lack of systematic appraisal, arrangement of records led to a loss of institutional memories. The role of National Archives and Records Service of South Africa is not visible to provide guidelines on the preservation of rangers’ records.Research limitations/implicationsThis research is limited to KNP ranger’s diaries created from 1926 to 1930 because it is the period of establishment of the national park and introduction of rangers’ programme.Practical implicationsThe findings are expected to be instrumental towards the preservation of rangers’ diaries within the park. Rangers’ diaries are also potentially of great biogeographical value in constituting a historical record of the plants and animals in a given area, their distribution and population changes, and the effects of human interventions such as game fences and artificially created waterholes, game culling and tourism, not to forget climate change.Social implicationsPreservation of ranger diaries may lead to documentation of records with historical, scientific and social value. Rangers’ diaries also form part of the national archival heritage of South Africa, as they bridge the gap of undocumented history of the rangers and national parks in South Africa.Originality/valueThis paper appears to be the first to research the assessment of the appraisal, disposal and transfer of rangers’ diaries created from 1926 to 1930.

Scrub Typhus: Vector Surveillance and its Control

Scrub Typhus is an important emerging vector borne disease being reported now in many parts of the country. This is also known as Chigger Borne Typhus or Tsutsugamushi Fever. Scrub Typhus is caused by bacteria called Orientia tsutsugamushi and is transmitted to people through bites of infected chiggers (larval mites). Recently, it has been reported in the state of Mizoram on wide scale. However, the states of Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Vellore, Sikkim, Nagaland & Manipur, Mizoram, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and Meghalaya have also reported cases of scrub typhus. Scrub typhus is an infectious disease that is transmitted to humans from field mice and rats through the bite of mites that live on the animals. This is a rural disease occurring preferentially in spring and in autumn. Scrub Typhus is an occupational health concern for farmers, park rangers, military personnel, geologist, miners as well as oil palm workers. The life cycle of the trombiculid mite is very complex. The duration of mites’ life cycle depends on species and environment, but normally last 2 to 12 months. Trombiculis mites go through a life cycle of eggs, larva, nymph and adult. Mites have a very patchy distribution over small areas because of their special requirements. The nymphs and adults need certain soil conditions for their survival and development while the larvae require host animals, such as wild rats, other small rodents and birds. Suitable habitats are found in grassy fields, shrubby areas, forests, abandoned rice fields and cleared forests. An attempt has been made to describe the tools for mite surveillance and the possible methods of vector control.

Experimental assessment of the viability of using ground penetrating radar for metal wire-snare detection

Wildlife crime is an international issue with the illicit trade of flora and fauna estimated to be worth several billion dollars. In national parks, the problem can often be summarised as an arms race, with poachers trying to remain undetected by park rangers and other security personnel that are trying to protect the natural habitat and species from exploitation. Within this context, the detection of wire snares is a critical step. Not only can it reduce the number of animals caught by poachers but it can also help rangers develop better situation awareness and, in turn, improve patrolling strategies. To address the practical challenge of wire-snare detection across wide areas, this article examines the capacity of ground penetrating radar (GPR). Using two snares of small and medium sizes, the experiment confirmed the promising role of this technology, even if poachers attempt to conceal the snares underneath small tree branches and roots.

Road mediated spatio-temporal tree decline in traditional agroforests in an African biosphere reserve

Understanding the role of protected areas in conserving biodiversity is a central goal in conservation biology. Anthropogenic activities around and inside these protected areas and, in particular, roads can alter the spatiotemporal dynamics of biological diversity in protected areas. However, our understanding of how the presence and position of roads affect human attitude, subsequent agricultural practices and biodiversity conservation is limited. In this study, we tested the effects of the proximity of traditional agroforestry parklands to main roads used by park rangers for surveillance on the diversity and abundance of woody species in the Pendjari Biosphere reserve over 16 years (2000–2016). Tree density in agroforestry parklands decreased over time from an average of 20 trees/ha in 2000 to 7 trees/ha in 2016. Species such as Vitellaria paradoxa and Parkia biglobosa, which are economically important, experienced the largest density reduction Trees density was also significantly higher in farms close to the monitoring roads used by park rangers to patrol the park. Farms that are far from the roads were monitored less frequently given that the number of park rangers declined over time. However, there was no significant variation in species richness and diversity over time, perhaps because of the low tree diversity in these systems. This masks evidences of species local extinctions. For example, species such as Pterocarpus erinaceus, Anogeissus leiocarpa, and Burkea africana which were present in the traditional agroforestry parklands in 2000 disappeared by 2016. This is associated with important land-use changes including the conversion of gallery forests into cropland and wooded savannas indicating that human pressure not only affects species occurrence but also their habitats. Our study suggests that where land demand for agriculture is high, it is challenging for local people to maintain sustainable management practices in the absence of collective action.

Evaluation of the Ecological Impact of Human Settlement on Trees in Oban and Okwangwo Forests of Cross River National Park, Nigeria

The ecological impacts of human settlement on trees in Oban and Okwangwo Forests of Cross River National Park located in Nigeria was carried out in the park with the view of providing information on the activities of the support zones and enclave communities in both (Oban and Okwangwo) divisions of the park. Surveillance tours were carried out in company of the park rangers in the park and enclave communities. Each division was divided into two (2) zones each (core and peripheral) for ease of coverage. Plots were randomly selected in each study site at regular number of paces (fixed interval) to avoid coincidence.
 Data collections and observations were carried out for a period of four (4) months in both divisions. Random Sampling method was used for the study. Eight (8) plots of size 50 each were marked out using wooden pegs with red ribbon tied across the pegs in the core zones in both divisions (Oban and okwangwo). Same was applicable to the peripheral zones in both divisions giving a total number of 32 plots. The total number of trees per plot was determined by direct stem count and trees with 30 cm girth and above was considered for the count. The total number of trees counted in the core zones was (Oban 141 and Okwangwo 162) and the peripheral zones (Oban 120 and Okwangwo 127). Descriptive statistics was applied on the data to determine the mean, standard deviation and range. The T-test for tree counted in Oban (Table 3) reveals that Tcal(1.161)≤Ttab(2.365) and the difference had a mean of 3.875, TCal ≤ Ttab at 5% level of significance. The T-test for tree counts in Okwangwo (Table 6) shows that Tcal(3.040)≥Ttab(2.365), TCal ≥ Ttab at 5% level of significance. F-statistics (Table 8) revealed a significance level in their differences, Ftab (p=0.05) df (7,7) = 3.79, FCal = 5.384.
 This calls for fast action on the resettlement of the enclave communities and provision of alternative sources of income for the support zones and enclave communities. Strategies should be adopted and improved upon if biodiversity is to be conserved. These strategies are embedded in increasing staff strength, well equipped and dedicated rangers as well as the absence of surrounding enclave communities.

M. Kevin Brown.

"The best advice I have ever been given is 'Don't listen to everyone else's advice!' My favorite quote is 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication' …" Find out more about M. Kevin Brown in his Author Profile.

“Hunting Is Our Heritage; We Commit No Offence”: Kainji National Park Wildlife Poachers, Kaiama, Kwara State Nigeria

ABSTRACT So far, studies on wildlife poaching in Nigeria have focused on its health implications, motivations, and rationalizations. The methods of operation employed by the poachers to thwart enforcement of anti-poaching laws have not been examined. It is in an attempt to bridge this gap that this study examined wildlife poaching at the Kainji National Park (KNP) Kwara State, from the poachers’ perspective and the various attendant schemes employed by the poachers to evade arrest and prosecution. This study interrogated how enforcement of laws against criminalized acts could be frustrated through adoption of schemes to evade arrest and prosecution, if a cultural group defines such criminalization as an incursion on their cultural heritage. It also examined forces propelling wildlife poaching at the Park. The study is of the firm believe that knowledge of these schemes would be useful to park rangers in adopting a more effective approach to tackle the crime. Knowledge of the cultural forces propelling poaching would also be useful to the government in initiating appropriate approaches to address them. The exploratory research design was employed for the study while the qualitative method was used to collect primary data. Narratives were generated through in-depth interviews with wildlife poachers at Kaiama community. Findings from the study showed that community rationalization and justification of hunting as their heritage, and perception of establishment of KNP as an incursion on their heritage was a major force propelling illegal hunting while the consequent tactics adopted by the poachers to evade arrest were: use of mystical powers, decimation of vultures, bribery, use of community residents as informants, prediction of park rangers’ movements, sale of hunted animals to only familiar customers and new customers introduced by old customers, and utilization of their mastery of the forest environment. Poachers remain persistent in the act due to availability of a variety of animals to poach, and corruption among the park rangers.