Seasonality, African Cherry occurrence, and human threats determine the spatial distribution of the endangered restricted range Mount Cameroon Francolin ( Pternistis camerunensis )

• Published in: Avian conservation and ecology Vol. 19; no. 2; p. 1
• Main Authors: Guetse, Francis, Riegert, Jan, Tamungang, Simon, Awa II, Taku, Ewome, Francis Luma, Motombi, Francis Njie, Hořák, David
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Waterloo Resilience Alliance 01.12.2024
• Subjects: Abundance; Altitude; anthropogenic disturbance; Birds; cameroon; Census; Censuses; Conservation; Dry season; elevation; Environmental effects; Francolinus; Francolinus camerunensis; Fruits; galliformes; Group size; habitat niche; Habitats; Optimization; Plant species; Playback; Population number; Prunus africana; Rainy season; Rayon; Seasonal variations; Seasonality; Seasons; Spatial distribution; species distribution; Traps; Vegetation; Wet season; Mount Cameroon; Cameroon
• ISSN: 1712-6568; 1712-6568
• DOI: 10.5751/ACE-02769-190228

The Mount Cameroon Francolin (Pternistis camerunensis) is a globally threatened and range restricted bird, which faces natural and human pressures that may alter its distribution and negatively affect its population size. However, the effects of potential human pressures on the species are poorly understood and there is a lack of basic knowledge on its ecology and distribution, hampering conservation efforts. We investigated the effect of environmental variables (vegetation structure, altitude, dry/wet season, tree cover and loss, abundance of key tree species, human threats) on the occurrence and group size of the Mount Cameroon Francolin in the study area. During July 2016, July 2021, February 2022, and July 2022, we established 240 census points along the middle elevations of Mount Cameroon (800–2500 m a.s.l.) where Francolins are reported. At each point, we conducted a bird census using playback within a radius of 300 m, while we visually assessed vegetation structure within a radius of 50 m around each point. We found that the presence of Francolins significantly increased with increasing abundance of African Cherry (Prunus africana) and decreased with its absence. Secondly, we found that the presence of human threats significantly decreased the percent occupancy by Francolins. Thirdly, Francolin presence was more often during the dry season compared to the wet season. Similar results were obtained when we tested the effect of environmental variables on Francolin group size. Using only the 2022 dataset, we found that Francolin presence and group size were higher at higher elevations, mostly between 1800 and 2200 m a.s.l. This seems to be a habitat optimum for Francolins and based on our data, we estimated its population size there to be 2614 individuals. Group size was further negatively affected by the presence of hunting traps, with Francolins absent from sites where traps were present.