Survey of Forest Elephants Loxodonta cyclotis (Matschie, 1900) (Mammalia: Proboscidea: Elephantidae) in the Bia Conservation Area, Ghana

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Emmanuel Danquah
Samuel K. Oppong

Abstract

Information on elephant ranges and numbers is vital for effective conservation and management, especially in western Africa where elephant populations are small and scattered.  The Bia Conservation Area (BCA) in southwestern Ghana is a priority site for the conservation of Forest Elephants in western Africa.  A dung count was conducted using a systematic segmented track line design to determine the density and distribution of the BCA elephant population.  The mean density of dung-piles was 452.15 per sq.km. and mean dung survival time was estimated to be 54.64 days (SD 2 days), leading to an estimate of 146 elephants (95% confidence interval 98-172) with a density of 0.48/km2 for the BCA. This estimate probably makes the Bia forest elephant population the largest in Ghana.  Records of BCA elephant activities were also made.  This study augments the Regional African Elephant Database and should facilitate strategic planning and management programmes.

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Author Biographies

Emmanuel Danquah, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology

Dr. Emmanuel Danquah is Head of Department of Wildlife and Range Management, KNUST, Ghana. He is a member of the Man and Biosphere National Committee of Ghana and currently working on the Green Economies in Biosphere Reserves Project in Bia Biosphere Reserve in Ghana, with financial support from UNESCO

Samuel K. Oppong, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology

Prof. Samuel K. Oppong is Dean of the Nyankpala Campus of University of Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana. He is a member of the Ghana Institute of Professional Foresters and currently working on various range development projects in northern Ghana.

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