Browsing by Author "Foya, Yohani Rovetha"

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Community’s knowledge of the effects of illegal hunting and trade in Western Nyerere National Park Tanzania
(Sokoine University of Agriculture, 2024) Foya, Yohani Rovetha
Illegal bushmeat hunting is now a prominent problem in many regions of the world owing to the ecological, socioeconomic, and human health repercussions. In regions of Africa, particularly Tanzania, illicit bush-meat hunting and trading is responsible for a substantial drop in wildlife populations, a loss of government revenue, and employment opportunities, all of which cost conservation and expose people to zoonotic diseases. Despite the threats posed by illegal hunting activities, the phenomena are prevalent among individuals of the groups investigated. This calls our attention to assessing community understanding of illicit hunting activities and its consequences to conservation and public health. Specifically, this study aimed to (i) assess the knowledge of communities on the impacts of illegal bushmeat hunting and trade; (ii) assess the knowledge of communities on the potential health risks associated with handling and or consumption of wildlife products; and (iii) identify key species hunted for bushmeat and determine the spatial and temporal pattern of bushmeat hunting and trade. We employed key informant interviews and household surveys in eight (8) villages adjacent to the western part of Nyerere National Park. Generalized linear model (GLM) with Binomial error distribution was used to analyse the data. According to our results, a majority of local inhabitants recognise the impacts of illegal hunting, with around 84% realising that unregulated hunting may diminish wild species and negatively impact their socioeconomic livelihoods. More than half of the locals were unaware of the potential health risks associated with consuming and handling wildlife products. Our research also indicated that illegal hunting is more common during the rainy season than dry season. We found that, the spatial network of illegal bushmeat varies from origin site to destinations. Amongst the common hunted species, Hippopotamus (61%), Buffalo (56%) and Hartebeest (52%) are more vulnerable to illegal hunting. This study established the knowledge of the local communities towards the impacts of bushmeat hunting which is essential in developing effective conservation and public health education programs. Nonetheless, our study emphasizes on specific and general anti- poaching strategies in curbing the illegal hunting in areas adjacent to protected areas.