Do vegetation, disturbances, and water influence large mammal distribution?

ABSTRACT

Species distribution can be influenced by different factors that may either be biotic or abiotic. In the Serengeti Ecosystem, most of the studies on species distribution have focused on single species. In contrast, few which considered multispecies have been done in larger protected areas such as Serengeti National Park and left the small areas like Kijereshi Game Reserve (KGR) unexplored. Here, we assessed the impact of vegetation, proximity to humans, and the distance from the roads and waterways on large mammal distribution in the KGR. We used line transects to record locations and numbers of large mammals in the KGR while the distances from boundaries, roads, and waterways were calculated by using QGIS. To assess how large mammals varied in response to different vegetation types, proximity to human settlements, and distances to nearest roads and the waterways, Generalized Additive Model (GAM) was used. Our findings revealed that vegetation and proximity to humans do not significantly affect large mammal density. However, we observed a significant non-linear relationship between large mammal density and distances from the roads and waterways. Therefore, the study findings provide a foundation for large mammal studies in the KGR, which are essential in planning and implementation of wildlife tourism activities.

KEYWORDS:

• Abundance
• density
• Kijereshi Game Reserve
• distribution
• mammal
• human proximity

Acknowledgments

We thank Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (TAWA) for the support and funding. We also appreciate the staffs from Kijereshi Game Reserve, Zonal Anti-Poaching Unit of Serengeti (APU-Bunda), and Zonal Anti-Poaching Unit of Lake Zone (APU-Mwanza) for their support during data collection. Furthermore, we thank Thomas Hesselberg for reviewing this manuscript before submission. Finally, we acknowledge the comments from two anonymous reviewers and Rudolf Mremi which significantly improved this manuscript.

Availability of data and material

The data that support the findings of this study are available from Kijereshi Game Reserve (KGR) and Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (TAWA), but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under permission for the current study, and so are not publicly available. Data are however available from the authors upon reasonable request and with the authorization from KGR and TAWA.

Authors’ contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Daud Mathew Gunda and Diana Chambi while Abraham Eustace performed analysis. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Abraham Eustace, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No conflict of interest to declare