This region came to anthropological attention when Kortlandt (1983) suggested that it was the most arid habitat in which chimpanzees live. Stimulated by this, I did a brief survey of the area (Moore, 1985) while searching for a savanna chimpanzee study site. I suspect it is the most arid chimpanzee habitat; while it may not have the lowest rainfall, rapid runoff due to lateritic plateaus and dry harmattan winds off the Sahel leave very little surface water or humidity. I elected not to pursue research there because there has been widespread hunting of nonprimates, leaving the chimpanzees in an ecologically disturbed setting. However, since my survey a National Park has been established in the catchment of the Manantali Dam (one of the largest in the world, completed in the mid-80s) and the area remains a potentially significant one for studying chimpanzee adaptation to arid habitats. The materials here may be useful for anyone interested in visiting the region.
In the early 1990s, Jean-Michel Pavy did an extensive survey of the area (focussing on chimpanzees) and when I last communincated with him was planning to participate in planning and implementation of the Park's management. I don't know of any publications or where he is now; I believe he wrote a project summary for WCI that may be available. In the mid-90s, Peace Corps volunteer Andrew Webster did some chimpanzee survey work in the area and may be pursuing that.
Name: | Bafing River and SW Mali; catchment of Manantali Dam |
Location: | Soutwest Mali, roughly 12-13° N, 10-11° 30' W |
Status: | An area surrounding the catchment of the Mananatali dam, extending as far south as Bafing Makana, was recently created a National Park; otherwise most of the area is unprotected |
Area: | Chimpanzees are probably distributed (thinly) over thousands of square kilometers |
Altitude: | varies greatly m |
Temp: | --- °C |
Rainfall: | Region lies between 1100mm - 1300mm isohyets (PIRT, 1983); rain largely restricted to July through November. |
Vegetation: | Soudanien or soudano-guineen. Dominant trees on two plots I surveyed included Pterocarpus erinaceus, Combretum spp., Bombax costatum, Acacia machrostachya, Terminalia laxifolia, Daniellia oliveri, Gardenia erubescens, and Detarium microcarpum; others listed by PIRT (1983) include Lannea microcarpa, Isoberlinia doka, and Vitellaria paradoxa. In many areas open grasslands on thin-soiled plateaus are cut by thin riverine strips; elsewhere it is open woodland (see habitat photos). |
Human influence: |
The entire region is thinly settled. People rarely hunt primates (but see Conservation below) but hunt everything else and animals are scarce. Disturbance ratings -- 3, 2, 2, 2, 2 |
Closest village: | Low density, throughout region; isolated farms (nests seen within 100m of fields) |
Species studied: | P. t. verus |
Population density: | Unkown but probably comparable to nearby Mt. Assirik -- 0.08 - 0.1 individuals per km2 If evenly distributed across the region (extrapolating from survey route) total population in western Mali would be 600-1,000 (in 1984) |
Fauna: | 1984 survey confirmed baboons (P. papio/anubis), vervets (C. aethiops), patas (E. patas) and galago were reported. Primates are only rarely hunted, but nonprimates have been hunted to very low numbers. |
Study period: | Survey of about 3 weeks in December, 1984 |
Habituation: | None |
Research presence: | None |
Conservation: | Chimpanzees are not traditionally eaten, but skins and tissues are used in traditional medicine. If 20-35% of chimpanzees are reproductive females and the interbirth interval is 5 years, between 24-70 infants would be born in Mali annually. The 3 skins I saw in Bamako in one month, in one market, thus represented 4-12% of annual production. Assuming several other cities have markets and that skins are fully used in less than a year, this traditional use alone places a heavy demand on the chimpanzee population. |
Current research: | None |
Methods: | Nest survey (no transects; not quantitative) |
Contact person: | None (Jean-Michel Pavy??) |
Habitat photos | --- |
Maps | A 1:1,000,000 scale map of the region. |
Aerial photos | Detailed satelite imagery and analysis available in PIRT (1983) (to the extent that report is available; I was able to consult a copy at TAMS in New York). |
Bibliography |
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Miscellaneous | Related links |