Lope Reserve, Gabon

Brief History

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Primary source for the following Site Data is McGrew et. al. (1996), Great Ape Societies (Cambridge University Press), Appendix.

SITE DATA

Name: Station d'Etudes des Gorilles et Chimpanzes, Reserve de la Lope
Location: Gabon, Ogooue-Ivindo, 0 10' S 11 35' E 0° 10' S, 11° 35' E
Status: Faunal Reserve
Area: 50km2 in 5000km2
Altitude: 250-600m
Temp: --- °C
Rainfall: 1531mm, range 1168-1851mm (1984-94)
Vegetation: Marantaceae forest, closed canopy forest. A species list is available at http://www.primate.wisc.edu/pin/tro1.html
Human
influence: 		No hunting, no provisioning, selective logging in parts (1960-74)
Disturbance ratings -- 1, 1, 1, 2, 1
Closest
village: 		12km
Species
studied: 		G. g. gorilla, P. t. troglodytes
Population
density: 		--- individuals per km2
Fauna: Mandrillus sphinx., Colobus satanus, Cercocebus albigena, Cercopithecus nictitans, C. pogonias, C. cephus, Panthera pardus
Study
period: 		1984-present
Habituation: Poor
Research
presence: 		Permanent
Conservation: Collaboration with ECOFAC, training and ecotourism
Current
research: 		Feeding ecology, population structure, social organization, ecological monitoring, plant-animal interactions
Methods: Tracking, observation as possible, DNA fingerprinting
Contact
person: 		C. E. G. Tutin, SEGC, BP 7847, Libreville, Gabon
Habitat photos ---
Maps ---
Aerial photos ---
Bibliography References relating to Lope
  • Landsoudsoukate, J., Tutin, C. E. G. & Fernandez, M. (1995). Intestinal parasites of sympatric gorillas and chimpanzees in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Ann. Trop. Med. Parasitol. 89: 73-79.
  • McGrew, W. C., Ham, R. M., White, L. J. T., Tutin, C. E. G. & Fernandez, M. (1997). Why don't chimpanzees in Gabon crack nuts? Int. J. Primatol. 18: 353-374.
  • Oslisly, R., Peyrot, B., Abdessadok, S. & White, L. (1996). Lope 2: Evidence of transition in a tropical ecosystem ca 10,000 BP from a site in the middle Ogooue valley (Gabon). Comptes Rendus De l'Academie des Sciences Serie II Fasc. A-Sciences de la Terre et des Planetes. 323: 933-939.
  • Rogers, M. E., Abernethy, K. A., Fontaine, B., Wickings, E. J. & others. (1996). Ten days in the life of a mandrill horde in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Am. J. Primatol. 40: 297-313.
  • Rogers, M. E., Maisels, F., Williamson, E. A., Fernandez, M. & others. (1990). Gorilla diet in the Lope Reserve, Gabon - a nutritional analysis. Oecologia. 84: 326-339.
  • Tutin, C. E. G. & Benirschke, K. (1991). Possible osteomyelitis of skull causes death of a wild lowland gorilla in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. J. Med. Primatol. 20: 357-360.
  • Tutin, C. E. G. & Fernandez, M. (1992). Insect-eating by sympatric lowland gorillas (Gorilla g. gorilla) and chimpanzees (Pan t. troglodytes) in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Am. J. Primatol. 28: 29-40.
  • Tutin, C. E. G. & Fernandez, M. (1993). Composition of the diet of chimpanzees and comparisons with that of sympatric lowland gorillas in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Am. J. Primatol. 30: 195-211.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., Fernandez, M., Rogers, M. E., Williamson, E. A. & McGrew, W. C. (1991). Foraging profiles of sympatric lowland gorillas and chimpanzees in the Lopé Reserve, Gabon. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B. 334: 179-186.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., Ham, R. & Wrogemann, D. (1995). Tool-use by chimpanzees (Pan t. troglodytes) in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Primates. 36: 181-192.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., Ham, R. M., White, L. J. T. & Harrison, M. J. S. (1997). The primate community of the Lope Reserve, Gabon: Diets, responses to fruit scarcity, and effects on biomass. Am. J. Primatol. 42: 1-24.
  • Tutin, C. E. G. & Oslisly, R. (1995). Homo, Pan and Gorilla -- co-existence over 60,000 years at Lope in Central Gabon. J. Hum. Evol. 28: 597-602.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., Parnell, R. J. & White, F. (1996). Protecting seeds from primates -- examples from Diospyros spp. in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. J. Trop. Ecol. 12: 371-384.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., Parnell, R. J., White, L. J. T. & Fernandez, M. (1995). Nest building by lowland gorillas in the Lope Reserve, Gabon -- environmental influences and implications for censusing. Int. J. Primatol. 16: 53-76.
  • Tutin, C. E. G., White, L. J. T., Williamson, E. A., Fernandez, M. & McPherson, G. (1994). List of plant species identified in the northern part of the Lope Reserve, Gabon. Tropics. 3: 249-276.
  • White, L. J. T. (1994). Biomass of rain forest mammals in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. J. Animal Ecol. 63: 499-512.
  • White, L. J. T. (1994). Patterns of fruit-fall phenology in the Lope Reserve, Gabon. J. Trop. Ecol. 10: 289-312.
  • White, L. J. T., Rogers, M. E., Tutin, C. E. G., Williamson, E. A. & others. (1995). Herbaceous vegetation in different forest types in the Lope Reserve, Gabon -- implications for keystone food availability. Afr. J. Ecol. 33: 124-141.
  • Williamson, E. A., Tutin, C. E. G., Rogers, M. E. & Fernandez, M. (1990). Composition of the diet of lowland gorillas at Lope in Gabon. Am. J. Primatol. 21: 265-277.
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