Publication Date

8-2023

Advisor(s) - Committee Chair

Bruce Shulte, Natalie Mountjoy, Doug McElroy

Degree Program

Department of Biology

Degree Type

Master of Science

Abstract

African elephants (Loxodonta africana) play a significant role in the modification of their habitat, foremost by decreasing woody vegetation cover and density and in some parts of Africa high elephant densities damage small sanctuaries and preserves. For wildlife that depend on forested patches, this increased modification could lead to displacement and/or decreases in abundance. If suitable habitat is not available elsewhere, elephants and other wildlife may move closer to humans in search of resources, which can result in increased human-wildlife conflict. Evaluating this impact was one of the goals of the Elephants and Sustainable Agriculture in Kenya (ESAK) project that motivated the current study. Little is known regarding the effects of elephant habitat modification (EHM) on medium-to-large mammal and bird communities. Understanding the influence of EHM on such species can facilitate their management and possibly provide an ecological indicator of human wildlife conflict. To help inform this knowledge gap I compared mammal and avian richness, diversity, and community assemblages across differing severities (low, medium, high) of elephant modified habitats (woodland, shrub, and mixed wood/shrubland) within Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary (RWS) in southeastern Kenya. From June-November 2022, I collected wildlife detection data via six wildlife transects and surveyed EHM through the observation of elephant tree damage (bark stripping, branch breaking, uprooting, main stem breaking). Patterns of species richness and diversity among habitats and EHM levels were evaluated using ANOVA, while principal component analyses were conducted for each habitat type to summarize patterns in community assemblages within and among EHM levels. Overall, EHM had no observable negative impacts on species richness and diversity for most medium-to- large mammal, raptor, and large ground bird species, with overall richness and diversity being highest in high EHM areas. EHM level did impact community assemblage, possibly through modifications to vegetation and/or by increasing habitat heterogeneity. Overall, this study provides evidence that elephants in RWS are not damaging habitats in a way that negatively impacts sanctuary viability, and in some cases may enhance it. Unfenced sanctuaries, like RWS, may be at less of a risk to elephant overpopulation as, unlike in fenced sanctuaries, they can leave the areas before any lasting impacts can occur. Promoting connectivity and movement between protected areas may be a possible way to decrease severe EHM impacts.

Disciplines

Animal Sciences | Biodiversity | Biology | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | Life Sciences

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