ASPECTS OF THE ECOLOGY OF LEOPARDS (PANTHERA PARDUS) IN THE LITTLE KAROO, SOUTH AFRICA A THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY OF RHODES UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF ZOOLOGY AND ENTOMOLOGY BY GARETH MANN FEBRUARY 2014 i ABSTRACT ABSTRACT Leopards (Panthera pardus) are the most common large predators, free roaming outside of protected areas across most of South Africa. Leopard persistence is attributed to their tolerance of rugged terrain that is subject to less development pressure, as well as their cryptic behaviour. Nevertheless, existing leopard populations are threatened indirectly by ongoing transformation of natural habitat and directly through hunting and conflict with livestock farmers. Together these threats may further isolate leopards to fragmented areas of core natural habitat. I studied leopard habitat preferences, population density, diet and the attitudes of landowners towards leopards in the Little Karoo, Western Cape, South Africa, an area of mixed land-use that contains elements of three overlapping global biodiversity hotspots. Data were gathered between 2010 and 2012 using camera traps set up at 141 sites over an area of ~3100km2, GPS tracking collars fitted to three male leopards, scat samples (n=76), interviews with landowners (n=53) analysed in combination with geographical information system (GIS) layers. My results reveal that leopards preferred rugged, mountainous terrain of intermediate elevation, avoiding low-lying, open areas where human disturbance was generally greater. Despite relatively un-fragmented habitat within my study area, the leopard population density (0.75 leopards/100km2) was one of the lowest yet recorded in South Africa. This may reflect low prey densities in mountain refuges in addition to historical human persecution in the area. Currently local landowners are more tolerant of leopards than other wildlife species with incidents of conflict involving leopards being rare relative to black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas), baboons (Papio hamadryas), caracals (Caracal caracal) and porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis). Although current levels of conflict between leopards and stock farmers are low, leopards do depredate livestock, which constitute 10-15% of their diet. Improved livestock husbandry measures and co-operation between conservation authorities and farmers are necessary to mitigate such conflict and balance economic security with biodiversity conservation in the region. i ABSTRACT Leopards are the only remaining top predators throughout much of the Little Karoo and the Western Cape and as such are predicted to play a critical role in ecosystem structure and the survival of other species. Current high levels of connectivity between areas of suitable leopard habitat bode well for the conservation status of leopards within this region and future conservation efforts need to ensure that narrow corridors linking such habitat are preserved. The potential for leopards to serve as both an umbrella and a flagship species for biodiversity conservation suggests that long term monitoring of this population would be a conservation priority for the Little Karoo. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Doing this project has been a privilege, and I’ve been fortunate to not only have been able to spend three years roaming one of the world’s truly unique places, but also to have had incredible support from a wide variety of people while doing so. It is my pleasure to thank the following individuals and organisations who made this project possible: I am extremely grateful to my supervisors, Dr. Daniel Parker and Prof. Justin O’Riain for their help, advice, and constructive criticism throughout the development, analyses and writing of my thesis, as well as providing equipment and funding. Their help in dealing with the various non-scientific problems that arose at various times over the past four years is particularly appreciated! The financial and logistical assistance from the Cape Leopard Trust Scholarship towards this research is hereby gratefully acknowledged. Opinions expressed and conclusions arrived at, are those of the author and are not necessarily to be attributed to the Cape Leopard Trust. I would especially like to thank Dr. Quinton Martins for his assistance in setting up the project and his advice on all things leopard and conflict-related. The Nedbank WWF Green Trust provided substantial funding (grant no. GT1616 to Gareth Mann) that allowed me to do the camera trap survey and generally broaden the scope of the project, as well as covering most of the project running costs from 2011 onwards. This research was also supported by the International Foundation for Science, Stockholm, Sweden, through a grant to me (Gareth Mann), for which I am very grateful. Rhodes University provided funding to attend the Zoological Society of South Africa conference in 2011, the International Wildlife Management Congress in 2012 and the South African Wildlife Management Association symposium in 2013, as well as providing me with funding via a discretionary bursary from the Director of Research in 2013. Blackie & Associates for their generous donations to the project. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Bateleurs for sponsoring a tracking flight in 2012. C.P. Nel Motors in Mossel Bay for sponsoring much-needed services of the project vehicle. CapeNature provided me with extensive support throughout my project, including provision of accommodation for the duration of my fieldwork, a permit for camera trapping and leopard capture (permit no. AAA-004-00592-0035), and access to GIS data. Ivan Donian, Dr. Alan Wheeler, Theresa van der Westhuizen, Meijer Julies, Jan Coetzee, Martin Botha and Erika Swanepoel all assisted me by providing administrative support, advice and information. Thanks also to Theo Taute for assistance with the camera trap survey and for introducing me to various landowners. Martin Botha of Gamkaskloof Nature Reserve helped to maintain cameras, and assisted me with identifying camera trap locations in that area Tom Barry and his superb team of rangers and conservation assistants at Gamkaberg Nature Reserve: Willem Goemas, Cornelius Julies, Abraham Lottering, Jan Oransie, Skhumbuzo Tembe, Willem Wagenaar, Joemat Delport, Tom Horne and Morris Van Wyngard were incredibly supportive throughout my three years in the field in a wide variety of ways. This included (but was not limited to) maintaining the water supply to my house despite frequent blockages, breakages due to baboons, and the occasional flood, helping to carry heavy cage traps to trapping sites, giving me access to their workshop, assisting with checking camera traps, collecting scats and rescuing me when my project vehicle broke down. I owe them all a huge debt of gratitude for so often going beyond simply ‘doing their job’ to assist me. Tom Barry’s enthusiasm for the project, vast local knowledge and love for nature were a constant source of inspiration to me, and a major contributing factor to the success of this project. The South African Weather Service provided me with weather data for my study area. Dairen Simpson trained me in the art of footloop trapping, and taught me a huge amount during his stint on the project in 2010. Thanks for all your help and being willing to go beyond the call of duty, Big D! iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Much of my work was done on private land, and would not have been possible without the support provided by the various landowners who allowed me access to their land and were willing to let me set up my camera traps and/or search for leopard kills on their property. I am especially grateful to those landowners who showed great patience in sitting through lengthy interviews! Chris Steer, and by extension Ian and Rosheen Kriegler, provided me with (amongst other things) accommodation and also loaned me a vehicle when the project vehicle broke down, without which I would not have captured one of the leopards. Chris also assisted by monitoring a cage trap on my behalf. I am most grateful for their constant support, enthusiasm for the project, and for all the coffee, beers and braais that we shared, all of which helped to make my time in the field that much more enjoyable. Joan and Peter Berning allowed me unrestricted access to their property throughout the project, as well as taking me on a tracking flight in 2011. Louis Smit assisted in monitoring cage traps in 2011. Valerie Enzer and Pierre de Klerk for their generosity in providing me with accommodation on their properties when I was working in the surrounding areas. Dr. Willem Burger volunteered his considerable expertise in assisting with leopard captures in 2011 and 2012, for which I am particularly thankful. Aneri Vlok, Brenda Jonck and Sandile Ndoko assisted with fieldwork, data capture and fundraising during their Nature Conservation diploma practical year. I was also assisted by several volunteers during my three years of fieldwork; Sonja Schmidt, Heather DeYoung, Ty Hall, James Mainwaring, Huw Vaughan-Jackson, Luc Germonpre and Pennie Ginn all provided considerable assistance with fieldwork and data capture. Luc, James, Heather and Ty also assisted the project through donations, either of money or equipment. Thanks to all of my assistants and volunteers for your hard work, often under very tough conditions! v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Calitzdorp and Volmoed Agri organisations and the organisers of the Calitzdorp Port Festival provided me with regular opportunities to present my findings to the broader public. CONNEXIO Calitzdorp,, Erika Calitz, Heather DeYoung, Valerie Enzer, Mavis Gash, Jane and Rod Green, Ty Hall, Laurance Huckstep, Pieter Nel, and Bob Sowden sponsored cameras for the project, and all those landowners who bought their own cameras and sent me the pictures – those data made a big difference, particularly in the early stages of the project when cameras were in short supply. Dr Charlene Bissett and Armand Kok for their advice on matters statistical and GIS-related. Brendan Whittington-Jones for his assistance in the design of the landowner questionnaire. Dr. Beatrice Conradie for her insight and advice on analyzing questionnaire data.