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An Integrated Management Strategy for the Conservation of Eastern Black Rhinoceros Diceros Bicornis Michaeli in Kenya

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An Integrated Management Strategy for the Conservation of Eastern Black Rhinoceros Diceros Bicornis Michaeli in Kenya 118 ELEPHANTS AND RHINOCEROS Int. Zoo Yb. (2006) 40: 118–129 © The Zoological Society of London An integrated management strategy for the conservation of Eastern black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis michaeli in Kenya R. AMIN1, B. OKITA-OUMA2, K. ADCOCK3, R. H. EMSLIE3, M. MULAMA2 & P. PEARCE-KELLY1 1Zoological Society of London, Regent’s Park, London NW1 4RY, United Kingdom, 2Kenya Wildlife Service, PO Box 40241-00100, Nairobi, Kenya, and 3IUCN/SSC African Rhino Specialist Group, Box 1212, Hilton 3245, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa E-mail: [email protected] At time of writing Kenya holds c. 84% of the Brooks, 1999; Brooks, 2002; Mulama & remaining in situ population of Critically Endan- Okita-Ouma, 2004) (Fig. 1). At the end of gered Eastern black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis michaeli. The Kenyan 5 year Black Rhino Conser- 2003 the c. 450 Eastern black rhinoceros vation and Management Strategy has given highest in Kenya (c. 84% of the total in situ popu- priority to the biological management of the subspe- lation) are spread across 14 sanctuaries, cies in order to help achieve and maintain rapid reserves and national parks, with habitats metapopulation growth to increase rhinoceros num- bers. Specific training and capacity building in mon- ranging from dense forest to semi-arid itoring of rhinoceros, from collection of field data to scrubland (Fig. 2; Plate 1). The Eastern status reporting, have been implemented. Procedures black rhinoceros is considered Critically to assess ecological carrying capacity for Eastern Endangered by IUCN (2004). This drastic black rhinoceros habitat have been developed to help establish new viable populations and to opti- decline was initially the result of culling in mize the management of existing sanctuaries, some order to clear land for agriculture and was of which face loss of suitable habitat owing to com- exacerbated by intense poaching, which petition for resources between rhinoceros and other occurred both within and outside the browsers. The management objective is to maintain national parks and reserves. In 1984, in rhinoceros populations below the ecological carrying capacity of a reserve in order to increase reproduc- response to this rapid decline, Kenya tion in ‘donor’ populations as well as the trans- implemented a strategy aimed at restoring location of animals to create new populations with the rhinoceros population. The strategy the potential for rapid growth. The conservation included the establishment of sanctuaries, value of establishing site-level support relationships is also discussed. Kenya, for the first time since the collaboration between the Kenya Wildlife 1970s, achieved a growth rate of q5% over the Service (KWS) and the private and com- period 2004 and 2005 (the national goal is to increase munity sectors, heightened protection numbers by at least 5%). through increased law enforcement, Key-words: biological management, capacity improved staff densities and capacities, building, eastern black rhinoceros, ecological revision of staff remuneration and drastic carrying capacity (ECC), population estimation, changes to the management of national rhinoceros monitoring, status reporting parks. This strategy halted the decline of the In 1970 the Eastern black rhinoceros rhinoceros population in Kenya and since Diceros bicornis michaeli population in 1987 numbers have increased, albeit Kenya was c. 20 000 but by the late 1980s slowly, at an average annual growth rate this population numbered Q400 animals of Q5%. However, if it had been possible (Foose et al., 1992; Anon., 1993; Emslie & to achieve even the AfRSG minimum REVIEW: EASTERN BLACK RHINOCEROS INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT STRATEGY 119 Fig. 1. Eastern black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis michaeli trend across Africa and in Kenya 1970–2003, in a logarithmic scale, showing the sharp decline and slow recovery. Data from Anon. (1993), Foose et al. (1992), Emslie & Brooks (1999), Brooks (2002) and Mulama & Okita-Ouma (2004). acceptable (Emslie & Brooks, 1999) meta- heterozygosity, by ensuring maximum population growth rate of 5% per annum rate of gene transfer to future generations the population could have still grown (Gilpin & Soule´, 1986). In recognition of significantly (Fig. 3). The value of 5% was the importance of striving to maintain chosen as the minimum acceptable growth rapid growth to retain genetic diversity, rate as it is only just over half of r-max Kenya’s current Black Rhino Conserva- (9%) and should be attainable. In practice, tion and Management Strategy places one would hope to achieve higher rates of greater emphasis on improving metapo- increase (6·5–9%). Given an expanding pulation performance through effective population with a young age structure in biological management (Anon., 2003) good habitat, one can temporarily achieve (Fig. 4). The strategy advocates managing even higher rates of growth (10%+). As it for metapopulation growth of at least 5% is, even at the 5% rate it would take per annum and preferably higher. To 30 years to achieve the target population achieve this, specific capacity and proce- level of 2000 animals; a level that could be dural mechanisms were urgently required achieved in 15 years if annual metapopu- in: (1) field monitoring of rhinoceros, lation growth rate could increase to 9% data collection, analysis and reporting, (i.e. near the biological maximum growth (2) production of standardized annual rate for non-sex-biased black rhinoceros status reports that assess the numbers, populations). Large, rapidly breeding performance and population dynamics of healthy populations not only provide the Eastern black rhinoceros populations in best possible insurance against future Kenya in order to aid biological-manage- poaching losses but also preserve genetic ment decision making and (3) assessment diversity, or at least minimize loss of of habitat conditions and ecological 120 ELEPHANTS AND RHINOCEROS carrying capacities in fenced sanctuaries, monitoring data are used to provide esti- allowing the management of habitats by mates of population size, age and sex adjusting rhinoceros and other browser structures, calving rates (i.e. 8 breeding population densities, and fire regime performance), mortality rates (by age and where relevant, and assisting in develop- sex), and the distribution and movement ment of new viable populations. Several of rhinoceros. This information is used to Kenyan sanctuaries have experienced or gauge the performance of each population are experiencing high densities of rhino- and guide biological-management deci- ceros and competing browsers, or very sion-making processes, such as introduc- high/low fire frequencies, and there is a tions and removals, to realize the national risk of the long-term productivity of the conservation strategy of increasing the habitat being negatively affected. total rhinoceros population as rapidly as possible. The individual identification of rhino- MONITORING FOR MANAGEMENT ceros requires properly skilled and moti- In order to monitor rhinoceros popu- vated observers, a system of strict control lations, Kenya has implemented a on data quality at observer and data- standardized programme of patrols to recording levels, and the support of obtain information on rhinoceros sight- the wider conservation-management ings. Rhinoceros are identified individu- structure. ally and registers of the features of individual animals are maintained. Where needed, recordings are also made of sight- DEVELOPING MONITORING CAPACITY ings of ‘clean’ rhinoceros (i.e. those that Training A formalized training pro- are not individually recognizable). These gramme for personnel can greatly Fig. 2a. As at end of 2003 there were c. 540 and c. 170 Eastern black rhinoceros in situ and ex situ, respectively (AfRSG, 2004); b. Kenya is the stronghold of D. b. michaeli, with 458 rhinoceros in the population, as at end of 2003, mostly within sanctuaries, both in protected areas and on private land, and in a free-ranging population on county-council land. Tanzania has an estimated 42 Eastern black rhinoceros, mostly in free-ranging populations in unfenced protected areas and a few in one sanctuary. Rwanda and Ethiopia hold relict populations of one (in a protected area) and two to four (on community land) animals, respectively. As at 2003 South Africa had an estimated 36 D. b. michaeli, of predominantly Kenyan origin, out-of-range on private land. REVIEW: EASTERN BLACK RHINOCEROS INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT STRATEGY 121 accelerate the process of acquiring high staff turnover. Standardized data collec- standards of observational and data-col- tion, including the use of the continental lection skills. The project, funded through rhinoceros ageing and body-condition the UK government’s Darwin Initiative, assessment systems, also means results can has implemented a sustainable field-staff be compared between parks, including training programme and, at the time of those in other range countries (Adcock & writing, 24 officers from national parks Emslie, 2004). and sanctuaries have been trained as accredited rhinoceros-monitoring instruc- Tools and procedural mechanisms The tors in the continental-wide modular Kenyan Rhino Programme has imple- African Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG) mented data quality-control procedures in course. These field instructors are, in turn, all its reserves to ensure that the data are training the c. 200 rangers in the field on collected on an on-going basis and are of an on-going basis. The process of testing the best possible quality. Field rangers and accrediting
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