Billy. Nguembock et al., IJAR, 2019; 4:31 Research Article IJAR (2019) 4:31 International Journal of Animal Research (ISSN:2575-7822) A Study on Bird Diversity and Abundance in a Lowland of the Centre Region of Cameroon (Ekoko II village) confirm High Diversity in the Congo Basin Forest and a Greater Dominance in the Distribution of Species in the Lowlands Billy. Nguembock1, 2,*, Hervé. Nkingop Djopmou1, Sali. Mahamat1, Esther Diane Olivia. Azang1 1Laboratory of Zoology, Ornithology Unit, Department of Animal Biology and Physiology, University of Yaounde I, P. O. Box 812 Yaounde, Cameroon; 2Department of biological sciences, University of Montreal, C.P. 6128, succursale of Center of town, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada ABSTRACT Cameroon is one of the six Congo Basin Forest countries. The Centre Keywords: bird survey, Congo Basin region of Cameroon (Central Africa) is a relictual site in which several Forest, mist-netting method, diversity expeditions by naturalist ornithologists have permitted to describe many and distribution analyses, diversity new birds’ specimens. Only in recent years, very few bird surveys have index, vegetation been conducted in this area to get an idea about the new or old taxa that make up this region. We conducted a bird survey in a locality of the *Correspondence to Author: Centre region of Cameroon, Nsimalen district of Mfou (more precisely in Billy. Nguembock the Ekoko II village) to investigate the avifauna as well as to explore the Laboratory of Zoology, Ornithology abundance, diversity and distribution and eventually their reasons. To Unit, Department of Animal Biol- obtain the abundance of bird species, we used the mist-netting method ogy and Physiology, University of and captured birds during eleven months. In order to analyse diversity Yaounde I, P. O. Box 812 Yaounde, and distribution of this avifauna in their life environment, we performed Cameroon; Department of biological analyses with SAS/STAT and PAST software. We caught 227 individu- sciences, University of Montreal, C.P. als belonging to 24 birds’ families. Compared with previous surveys in 6128, succursale of Center of town, this region, we newly recorded one family (Phylloscopidae), one genus Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada (Phylloscopus) and two species: Phylloscopus bonelli and Criniger ndus- sumensis. In the Ekoko II avifauna, many are sedentary but there is also How to cite this article: a great mixture of birds described as seasonal migrants, intra-African mi- Billy. Nguembock, Hervé. Nkingop grants, residents, etc. Values of the obtained diversity indexes show that Djopmou, Sali. Mahamat, Esther Di- the Nsimalen village exhibits a great avifaunistic diversity. Our results ane Olivia. Azang, A Study on Bird show an absence of the supremacy of one species (H’=3.14) and the val- Diversity and Abundance in a Low- ue of the Equitability index (J’=0.80) supports an equal distribution of the land of the Centre Region of Cam- individuals. Then the pattern of distribution of the species also appears eroon (Ekoko II village) confirm High to lean on ecological factors and in this case, the vegetation which would Diversity in the Congo Basin Forest have played a main role in their distribution with a mix of specialists and and species variety due to luxuriant generalists birds or even migratory birds due to the abundant vegetation. vegetation. International Journal of Otherwise, our study also reveals that the composition and structure of Animal Research, 2019; 4:31. the vegetation play a main role in the variety of bird species at least at the local scale. Compare to mountainous areas, our study establishes some similarities in the pattern of distribution of the species between mountain areas and lowlands but diversity has clearly been higher in the eSciPub LLC, Houston, TX USA. mountains while dominance is more pronounced in the lowlands. Website: https://escipub.com/ https://escipub.com/international-journal-of-animal-research/ 1 Billy. Nguembock et al., IJAR, 2019; 4:31 Introduction berries, many trees with flowers and other cultivated plants. Country of the Africa mainland, Cameroon is a country located in Central Africa and it is one of Surveys in this region began during the six countries that make up the Congo Basin colonization period and several expeditions by Forest, the second largest tropical in the world, naturalist ornithologists have thus taken place in with nearly 2 million square kilometers of the Centre region of Cameroon which resulted in rainforest (WWF, 2010). The Centre region of the description of new species (DeLancey and Cameroon which is a relictual site showed Mbuh, 2010; Sharpe, 1904; Sharpe, 1908; different types of vegetation and is crossed by Bates, 1926). After these preliminaries surveys, several mountains; the conducted surveys in this just some birds’ surveys have been carried out region are very old (DeLancey and Mbuh, 2010). in the large Centre region of Cameroon, This region is mainly located on the southern although no bird survey has been particularly Cameroon Plateau and shows a mountain area focused on the Ekoko II village (Monard, 1951; which often varies between 200 and 1000 Good, 1952-1953; Germain et al., 1973; Louette, meters above sea level; it is characterized by 1981; Decoux and Fotso, 1988). Based on these mountain forests that often give way to few bird surveys carried out in this region, savannah and sometimes to patchily vegetation passerine representatives are systematically (Franqueville, 1968; Olivry, 1986). more numerous than non-passerine (Monard, 1951; Good, 1952-1953; Germain et al., 1973; Ekoko II (3°44'06" North; 11°32'48" East) is a Louette, 1981); thus, several orders of the birds small village located on the Centre region of have been reported Passeriformes, Cameroon and it is bordered to the north by the Columbiformes, Coliiformes, Cuculiformes, village Ekoko I, to the south by Nkolnda and Piciformes, etc. but the order Passeriformes Nsimalen, to the east by the villages Benebaloe always remains the most representative (Good, and Ekok II (Figures 1-2) (Centre ORSTOM, 1952-1953; Germain et al., 1973; Louette, 1966; Mougoué, 1989). Ekoko II village has the 1981). same climate as the rest of the city of Yaounde which is Guinean type to four seasons (two rainy During the long time and even now, the most seasons and two dry seasons) (Suchel, 1987). surveys carried out in Cameroon never focused With an annual thermal amplitude of 3.1°C, the specially on the relationship between the temperature of the city of Yaounde varies very biodiversity in general, and in our case birds, and little and it is the same in the Ekoko II village their life’s environment (Stuart, 1986; Collar and (Olivry, 1986). The vegetation in the Ekoko II Stuart, 1988; Dowsett and Dowsett-Lemaire, village is of the Guineo-Congolese type, 1989; Dowsett and Forbes-Watson, 1993; composed initially of a rainforest but with the Dowsett-Lemaire and Dowsett, 2001; Bowden, increase in human activities, the vegetation is 2001; Fotso et al., 2001; Bobo et al., 2005; degraded and in places it gives way to a Languy et al., 2005; Sedlacek et al., 2007). Thus secondary forest intermixed with scrubland and before Nguembock et al. (2017) and Azang fallows (Achoundong, 1985 ; Olivry, 1986); (2017) in the mountains of the Centre region of otherwise, the Nsimalen vegetation belongs to Cameroon, very few studies carried out in the large area of semi-deciduous moist dense Cameroonian ecosystems had briefly mentioned forest corresponding to the semi-deciduous at the relationship between birds and their living Sterculiaceae and Ulmaceae (Letouzey, 1985 ; environment (Louette, 1981; Dowsett, 1989). Santoir and Bopda, 2005). In addition, in this However, several old and recent studies have vegetation, we can note the presence of several established a correlation between the types of seeds, various types of fruits including distribution of species and environmental factors on the one hand, and the abundance of taxa and https://escipub.com/international-journal-of-animal-research/ 2 Billy. Nguembock et al., IJAR, 2019; 4:31 the presence or absence of food on the other Method for the calculation of the relative hand (MacArthur, 1964; Telleria and Santos, Abundance of the Ekoko II avifauna: In order 1994; Thebault and Loreau, 2006; Parsons et to calculate the relative Abundance, we chose to al., 2006; Rajpar and Zakaria, 2011; Girma et al., use the Statistical Analysis System (SAS 2017). Institute, 1985). We input data as explained in Our study, which carried out in the Ekoko II the user guide and ran software until the village during eleven months, has two goals fold: obtaining of the results. Otherwise, we used firstly, we thoroughly investigated the avifauna of Excel software program to obtain our histograms this area of Cameroon from base to tip and and curves (Microsoft Excel, 2016). secondly, we tried to explore the abundance, Method for the calculation of the Occurrence diversity and distribution within the Ekoko II of the Ekoko II avifauna: In order to calculate avifauna to suggest hypotheses about the the Occurrence, we used the same software, the pattern of distribution of the species in a lowland Statistical Analysis System (SAS Institute, area and on the basis on these results to cast a 1985). As for the calculation of the relative comparative glance in the pattern of species Abundance, we input data as explained in the distribution in the lowlands to that of the user guide and ran software until the obtaining mountains. of the results. Material and Methods Methods for the measure of the distribution Investigation of the Ekoko II avifauna: In order of the Ekoko II avifauna in keeping with their to investigate the avifauna, we used an environment appropriate method: the mist-netting method. Shannon index (H’): The Shannon’s diversity This method is widely used for catching small to index represents the measure of the sum of medium-sized wild birds such as passerines and degree of the uncertainty when it suggests shorebirds.