1. WILDLIFE MONITORING Greg Stuart-Hill
World Wildlife Fund
This focuses on wildlife (fauna) monitoring. Other natural resource monitoring systems (e.g. veld, fish, forestry) are also important

2. Monitoring is needed for adaptive management
Yes
The context:
Set objectives
(land-use planning)
Manage according to objectives
Monitor to see if objectives being achieved
Are
objectives being
achieved?
Modify objectives or management No

3. What should be monitored?
Introductions
Tourism Satisfaction
Trophy Quality
Removals
Anti-poaching work
Water
MANAGEMENT & USE
Population Estimate
Population Trend
Animal Distribution
Sex/Age
WILDLIFE (All species)
Body Condition
Population Ecol
IMPACTS
Problem Animals
Poaching
Mortality
Rainfall
Disturbance
(Important species)

4. 1.1 Population Estimates
Need: To know how many animals there are, each year.
Why?
To estimate off-take quotas, and
To determine drought risk & livestock competition
How?
Use road counts/aerial census/cybertracker counts
Use correction-factors (eg transect width, distance, etc)
For rare species (eg rhino) use known group/individuals
Datasheet:
Output: ……..a Table for each year!
SPECIES
COUNT NUMBER
POPULATION ESTIMATE
Kudu
254
300
Eland
116
150
Giraffe 23 50
Elephant 22 70
etc
Numbers are very difficult to obtain
– most census methods underestimate wildlife populations!

5. Can use an index! ….... But sampling effort must be controlled ! …..
1.2 Population Trend
Need: to know what is happening to the wildlife populations.
Why? Is wildlife management sustainable
How? Fixed Foot Patrols, fixed road counts, Cybertracker Counts and Aerial census.
Can use an index! ….... But sampling effort must be controlled ! …..
Datasheet:
Output: …provide a graph for each species!
Great!
Zebra
Years
Here’s a problem!
Years
Kudu
Counts do not have to be ‘accurate’ – a change in an index over time is fine!
Be careful of using the last point on the graph – this could be an error - so check the sex-age information

6. 1.3 Game Distribution
Need a Map showing where each species is concentrated
Why? To identify wildlife concentration areas for land-use planning purposes (also to see monitor distribution changes over the years)
How? Use Cyber tracker or Grid blocks for all sightings (NB also record where animals were not seen)
Data collection:
Output:
Lets build a lodge here because this is where most of the game is
Why not put a borehole here to utilize this area
Land use planning
Year 1
Year 10
Monitoring

7. 1.4 Sex-Age Ratio Monitoring
Need to determine ratios between adults, sub-adults an juveniles
Why? Use this information as an early warning of the current ‘health’ of the wildlife population
Datasheet:
Output:
Young: Adult Ratio
If the ratio of young to adults diminishes then this is an early warning that the population is in trouble
If the ratio between sub-adults and juveniles changes this gives an indication of post breeding survival ability – i.e. useful to evaluate impact of predation
Male : Female Ratio
It is necessary to know the ratio of Adult male to female because:
Live game capture/sale normally results in higher proportions of females - with potentially devastating impacts to the population
To properly evaluate breeding success, you need to view number of young in relation to the number of females
For input into population modeling which is used to predict population growth and future harvest potential and stocking rates

8. Map: Showing mortalities
Need: To keep track of mortalities
Why? To alert management if mortalities suddenly rise & plan action based on the cause (e.g. poaching, disease, drought)
Datasheet:
Output 1: a Trend graph of mortalities over years
What is going on here? What is causing these abnormally high mortalities?
Years
Mortality
If sudden Increase
Output 2: Map showing where mortalities are
Map: Showing mortalities
Also need to know the cause of mortalities
(i.e. is it due to poaching, disease, drought?)
But only if they these are abnormally high

9. 2.2 Poaching If Increasing
Need: To track poaching as a threat to wildlife
Why? To understand the threat to wildlife and gauge community support for the Conservancy
Datasheet:
Output:
Poaching is getting bad!
Graph - is poaching being controlled?
Map - where poaching is taking place?
Table - who is poaching & what is being taken?
Years
Poaching
If Increasing
1 elephant, 1 rhino
1 leopard -
Commercial
1 kudu
8 kudu,
1 giraffe
1 kudu,
1 duiker
Meat
Non-citizens 2
Other Citizens 10
Neighbors
Residents
Cases
CATEGORY
A Table breaking down incidents for each year
Map: Showing where poaching is occurring

10. 2.3 Problem Animals (PAC)
Need: To track problem animal incidents, identify those species causing problems, evaluate damage caused & record efforts that go into reducing conflict with problem animals
Why? To understand the impact of wildlife on people & find ways to reduce conflict and compensate individuals.
How? Keep record of all PAC incidents. Track attempts to reduce conflict (e.g. fencing, water protection, kraaling).
Datasheet:
Output:

11. Map: Showing where rainfall occurred
Need: To track rainfall as a threat & opportunity for wildlife
Why? To separate the effects of rainfall from the impacts of human activity on wildlife and help explain population trend
Datasheet:
Output:
Its been a good season!
A Graph – is rainfall above or below average?
Years
A Map - where did rain fall or not fall?
Map: Showing where rainfall occurred

12. 2.5 Disturbance (e.g. livestock, cropping, tourists)
Need: To track other land-use activities such as cropping, livestock farming, tourist activity
Why? To understand the threat of these disturbances and gauge if these have impacted on wildlife
Data Collection:
Map areas of cropping and livestock farming
Map areas of tourism activity and keep track of tourism numbers on various roads
Record ‘flight’ distance (at what distance does game raun away from a vehicle) of game on an annual basis
Record how far wildlife will come within a homestead
Keep a note if animals only drink at night
Output:
Disturbance is affecting the elephants
Graph - Relate an index of disturbance (e.g. ‘flight distance’ to indices of human impacts (e.g. settlement, tourism, etc).
Map - Also compare wildlife distribution maps with maps of human activity.

13. 3.1 Game Introductions & Removals
Need: To keep a record of how many animals are Introduced or Removed
Why? To know if continued Introductions/Removals are wise, & explain any changes in the population trend-graphs
How? Keep a record of all animals that are Introduced and all animals that are Removed from the area.
Output: ………..a Table for each year!
SPECIES
Removed
Introduced**
Kudu 30 -
Eland 15
Giraffe 3
Zebra
100
Gemsbok 50
** Need to also check on success of each introduction
Also refer to the following pages in this manual for:
Game Removals
Game introductions
These pages will explain in greater detail the ‘Removal’ and ‘Introduction’ monitoring systems

14. 3.1.1 Game Removals (“Harvesting”)
How?
Each time animals are removed (sold or hunted) keep a record of:
how many animals are removed against quota
sex of removed animals
for animals hunted, record trophies
Output: …..a Table for each year!
SPECIES
Quota
Removed
Male:Female
Kudu 40 30
20:10
Eland 15
10:5
Giraffe 3
3:0
Zebra 2 -
Gemsbok 5
(see ‘Trophy Quality’ in the manual)

15. Output: …Distribution map and a Table
Game Introductions
How?
1. Keep a record of how many animals are introduced
2. Also check on the success (i.e. survival & breeding) of each introduction by :
Conducting sex-age survey to determine ratios between adult females and young (see ‘sex-age monitoring’ in this manual)
Monitor marked (collared) animals to determine survival rates and ensure they are still in the area.
Output: …Distribution map and a Table
SPECIES
Number Introduced
Survival
Breeding
Adult:Young
Zebra
100
60%
100:40
Gemsbok
95%
100:3
If Survival Rates are less than 90% for a species then a mortality report should be attached to the table
OK!
If Breeding Rates are less than a critical level (level varies per species) then this indicates that a species will not thrive even though it survived survived the introduction event
OK!

16. 3.2 Trophy Quality Tusk Size
Need: to track change in Trophy Quality (e.g. tusk/horn size)
Why? Trophy hunting will not affect wildlife population growth (excluding predators), but too much hunting results in poor trophy size - this leads to a lower concession value.
How? From trophy hunter records
Datasheet:
Permit#
Species
Sex
Trophy (L)
Trophy (R)
Client PH
Output:
…provide a trophy size trend graph for each species, over years!
Lower the elephant quota! - we have taken too many Hunters can only find small tuskers
Tusk Size
Years

17. Comments of sighting satisfaction per species
3.3 Tourist Satisfaction
Need to track game viewing success (i.e. number of sightings, number of species, etc).
Why?
know game viewing potential for planing & marketing,
to evaluate whether each animal population is at adequate numbers to satisfy tourists.
to assess whether a problem species could be reduced without harming game viewing
Datasheet:
Species
Sighting index
Comments of sighting satisfaction per species
Output:
… provide a ‘game viewing success’ graph for each species, over years!
We should re-introduce lions - they are key to tourism and are not being seen anymore
If we reduce elephant numbers it will save us a lot of damage and have no effect on game viewing
Years
Lion
Elephant
Years

18. Comments, including repairs if any
3.4 Water Points
Need: to closely monitor and repair any water installation, particularly in the dry season.
Why? Water is critical to wildlife, people and livestock. There is considerable conflict around this resource and so it is essential to ensure that water installations function.
How? Each water point should be visited on a regular basis and if necessary repairs made immediately.
Datasheets:
Bore #
Locality
Date
Protection against
Presently working?
Comments, including repairs if any
Damage by?
Elephant
Theft

19. 4.1 Important Species: Population Performance
Need: To to track population performance of species such as predators, elephant, rhino, disease free buffalo, etc
Why? To know how many there are and how their populations are performing.
How? Normal count methods do not work for rare or nocturnal species. Use specially designed systems (e.g. radio tracking, known group). This usually involves specialist research teams from MET, SRT, etc.
Output:
Rhino inter-calving period is suddenly increasing. There seems to be a problem ?
Months between calves
Years

20. 4.2 Important Species: Body-Condition
Need: To track body condition of critical species such as Rhino, disease free Buffalo, Roan, etc
Why? To serve as an early warning of a nutritional (drought) problem.
How? Estimate body fat on a sample of animals each month and graph.
Output:
Lets provide extra feed for the buffalo!
I foresee problems this winter
Body Fat
Years