Primate conservation may enhance food availability to humans

Category: Uncategorized | Date: Sep 17 2008 | By: samburumonkeys

From mongabay.com September 15, 2008

Primate conservation may have the unintended benefit of enhancing food availability to humans, reports a study led by African scientists. The research, conducted in the Taï region of Côte-d’Ivoire, found that seven species of monkeys used about 75 species of plants as a source of fruit, of which 25 were also used by local human inhabitants for various purposes. Because monkeys are key seed dispersal agents, the results suggest that primate conservation may sustain the persistence of plant resources important for human livelihoods. Read more….

2 Responses to “Primate conservation may enhance food availability to humans”

Maina, on 17 Sep 2008

This is good news for the monkeys. Especially now that CIFOR is starting to propose that bushmeat should be legalised.
Keep posting.

samburumonkeys, on 22 Sep 2008

Maina,
The bushmeat situations in Central Africa and East Africa are quite different and cannot be judged the same way. If there was a total ban on eating wild meat in C. Africa and that Ban was enforced, millions of forest-dwelling communities like pymies would perish!! In E. Africa,thousands would lose their protein source but it is unlikely that they would perish. In my opinion, the CIFOR report calls for more strigent regulations of wild meat (not bushmeat!!) exploitation and more protection of endangered species. Indeed, in these countries, hunting for meat is legal for many species!! The problem is that there is commercialisation of the wild meat, lack of control/regulation of hunting and the hunting of protected species coz of their higher market value.

I kenya, legalising game meat means re-introduction of a the game cropping program that is scientifically and professionally managed - That’s my opinion. what is yours?
Mwenja

Trackback URI | Comments RSS