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Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database

Publication ,  Journal Article
Taylor, G; Scharlemann, JPW; Rowcliffe, M; Kümpel, N; Harfoot, MBJ; Fa, JE; Melisch, R; Milner-Gulland, EJ; Bhagwat, S; Abernethy, KA; Brown, E ...
Published in: Biological conservation
January 2015

Unsustainable hunting threatens both biodiversity and local livelihoods. Despite high levels of research effort focused on understanding the dynamics of bushmeat trade and consumption, current research is largely site specific. Without synthesis and quantitative analysis of available case studies, the national and regional characteristics of bushmeat trade and consumption remain largely speculative, impeding efforts to inform national and regional policy on bushmeat trade. Here we describe the structure and content of the West and Central African bushmeat database which holds quantitative data on bushmeat sales, consumption and offtake for 177 species from 275 sites across 11 countries in two regions, spanning three decades of research. Despite this wealth of available data, we found important biases in research effort. The majority of studies in West and Central Africa have collected market data, which although providing a useful record of bushmeat sales, are limited in their ability to track changes in hunting offtake. In addition, few data exist for West Africa, and few studies have tracked changes over time, using repeat sampling. With new initiatives in the regions to track bushmeat hunting, this database represents an opportunity to synthesise current and future data on bushmeat hunting, consumption and trade in West and Central Africa, identify gaps in current understanding, and systematically target future monitoring efforts.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Biological conservation

DOI

ISSN

0006-3207

Publication Date

January 2015

Volume

181

Start / End Page

199 / 205

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology
  • 4104 Environmental management
  • 3109 Zoology
  • 3103 Ecology
  • 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
  • 05 Environmental Sciences
 

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Taylor, G., Scharlemann, J. P. W., Rowcliffe, M., Kümpel, N., Harfoot, M. B. J., Fa, J. E., … Coad, L. M. (2015). Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database. Biological Conservation, 181, 199–205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2014.11.001
Taylor, G., J. P. W. Scharlemann, M. Rowcliffe, N. Kümpel, M. B. J. Harfoot, J. E. Fa, R. Melisch, et al. “Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database.” Biological Conservation 181 (January 2015): 199–205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2014.11.001.
Taylor G, Scharlemann JPW, Rowcliffe M, Kümpel N, Harfoot MBJ, Fa JE, et al. Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database. Biological conservation. 2015 Jan;181:199–205.
Taylor, G., et al. “Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database.” Biological Conservation, vol. 181, Jan. 2015, pp. 199–205. Epmc, doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2014.11.001.
Taylor G, Scharlemann JPW, Rowcliffe M, Kümpel N, Harfoot MBJ, Fa JE, Melisch R, Milner-Gulland EJ, Bhagwat S, Abernethy KA, Ajonina AS, Albrechtsen L, Allebone-Webb S, Brown E, Brugiere D, Clark C, Colell M, Cowlishaw G, Crookes D, De Merode E, Dupain J, East T, Edderai D, Elkan P, Gill D, Greengrass E, Hodgkinson C, Ilambu O, Jeanmart P, Juste J, Linder JM, Macdonald DW, Noss AJ, Okorie PU, Okouyi VJJ, Pailler S, Poulsen JR, Riddell M, Schleicher J, Schulte-Herbrüggen B, Starkey M, van Vliet N, Whitham C, Willcox AS, Wilkie DS, Wright JH, Coad LM. Synthesising bushmeat research effort in West and Central Africa: A new regional database. Biological conservation. 2015 Jan;181:199–205.
Journal cover image

Published In

Biological conservation

DOI

ISSN

0006-3207

Publication Date

January 2015

Volume

181

Start / End Page

199 / 205

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology
  • 4104 Environmental management
  • 3109 Zoology
  • 3103 Ecology
  • 07 Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
  • 05 Environmental Sciences