The Conservation Genetics of Bushmeat: Markets, Traffic, and Population Studies in Selected African Countries

Driven by poverty, many sub-saharan countries experience an extensive trade in bushmeat which accounts for a significant loss of biodiversity often with devastating impacts on the survival of wildlife populations. For many African areas reliable data on the involved species and quantities, trade routes, and populations of origin is almost completely missing.

New technologies such as DNA barcoding and rapid microsatellite development can help to identify species and populations from bushmeat samples. Microsatellite data can help answer questions of how many individuals are sold, and aid in the identification of source populations and trade routes. The genotyping of bushmeat is not limited to “wildlife forensics”, but can lead to insight into wildlife genetics and the implications for conservation of the natural populations targeted by hunting. Eventually it will be possible to make recommendations for sustainable hunting based on genetic assessments of population health.

Cameroon provides an ideal opportunity to launch this project, based on the magnitude of the bushmeat trade, the diversity in ecosystems and wildlife, the conservation legislation, the presence of national and international nature conservation NGOs, and its geographic position on the dividing line between western and central Africa.

In this study we will concentrate on (1) creating a database for DNA loci available for species confirmed and expected in the Cameroonian bushmeat trade, (2) assessing the capacity for the adaptation of DNA loci between bushmeat and related taxa, such as model organisms, for which useful DNA markers have been identified, (3) developing a strategic sampling plan targeting the major markets in large cities such as Yaounde and Douala, the medium markets in towns along possible trafficking routes and the local markets in rural villages as possible areas of origin. Subsequently, we will receive bushmeat samples from governmental collaborators. Samples will be genotyped and the genotypes and GIS data will be deposited in a bushmeat genetic database. Species identification along with sex determination in most cases will be possible immediately. Implications related to trafficking and populations of origin are correlated to the dataset size and will increase in power with a growing database eventually leading to the identification of sustainable hunting and the certification of population stability.

This project will be a collaborative effort between the government of Cameroon, Universities in Cameroon, Cameroonian and international nature conservation NGOs and our laboratory. This project has a strong focus on education and international educational exchange, capacity building in Africa and technology transfer.