Land Tenure Center

Land Tenure Center

Identifying a potential lion Panthera leo stronghold in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, and Parc National des Virunga, Democratic Republic of Congo

Identifying a potential lion Panthera leo stronghold in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, and Parc National des Virunga, Democratic Republic of Congo
Confirming if threats to lions are severe or lion populations are disappearing requires extensive surveys on the ground because aerial detection of lions is inaccurate. Abstract Conservationists are raising concerns over high lion Panthera leo mortality and prey population declines in the area at the frontier between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Confirming if threats to lions are severe or lion populations are disappearing requires extensive surveys on the ground because aerial detection of lions is inaccurate. Yet, ground surveys over large areas are unsafe or infeasible in the war-torn study area. We used aerial surveys of medium- to large-bodied ungulate prey to estimate lion abundance in two adjoining parks: Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, and Parc National des Virunga, Democratic Republic of Congo. We validated two approaches to predict lion abundance using total counts of lions from Uganda. From this, we predict the two national parks together could have held 221 lions in 2004 and they have the potential to hold 905 lions if prey recover and lion-specific mortality is curbed. This makes the region a potential stronghold for the species in central Africa. However, a recent one third decline in lion numbers in the Ugandan Park and pervasive threats to the Congolese Park lead us to recommend immediate conservation intervention for lions and their prey. In Uganda, we recommend focused action to protect lions from poaching and retaliation, whereas in Congo, general enforcement of wildlife protection and a ground-based survey for lions are needed
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Costs of Titling and Registration Projects

Costs of Titling and Registration Projects
Neo-liberal economic theory is based on the foundation of private property and the market. Private property is the only to make sure that property ends up in the hands of the most efficient producers. And, a property system based on private and individual property rights makes the transactions of property and land (the land market) efficient. With this in mind, donor agencies since the 1980s have promoted and funded the creation of private property land markets in developing countries.
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Presentation of Project Results to the Colepato Community Cooperative

Presentation of Project Results to the Colepato Community Cooperative
On May 31, 2009, we returned to the Colepato community to present the results from the 2008 Andean bear camera trap study. The goals of this meeting were to (1) share the results in a way that was meaningful to the community and beneficial to current and future conservation projects, (2) compare the results of species diversity with their knowledge of the wildlife on their property, and (3) to ask permission to continue Andean bear research on their land.
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