Species composition, distribution, and relative abundance of medium and large mammals in Guda forest, Southwestern Ethiopia
Abstract
G. Shanko*, B. Tona and B. Adare
This study was carried out to evaluate the composition, relative abundance and distribution of medium and large?sized mammals in the Guda forest, Southwestern Ethiopia. Surveys were carried out to record mammals of three habitat types, namely grassland with scattered trees, woodland, and riverine forest. A total of thirteen mammalian species were recorded. The recorded species were Potamochoerus larvatus, Syluicapra grimmia, Ourebia ourebi, Marmota monax, Corcuta corcuta, Canis aureus, Civetticitis civetta, Panthera pardus, Felis servestris, Papio anubis, Chlorocebus aethiops, Colobus guereza and Hystrix cristata. A total of 667 observations records were compiled. The dominant order recorded was Primates (83.2%) followed by Artiodactyla (8.85%) while the least record was Rodentia (1.95%). The species richness varied between stratified habitat types. The species diversity of the study area was H′=1.705. The strongest similarity in species composition was found between grasslands with scattered trees and riverine forest. Overall, Papio anubis, Colobus guereza, and Chlorocebus aethiops were the three most abundant species across habitat types. Anthropogenic activities affect the distribution and abundance of species in study area. Therefore, there should be strong law enforcement activities and awareness creation is very important to conserve the area.