The International Research Fellowship Program enables U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct nine to twenty-four months of research abroad. The program's awards provide opportunities for joint research, and the use of unique or complementary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions abroad.
This award will support a twenty-four-month research fellowship by Dr. Clinton W. Epps to work with Professor Benezeth Mutayoba, Sokoine University of Agriculture of Tanzania, Mr. Bakari Mbano, Wildlife Conservation Society-Ruaha, Tanzania, Dr. Simon Mduma, CIMU-TAWIRI and Dr. Justin Brashares, University of California, Berkeley.
With the rapid conversion and utilization of habitats and species, the world's wild flora and fauna increasingly are restricted to nature reserves. However, area and edge effects, as well as the inability of isolated species to escape catastrophes and climate change, mean that reserves may be insufficient as the sole means of protecting biodiversity. Loss of species can be reduced by maintaining connectivity between reserves, thereby greatly increasing the total habitat area available to a population while also facilitating gene flow. However, creating or maintaining connectivity is a complex problem affected by species' biological traits, habitat availability, and natural and anthropogenic landscape features. The goal of this study is to determine how biogeographic and anthropogenic factors have affected current and long-term historical patterns of connectivity for ungulate populations in East Africa. Ungulate presence, abundance, and species diversity across corridor regions between Tanzania's Ruaha National Park and three nearby reserves are being assessed using walking survey transects. A Geographic Information System (GIS) framework is being used to test hypotheses about the effects of biogeographic barriers, distance, habitat changes due to agricultural development, and human settlement on presence and population connectivity of ungulates; species traits associated with high and low connectivity are also being identified. Spatially-explicit models are being developed from these data to predict relative connectivity for different species, as well as evaluate the potential of fully-protected, partially-protected, and open areas for maintaining landscape connectivity into the future. Historical and very recent patterns of gene flow between six reserves are being estimated using population genetic data derived from fecal DNA from six ungulate species, chosen across a gradient of body sizes representing different dispersal abilities and vulnerability to humans, using maximum likelihood methods and assignment tests. It is expected that historical connectivity will reflect greater connectivity for large-bodied, habitat-generalist species (within non-migratory species) and be influenced by biogeographic barriers. Current connectivity is expected to be lower for all species and be influenced both by biogeographic barriers and by human settlement and agriculture. Large-bodied species are expected to have a much greater reduction in current connectivity than small-bodied species. The generalized models of habitat use and dispersal resulting from this research, based on species characteristics and human land-use patterns, will inform conservation in Tanzania and other human-modified landscapes around the world.
