Year: 2009
Type: dissertation
Abstract: The elephant debate deals largely with population size, how elephant numbers change over time, how they may affect vegetation, and how their populations should be managed. Trends in elephant numbers frequently motivate management decisions, and past efforts to alleviate elephant impact aimed at controlling population size. However, methodological and statistical constraints may influence interpretation of trends and lead to incorrect management decisions. Furthermore, inferences about the response of elephant populations to specific management actions are seldom based on scientific evidence. In this thesis I assess the consequences of survey design and monitoring features on the interpretation and statistical reliability of population trends as well as the effect of population management on elephant densities and population growth rates. To do this, I collated information on elephant population estimates and past management actions across Africa. I used information from the northern Botswana elephant population to clarify temporal trends in elephant densities and numbers. Elephant numbers in northern Botswana increased from 1973 to 1993 while densities remained relatively stable. This difference in trends is due to an associated increase in survey area during the same time. In contrast, from 1996 to 2004 surveyed areas remained constant in size and neither elephant numbers, nor densities changed significantly during this time. This apparent stabilisation in numbers may have resulted from density-related elephant dispersal. This case study suggests that in open populations movements may complicate the interpretation of trends, and that differences in the rates of change in numbers and densities may have different management implications.
Author: Jessica Junker
Language: English
Subfield: Ecology
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Life on land
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2100779919