3.4 Does alternative protein sources matter? 



The twin imperative of addressing people's needs and aspirations on the one hand, and conserving the 

 Itombwe wildlife species on the other, has suggested to many a 'silver bullet': solve the bushmeat crisis 

 by alleviating poverty. At the local level, one option is to encourage intensive breeding of cane rats 

 {Tryonomys sp) and Giant pouched rats {Cricetomys emini), which are already being consumed in large 

 quantities. In addition, many people living in or close to tropical forests today still use wild meat as a 

 major source of protein (Bennett & Robinson, 2000). In Central Africa about 645 kg of wild meat is 

 extracted from each square kilometre of forest every year (Wilkie & Carpenter, 1999). Therefore, it is 

 only in conjunction with awareness and education programme that changes in local, consumer attitudes 

 and buying habits might be achieved. The transition to the use of domesticated sources of animal protein 

 must be made before wildlife populations become irreparably depleted (Bennett & Robinson, 2000). 



4. Conclusions and Recommendations 



Protection of representative areas of natural habitats of wildlife species, in which priority is given to 

 conservation, is an essential 'backbone' in an integrated conservation strategy. Such areas act as 

 reservoirs for plant and animal populations and help maintain the ecological processes within the 

 ecosystem. Key areas of habitat should be as large as possible, preferably the largest, most intact blocks 

 of habitat remaining within the presently investigated planning zone. Systematic conservation planning 

 remains widely considered the most effective approach for designing protected area and other 

 ecological networks. However, many conservation practitioners still ignore these methods and we 

 suggest that GIS and remote sensing applications be widely used for this purpose in the near future. 

 Whether or not people are merely using the resource or truly depend on it, we must act now to accelerate 

 the transition to domestic sources of animal protein before all the wildlife is gone. 



5. Acknowledgements 



We are gratefiil for the research grants provided through Wildlife Conservation Society and the World 

 Bank. We are indebted to ICCN (Congolese Wildlife authority) headquarters for administrative support. 

 Local traditional, military chiefs and local field assistants have been of keen assistance during the height 

 of civil strife in the study area. 



References 



Bennett, E. L., Nyaoi, A. J, & Sompud, J. 1 995 . A Conservation management study of wildlife hunting in 

 Sabah and Sarawak. Report on the completion of fieldwork. Wildlife Conservation Society, New York. 



Bennett, E. L & Robinson, J. G. 2000. Hunting of wildlife in tropical forests. Implications for 

 biodiversity and forest peoples. The World Bank, Washington D.C. 



Bisidi, Y., Languy, M., Baleke, E., Lusuna, M., Muhiguwa, B., Bisusa, G., and Basabose, A. K. 

 2008. l'utilisation et la conservation des ressources forestières à Itombwe: Perception de la 

 population. WWF-EARPO, 54 p. 



Bruner, A. G., Gullison, R. E., Rice, R. E. and Fonseca, G. A. B 2001. Effectiveness of Parks in 

 Protecting Tropical Biodiversity. Science Vol 291:125-128 



Gadsby, E. L. & Jenkins, P. D. 1992. Report on hunting in the Proposed Etinde Forest Reserve. 

 Cameroon. 



Hart, J and Mubalama, L. 2005. Conservation of Gorillas and Chimpanzees in Itombwe. Gorilla journal 

 30, June 2005. pp 7-8 



Heymans, J. C. 1994. Utilisation rationnelle de la Faune sauvage-élevage de petit Gibier. République de 

 Guinée Equatoriale. Ministère de l'Agriculture, Pêche et Alimentation. Groupement Agrer and 

 Agriconsulting-CIRAD Forêt, Brussels, Belgium. 



Mbayma, A. G. 2004. Rapport de Mission effectuée au Massif d'Itombwe. ICCN-GEF/PNUD-BM. pp 



52. 



Nature & Faune Vol. 23, Issue 1 _ 48 



