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JournalofEastAfricanNaturalHistory
91:15-25(2002)
ISTHEZANZIBARLEOPARD
(PANTHERAPARDUSADERSI)
EXTINCT?
HelleV.Goldman
1
Jozani-ChwakaBayConservationProjectCommissionforNaturalResourcesP.O.Box3526,Zanzibar,Tanzaniagoldman@npolar.no
MartinT.Walsh
NaturalResourcesInstitute,UniversityofGreenwich,ChathamMaritime,Kent,ME44TB,U.K.kisutu@hotmai1.comABSTRACTTheZanzibarleopard,
Pantherapardusadersi
(Pocock,1932),isalittle-knownislandendemicassumedbysomeauthoritiestobeextinct.In1996asurveyoflocalpractices,beliefsandknowledgeabouttheleopardwasconductedonUngujaIsland.DatawerecollectedthroughinterviewswithZanzibarisinvillagesacrosstheislandandfromofficialdocuments(recordsoftheNationalHunters).Intotal52villagers,overhalfofwhomwereformerorcurrentpart-timehunters,wereinterviewed.Theinterviewsyieldedcompellingindicationsforanextantpopulationofleopards:interviewsincludedreportsofleopardsightingsforeveryyearbetween1990to1996.CombiningthiswithNationalHunters'records,whichdocumentedkilledleopardsineachyearfrom1985to1995,weconcludethatthespecieswasprobablystilltobefoundontheislandasof1996.However,asubsequenteffortundertakenbyotherresearchersandinvolvingcameratraps,audioplaybacksandsearchesforleopardsignfailedtoyieldphysicalevidenceofleopards.INTRODUCTIONWithrecognitionofthedecisiverolelocalpeopleoftenplayinthesuccessofconservationinitiatives,studiesoflocalattitudestowardwildlife,protectedareas,andconservationprogrammeshavecometoconstituteanimportantpartoftheliterature
(e.g.,
Infield,1988;Hackel,1990;Newmark
etal.,
1993;Reading
&
Kellert,1993;Akama
etal.,
1995;Nepal
&
Weber,1995;Badola,1998;Bjerke
etal.,
1998;Hill,1998;Mehta
&
Kellert,1998).
1
Currentaddress:NorwegianPolarInstitute,PolarEnvironmentalCentre,N-9296Troms0,Norway.
 
16H.V.Goldman
&
M.T.WalshLocalperceptionsofspecies,suchaslargefelids,thatposedirectthreatstopeopleandlivestockareoftenparticularlycharged(Oli
etal.,
1994;Saberwal
etal.,
1994;Kellert
et
ai.,
1996;Mishra1997).In1996,theJozani-ChwakaBayConservationProjectengagedtheauthors(bothanthropologists)tosurveybeliefsandpracticesconcerningleopardsonUngujaIsland.Themanagersofthisintegratedconservationanddevelopmentprojectwereconsideringwhethertoincludealeopardconservationinitiativeintheireffortstoprotectseveralendemicwildlifespeciesandsubspecies.Duetomorphologicaldifferences(itssmallsizeanddistinctivecoatpattern),theZanzibarleopardisrecognisedasadistinctsubspecies,
Pantherapardusadersi
(Pocock,1932;alsoSwynnerton
&
Hayman,1951;Kingdon,1977,1989;Pakenham,1984),butlittleisknownaboutthisfelid.Atthetimeofthestudy,somesourcesintheliteraturehadassumedtheZanzibarleopardwasextinct
(e.g.,
Miththapala
etal.,
1996;Nowell
&
Jackson,1996).However,recentunpublishedreports(Archer,1994;Marshall,1994;Selkow,1995)indicatedthatZanzibarisbelievedleopardswerestilltobefound.Non-nativeresidentsandresearchershadnotbeenabletoconfirmthepresenceoftheZanzibarleopard,althoughpugmarksthoughttobeleopardwereencounteredin1996(A.Archer,R.Wild,pers.comm.).ThelastoutsideresearchertoclaimanactualsightingoftheleopardwasSwai(1983andpers.comm.).Theaimofthisstudywastoinvestigatepeople'sknowledgeofleopards,theirattitudestowardthespecies,andwhethertherewereindicationsthatleopardswerestillextantontheisland.ThispaperreportsthefindingswhichrelatemostdirectlytothequestionofwhetherleopardssurvivedonUngujaatthetimeofthesurveyin1996.
Background
In1919BritishauthoritiesintheZanzibarProtectorateprohibitedthehuntingofleopardsbylistingthemintheWildAnimalsProtectionDecree.However,asthehumanpopulationgrew,attacksuponpeopleandlivestockincreased.In1950,thegovernmentliftedthetotalbanonleopardhuntingbyissuingtheZanzibarLeopardExceptionOrder.AftertheZanzibarrevolutionof1964,thenewlyindependentgovernmentsponsoredajointleopard-eradicationandwitch-purgingcampaign.Sinceatleastcolonialtimes,ithasbeenbelievedthatwitchesexercisetheirmagicalcontroloverleopardstoharassotherpeople.Leopardsthoughttobecontrolledinthiswayaredescribedasbeing"kept".Harming,orevenjustcatchingsightof,awitch'sleopardwas,andis,believedtoresultinarangeofgraveafflictions.Thepost-revolutionleopard/witcheradicationprogramme,knownastheKitanziCampaign,graduallypeteredout,butwidespreadanimositytowardsleopardsandtheiralleged"keepers"survivestothepresentday.Today,thegovernmentsupportsleopardhuntingbysubsidisingtheNationalHunters.Thisisadiversegroupofmen,mainlytownsmenengagedinvariousoccupations,whoorganisehuntsinruralUngujaontheofficially-sanctionedpretextofeliminatingagriculturalpests.TheZanzibarleopardiscountedamongthese"vermin".Thegovernmentpaysfortheirtransportandsupplies,butNationalHuntersarenotdirectlypaidfortheirparticipation.Theyare,however,permittedtoselltheproductsofwhattheysucceedinkilling.Zanzibarenjoysasemi-autonomousstatuswithinTanzania.TanzaniaispartytoCITESendorsedhuntingquotasforleopardsandotherendangeredorvulnerablespecies.AlthoughtheconditionsofinternationalagreementsmadebyTanzaniatheoreticallyapplyequallytoZanzibar,theyarenotenforced,andthemainlandwildlifeauthoritiesdonotmonitororinterfereinZanzibariaffairs.
 
IstheZanzibarleopardextinct?17StudyAreaThemainislandofZanzibar,Unguja(1,600
km2)
(figure1),liesapproximately6°southoftheequatorand40kmfrommainlandTanzania.Thedeepersoilzoneofthewesternpartoftheislandformerlysupportedmoistlowlandforest,whileamosaicofthicketanddrylowlandforestcoveredthecoralragzoneoftheeastandmuchofthesouth.Withanestimatedpopulationof524,000people,Ungujathenhadameanruralpopulationdensityofapproximately171personsper
km2
(range0-300)(figuresbasedon1988censusresultsand1991estimates;UnitedRepublicofTanzania,1991;ZanzibarRevolutionaryGovernment,1992).RuralZanzibarissubsistfromvariouscombinationsofcultivation,small-scalelivestockhusbandry,fishing,andcharcoalandlimeproduction.Huntingalsocontributestosomelivelihoods.Muchoftheisland'swildlifeinhabitsthepatchesofintactordegradedthicketintheeasternpartoftheisland,aswellastheJozaniReserve(25
km2),
whichencompassesUnguja'sonlyremainingolder-growthforest(Robins,1976;Williams
etai.,
1998).ThelargerspeciesofmammalsinZanzibarincludeAders
I
duiker
Cephaiophusadersi,
Zanzibarblueduiker
Cephaiophusmonticoiasundevalli,
suni
Neotragusmoschatusmoschatus,
bushpig
Potamochoerusporcus,
Zanzibarredcolobus
Procoiobuskirkii,
Sykes'monkey
Cercopithecusmitis,
Africancivet
Viverracivettaschwarzi,
andanewlyidentifiedservalinegenet,
Genettaservalinaarcheri
(VanRompaey
&
Colyn,1998).METHODSUndertakeninJuly1996,theresearchconsistedprimarilyofsemi-structuredinterviewsinSwahiliwithvillagersandareviewofNationalHuntrecords.Nineteenvillageslocatedinthesouthernandeasternthree-quartersoftheislandwerevisited.Theseareascontainthelargesttractsofremainingforestandthicket.RecentreportsandinterviewswithForestryofficialsandNationalHunterssuggestedthatleopardswereconcentratedhere.Insomecases,theZanzibarimembersoftheresearchteamknewsomeoneinthevillagewhomightbewillingtotalkaboutleopards.Otherintervieweeswereencounteredbychance.Mostintervieweesweremenover30yearsold(table1).Thisbiaswasnotconsideredadisadvantageasmenpartakeinhuntingandhavemoredirectknowledgeofwildlife.Twentyeightofthe52villagersinterviewedwerecurrentorformerpart-timehunters.Mostpreferredtohuntalone,butsomeparticipatedingrouphuntsorganisedatthevillagelevel.
Table
1.
Ageandsexcharacteristics
of
villagersinterviewedin
a
survey
of
beliefsandknowledge
of
theleopard(Pantherapardus),UngujaIsland,Tanzania,1996.
Age(years)'MaleFemale
---
<18
1
18-30
P
3
31-50
'f5"'3
1
>
50
264
4
Total
44
8
1
Someagesareestimates.
2
Onewasapart-timehunter.3Tenwerecurrentorformerpart-timehunters.
4
Seventeenwerecurrentorformerpart-timehunters.
of 00

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