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A population estimate of chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii ) in the Ugalla region using standard and spatially explicit genetic capture–recapture methods
Author(s) -
Moore Deborah L.,
Vigilant Linda
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
american journal of primatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.988
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1098-2345
pISSN - 0275-2565
DOI - 10.1002/ajp.22237
Subject(s) - troglodytes , mark and recapture , endangered species , subspecies , range (aeronautics) , population size , population , geography , ecology , tanzania , population density , woodland , statistics , biology , demography , mathematics , habitat , materials science , environmental planning , sociology , composite material
Population parameters such as size, density, and distribution of a species across a landscape are important metrics that inform conservation science and are key to management strategies. In this study, we used genetic capture–recapture methods to estimate the population size and density of the little‐studied chimpanzees in the Ugalla region of western Tanzania. From 237 fecal samples collected non‐invasively over a 10‐month period, we identified a minimum of 113 individuals. Based on the two‐innate rate method (TIRM) modeled in the software capwire , we obtained a maximum‐likelihood estimate of 322 (CI 227–373) individuals over the 624 km 2 area surveyed. Using a spatially explicit capture–recapture (SECR) method, we estimated a population density of 0.25 (CI 0.16–0.38) individuals/km 2 . Observations of nests and search effort data revealed areas of more intense usage. The findings of this study are an important step in the characterization of the Ugalla chimpanzees, and substantially improve our understanding of the number of chimpanzees that occupy this savanna‐woodland region at the easternmost extent of the geographic range of this endangered subspecies. Am. J. Primatol. 76:335–346, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.