American Journal of Zoology

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Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Received: 11 December 2018    Accepted: 19 February 2019    Published: 14 March 2019
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Abstract

Slash-and-burn shifting agriculture, still common in Africa, is one of the major causes of deforestation in regions where excessive population pressure has accelerated the rate of agricultural rotation. The transformation and fragmentation of natural habitats, affects the structure and functioning of the forest ecosystem, leading to erosion and biodiversity loss. The main purpose of this research was to analyze capture, marking and recapture techniques, the specific richness of the rodent population in some habitats selected on the basis of an anthropogenic gradient in Masako forest reserve. The study was conducted in Masako Forest Reserve located in the Northeast of Kisangani city, Province Orientale, Democratic Republic of the Congo between February and June 2018. In fact, rodents were captured in different habitats namely primary forest, secondary forest, old fallow and young fallow where square grids were installed with Sherman traps. The number of trapping days depended on the habitat and an alphanumeric code was used for each individual for identification. Five campaigns of trapping were performed while different indices of biodiversity were used to assess the specific richness. The findings showed that a total of 545 specimens were collected distributing into 10 species. The most abundant species were: Praomys spp, Hylomys spp., Deomys ferrugineus and Lophyromys dudui but Praomys spp. was the most predominant and the most motile of identified species in the studied habitat. From different similarity indices used, it was found that the secondary forest has a large number of individuals while the high number of species was observed in the secondary forest and young fallow respectively. It was observed that the most important recaptures were obtained in primary and secondary forests while in both fallows the recapture rate was weak. Thus, human activities such as slash-and-burn shifting, although modifying the environment, and also acting on relative abundance, appear at the current stage, is not significantly affecting the rodent community.

DOI 10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13
Published in American Journal of Zoology (Volume 2, Issue 1, March 2019)
Page(s) 11-17
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This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Slash-and-burn Agriculture, Rodent, Specific Richness, Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo

References
[1] Juakaly M. J. Résilience et écologie des araignées du sol d’une forêt équatoriale de basse altitude (Réserve forestière de Masako, Kisangani, RD Congo). Thèse de doctorat, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, Kisangani, 2007, 136pp.
[2] Djibu D. Contribution à l’étude des peuplements des rongeurs de Masako (Kisangani, RD Congo): cas de forêt secondaire. Mémoire de Licence, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, 2007, 56pp.
[3] Ramade I. Contribution à l’étude craniométrique de quelques espèces de Muridé (Rodentia Mammalia). Mémoire de Licence, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, 1984, 52pp.
[4] CNUED. Approches écologiques. Ecologie et dynamique des ressources naturelles. Centre national en unité d’étude pour le développement. Congo): régime alimentaire, reproduction et structure de population. Mémoire de Licence, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, 1992, 41pp.
[5] Juo A. S. R. and Wilding. Soils: Ecology the lowland forests of West and Central Africa. Proceedings of The Royal Society, Edinburgh, 1996, 104(B):15-29.
[6] Katuala G. B., Hart J. A., Hutterer R., Leirs H. & Dudu A. Biodiversity and ecology of small mammals (Rodents and Shrews) of the Reserve de Faune à Okapi, DRC. Belgian Journal of Zoology, 2005, 135:191-196.
[7] Meniko T. H. Contribution à l’étude des rongeurs terricoles (Muridae et cricetidae, Mammalia) de la Ville de Kisangani et ses environs (RD Congo): Régime alimentaire, reproduction et structure de population. Mémoire de Maîtrise, Faculté de Gestion des Ressources Naturelles Renouvelables, 2011, 132pp.
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[10] Ramey K. Régime alimentaire des rongeurs myomorphes de forêt equatoriale (Région de M’BAIKARCA). Mammalia, 1981, 44(4):423-483.
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[12] Murci I. Contribution à l’étude craniométrique de quelques espèces de Muridé (Rodentia, Mammalia). Mémoire de Licence, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, 1995, 52pp.
[13] Iyongo W. M. Effets de lisière sur la biodiversité des rongeurs dans la Reserve Forestière de Masako, un écosystème fragmenté (Kisangani, RDC). Thèse de doctorat, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Faculté des Sciences, Bruxelles, Belgique, 2013.
[14] Iyongo W. M., Visser M., Leirs H., Dudu A., Ulyel A. and Bogaert J. Etude préliminaire des effets de lisière sur quatre espèces de rongeurs dans la Reserve Forestière de Masako (Kisangani, RD Congo). Annales ISEA, 4:177-186.
[15] Mukinzi I., Katuala G. B., Kadange N., Dudu A. M. Preliminary data of the diversity of rodents and insectivores (Mammalia) in the periphery of Kisangani (RD Congo). Belgian Journal of Zoology, 2005, 135:133-140.
[16] Meniko T. H. Impacts de la mobilité spécifique, de la connectivité des habitats et des activités anthropiques sur les populations de rongeurs dans la Réserve Forestière de Masako (Kisangani, RD Congo) dans un écosystème fragmenté. Thèse de doctorat, Faculté de Gestion des Ressources Naturelles Renouvelables, Kisangani (RD Congo), 2015, 212pp.
[17] Legendre P. and Legendre L. 1998. Numerical Ecology. Developments in Environmental Modeling. Elsevier Science BV, 20, Amsterdam (Pays-Bas), 1998.
[18] Magurran M. Structure et fonctionnement écologique des paysages: cas des bocages. Bulletin d’écologie, 2004, 19:523-530.
[19] Kadange J. Impact d’anthropisation sur les espèces de rongeurs de la réserve forestière de Masako par les techniques de capture marquage et recapture, Mémoire de Maitrise, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Kisangani, Kisangani, RD Congo, 1996, 123pp.
[20] Dudu A. M. Etude du peuplement d’insectivores et de rongeurs de la forêt ombrophile de basse altitude du Zaire (Kisangani/Masako). Thèse de doctorat: Université d’Anvers, Belgique, 1991, 171pp.
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Author Information
  • Department of Agricultural Sciences, Higher Institute of Pedagogy, Gemena City, Democratic Republic of the Congo

  • Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Gbado-Lité, Nord Ubangi, Democratic Republic of the Congo

  • Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

  • Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Gbado-Lité, Nord Ubangi, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

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  • APA Style

    Nganga Zangada, Colette Masengo, Gédéon Bongo, Koto-te-Nyiwa Ngbolua. (2019). Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. American Journal of Zoology, 2(1), 11-17. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13

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    ACS Style

    Nganga Zangada; Colette Masengo; Gédéon Bongo; Koto-te-Nyiwa Ngbolua. Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Am. J. Zool. 2019, 2(1), 11-17. doi: 10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13

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    AMA Style

    Nganga Zangada, Colette Masengo, Gédéon Bongo, Koto-te-Nyiwa Ngbolua. Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Am J Zool. 2019;2(1):11-17. doi: 10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13,
      author = {Nganga Zangada and Colette Masengo and Gédéon Bongo and Koto-te-Nyiwa Ngbolua},
      title = {Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo},
      journal = {American Journal of Zoology},
      volume = {2},
      number = {1},
      pages = {11-17},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajz.20190201.13},
      abstract = {Slash-and-burn shifting agriculture, still common in Africa, is one of the major causes of deforestation in regions where excessive population pressure has accelerated the rate of agricultural rotation. The transformation and fragmentation of natural habitats, affects the structure and functioning of the forest ecosystem, leading to erosion and biodiversity loss. The main purpose of this research was to analyze capture, marking and recapture techniques, the specific richness of the rodent population in some habitats selected on the basis of an anthropogenic gradient in Masako forest reserve. The study was conducted in Masako Forest Reserve located in the Northeast of Kisangani city, Province Orientale, Democratic Republic of the Congo between February and June 2018. In fact, rodents were captured in different habitats namely primary forest, secondary forest, old fallow and young fallow where square grids were installed with Sherman traps. The number of trapping days depended on the habitat and an alphanumeric code was used for each individual for identification. Five campaigns of trapping were performed while different indices of biodiversity were used to assess the specific richness. The findings showed that a total of 545 specimens were collected distributing into 10 species. The most abundant species were: Praomys spp, Hylomys spp., Deomys ferrugineus and Lophyromys dudui but Praomys spp. was the most predominant and the most motile of identified species in the studied habitat. From different similarity indices used, it was found that the secondary forest has a large number of individuals while the high number of species was observed in the secondary forest and young fallow respectively. It was observed that the most important recaptures were obtained in primary and secondary forests while in both fallows the recapture rate was weak. Thus, human activities such as slash-and-burn shifting, although modifying the environment, and also acting on relative abundance, appear at the current stage, is not significantly affecting the rodent community.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Impact of Human Activities on the Rodent Species Specific Richness in the Masako Reserve Forest in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo
    AU  - Nganga Zangada
    AU  - Colette Masengo
    AU  - Gédéon Bongo
    AU  - Koto-te-Nyiwa Ngbolua
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    PY  - 2019
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13
    T2  - American Journal of Zoology
    JF  - American Journal of Zoology
    JO  - American Journal of Zoology
    SP  - 11
    EP  - 17
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2994-7413
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajz.20190201.13
    AB  - Slash-and-burn shifting agriculture, still common in Africa, is one of the major causes of deforestation in regions where excessive population pressure has accelerated the rate of agricultural rotation. The transformation and fragmentation of natural habitats, affects the structure and functioning of the forest ecosystem, leading to erosion and biodiversity loss. The main purpose of this research was to analyze capture, marking and recapture techniques, the specific richness of the rodent population in some habitats selected on the basis of an anthropogenic gradient in Masako forest reserve. The study was conducted in Masako Forest Reserve located in the Northeast of Kisangani city, Province Orientale, Democratic Republic of the Congo between February and June 2018. In fact, rodents were captured in different habitats namely primary forest, secondary forest, old fallow and young fallow where square grids were installed with Sherman traps. The number of trapping days depended on the habitat and an alphanumeric code was used for each individual for identification. Five campaigns of trapping were performed while different indices of biodiversity were used to assess the specific richness. The findings showed that a total of 545 specimens were collected distributing into 10 species. The most abundant species were: Praomys spp, Hylomys spp., Deomys ferrugineus and Lophyromys dudui but Praomys spp. was the most predominant and the most motile of identified species in the studied habitat. From different similarity indices used, it was found that the secondary forest has a large number of individuals while the high number of species was observed in the secondary forest and young fallow respectively. It was observed that the most important recaptures were obtained in primary and secondary forests while in both fallows the recapture rate was weak. Thus, human activities such as slash-and-burn shifting, although modifying the environment, and also acting on relative abundance, appear at the current stage, is not significantly affecting the rodent community.
    VL  - 2
    IS  - 1
    ER  - 

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