Shotgun cartridge Nsuta Forest Reserve in Ghana
One of a number of spent shotgun cartridges I found in the Nsuta Forest Reserve.
The Nsuta Forest Reserve appeared to be almost devoid of diurnal mammals save for a few small green squirrels. The reserve is secondary forest used for logging, as such there's no longer a proper canopy as so many of the big trees have been taken out. This undoubtedly would have severely impacted species dependent on high canopy rainforest. Those mammals that are able to survive in degraded secondary forest, could cope reasonably well with the ongoing logging,
However, they have been all but wiped by commercial bushmeat poachers. Some bushmeat hunting is legal in Ghana, a few common species can be hunted between the 1st of August and the 1st of December with a licence, and the marsh cane rat known as a grasscutter can be hunted all year round. What's quite clear though is that almost all mammal species including those that should be protected are still being hunted illegally.
Monkeys like Lowe's and lesser spot-nosed that should be able to survive in secondary forest, have completely gone from Nsuta, purely because of illegal hunting..This seems to be a problem common to all forest reserves in Ghana, As all wild mammals have become rarer and rarer then poachers have had to venture deeper into protected areas to find them. Poaching is thus a serious problem in all of the national parks as well.
The combination of major habitat destruction and out of control bushmeat poaching has meant that many species that are endemic to this region are now threatened with imminent extinction. During one birding walk through Nsuta we encountered a poacher carrying a single-barrelled shotgun and a bag over his shoulder to contain whatever mammals he might have shot.
Shotgun cartridge Nsuta Forest Reserve in Ghana
One of a number of spent shotgun cartridges I found in the Nsuta Forest Reserve.
The Nsuta Forest Reserve appeared to be almost devoid of diurnal mammals save for a few small green squirrels. The reserve is secondary forest used for logging, as such there's no longer a proper canopy as so many of the big trees have been taken out. This undoubtedly would have severely impacted species dependent on high canopy rainforest. Those mammals that are able to survive in degraded secondary forest, could cope reasonably well with the ongoing logging,
However, they have been all but wiped by commercial bushmeat poachers. Some bushmeat hunting is legal in Ghana, a few common species can be hunted between the 1st of August and the 1st of December with a licence, and the marsh cane rat known as a grasscutter can be hunted all year round. What's quite clear though is that almost all mammal species including those that should be protected are still being hunted illegally.
Monkeys like Lowe's and lesser spot-nosed that should be able to survive in secondary forest, have completely gone from Nsuta, purely because of illegal hunting..This seems to be a problem common to all forest reserves in Ghana, As all wild mammals have become rarer and rarer then poachers have had to venture deeper into protected areas to find them. Poaching is thus a serious problem in all of the national parks as well.
The combination of major habitat destruction and out of control bushmeat poaching has meant that many species that are endemic to this region are now threatened with imminent extinction. During one birding walk through Nsuta we encountered a poacher carrying a single-barrelled shotgun and a bag over his shoulder to contain whatever mammals he might have shot.