Publications by authors named "Afework Bekele"

Article Synopsis
  • Climate change significantly impacts the distribution and diversity of bird species, including the endangered Rouget's rail in Ethiopia and Eritrea.
  • This study aims to identify the current and future suitable habitats for the Rouget's rail by analyzing environmental factors and using ten predictive algorithms.
  • Results indicate that critical habitat areas are shrinking due to climate change, emphasizing the need for conservation strategies to protect this vulnerable species.
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  • Climate change significantly affects species distribution; specifically, it causes habitat expansion for Tauraco ruspolii and contraction for T. leucotis in Ethiopia.
  • Using the MaxEnt algorithm and 13 environmental variables, the study predicted the future suitable habitats for both species, revealing a dramatic increase in range for T. ruspolii (up to 156%) and a decrease for T. leucotis (up to 68.67%) by the 2070s.
  • Key environmental factors influencing habitat suitability are precipitation and temperature, with notable overlap in suitable habitats between the two species, indicating a shared ecological space.
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  • Scientists created special models to find out where the endangered mountain nyala can live best in Ethiopia, using tools called Boosted Regression Tree and Maximum Entropy.
  • They collected data by counting animal poop in different areas and looked at things like the type of land and how high the ground is.
  • Their study found that only a small part (9.1%) of the area is good for mountain nyala, showing that protecting these habitats is really important for keeping the species safe.
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A study on the composition and seasonality of rodent diet was carried out during 2020-2022 years in Chimit Kola to determine the type, relative proportion and seasonality of food items consumed. A total of 166 stomach contents that belong to six rodent species (, , , , sp. and ) were investigated.

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Understanding natural history such as diurnal activity of wildlife species is important for their conservation intervention. The aim of the current study was to examine Grevy's zebra diurnal activity time budget in Hallaydeghe Asebot Proposed National Park (HAPNP) considering both wet and dry seasons. Scan sampling method was used.

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The size and density of a population are essential parameters in primate ecology and conservation. Such information, however, is still scarce for many forest primate species. The Djaffa Mountains guereza () is an endemic Ethiopian taxon for which data about its distribution and population size are missing.

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Background: Climate change coupled with other anthropogenic pressures may affect the extent of suitable habitat for species and thus their distributions. This is particularly true for species occupying high-altitude habitats such as the gelada (Theropithecus gelada) of the Ethiopian highlands. To explore the impact of climate change on species distributions, Species Distribution Modelling (SDM) has been extensively used.

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Economic growth and development in developing countries often involves land-use changes which fragment natural areas, bring humans and wildlife into closer proximity and escalating human- wildlife conflicts. Human-wildlife conflicts impose huge costs on local people and their livelihoods. Balancing developmental activities with the conservation of mega fauna such as the African and Asian elephants (Loxodonta Africana, Elephas maximus; respectively) remains problematic.

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  • Fruit bats play essential roles in ecosystems as bioindicators, seed dispersers, and pollinators, but their populations are threatened by climate change and human activities.
  • An ensemble model using various algorithms predicted habitat suitability and distribution, showing significant changes in suitable areas for two bat species by 2050 and 2070, with one species gaining habitat while the other faces losses.
  • Key areas for conservation efforts are identified in the midlands and highlands of southern and eastern Ethiopia, which are crucial for the survival of these bat species amidst ongoing environmental pressures.
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Studying the diet and feeding behavior of primates is essential to understanding their ecology and designing effective conservation plans. Despite decades of study on the hamadryas baboon (Papio hamadryas) in lowland habitats, little is known about the feeding ecology of this species in highland ecosystems. To address this empirical gap, we tracked temporal changes in vegetation abundance and their relation to the dietary choices of hamadryas baboons in highland habitat at Borena-Sayint National Park (BSNP) in northern Ethiopia.

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Given the current rate of habitat degradation and loss in the tropics, data on primate population densities and habitat use are indispensable for assessing conservation status and designing feasible management plans for primates. The Omo River guereza (Colobus guereza guereza) is a subspecies of the eastern black-and-white colobus monkey endemic to the western Rift Valley forests of Ethiopia. Their restricted distribution along with habitat loss and hunting within their range render them vulnerable to local extirpation and extinction.

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Studying the dietary flexibility of primates that live in human-modified environments is crucial for understanding their ecological adaptations as well as developing management and conservation plans. Southern gelada () is an endemic little-known subspecies of gelada that inhabits human-modified landscapes in the northern central highlands of Ethiopia. During an 18-month period, we conducted this intensive study in an unprotected area of a human-modified landscape at Kosheme in Wollo to investigate the feeding ecology of southern geladas and their dietary responses to seasonal variations.

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Geladas are the most distinctive of Ethiopian endemic mammals, representing the last extant species of primate genus that have a very restricted distribution in the northern Ethiopian plateau. The activity budget and feeding ecology of geladas () were studied around Abogedam Church, Ethiopia, from May to October 2014, encompassing dry and wet seasons. The scan sampling method was applied to collect behavioural data on the identified band.

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Reliable data on the distribution and threats facing primate species are crucial to identifying priority sites for conservation and designing effective management plans. Boutourlini's blue monkey (Cercopithecus mitis boutourlinii) is a little-known arboreal primate endemic to the forests of western Ethiopia. This subspecies is categorized as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and the distribution of extant populations is largely unknown.

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Black-and-white colobus ( Rüppell, 1835) are arboreal Old World monkeys inhabiting large parts of the deciduous and evergreen forests of sub-Saharan Africa. Two of the eight subspecies of are endemic to Ethiopia: and . However, the validity of the Ethiopian taxa is debated and observed morphological differences were attributed to clinal variation within .

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Article Synopsis
  • The study focused on Swayne's hartebeest habitat preference in Maze National Park, highlighting the importance of grass height and the effects of burning.
  • Observations showed that during wet and early dry seasons, these herbivores favored grasslands with heights below 30 cm, with a significant majority of pellets found in grassy areas.
  • Interestingly, burnt grasslands supported higher densities of hartebeest for up to 150 days post-burn compared to unburned areas, which took longer to reach similar density levels.
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Understanding the extent of human-primate conflict in areas where habitat overlap reaches at maximum level between local farmers and primates is crucial to developing conservation and management strategies. One of the threats of southern geladas (Theropithecus gelada obscurus) is conflict with the local farmers due to cereal crop raiding. This study was carried out to compare the intensity of human-gelada conflicts and the attitude of local farmers toward the conservation of geladas among local communities neighboring Borena Sayint National Park (BSNP) and an unprotected site far from the BSNP.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigated the types and diversity of medium and large mammals in the Lebu Natural Protected Forest in Ethiopia, surveying three habitat types: natural forest, bushland, and riverine forest.
  • - A total of 15 mammalian species were recorded, with 223 observations made, predominantly from direct sightings (74% of total records); Primates were the most common group observed.
  • - The overall species diversity was measured using the Shannon-Wiener Index, yielding a value of 2.119, indicating a potential for conservation in the area, but suggesting the need for long-term studies for effective species management.
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Primates inhabiting human-modified landscapes often exploit matrix habitat to supplement their diet with cultivated foods, at times resulting in economic losses and conflict with local people. Understanding human-nonhuman primate interactions and the attitudes and perceptions of local people towards crop feeding species are crucial to designing effective species-based management plans. Over a 12-month period, we used scan sampling to study the consumption of cultivated foods and matrix use patterns by two habituated groups of Bale monkeys (Chlorocebus djamdjamensis), Ethiopian-endemic bamboo specialists, in two forest fragments (Kokosa and Afursa) set amidst human settlements and farmland in the southern Ethiopian Highlands.

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  • African wolves (AWs) and endangered Ethiopian wolves (EWs) inhabit overlapping areas, leading to potential competition for food, particularly rodents and livestock.
  • A study involving 11 radio-collared AWs revealed that their diet mainly consists of rodents, insects, and livestock, with a significant portion of their rodent intake coming from scavenging.
  • To ensure coexistence between AWs and EWs, it is suggested to educate locals on the ecological roles of AWs and to protect the natural habitats favored by EWs.
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The large-bodied, terrestrial primates in the tribe Papionini are among the most intensely studied animals in the world, yet for some members of this tribe we know comparatively little about their evolutionary history and phylogeography. Geladas (Theropithecus gelada Rüppell, 1835), endemic primates of the Ethiopian highlands, are largely unstudied both in genetic diversity and intrageneric phylogeny. Currently, a northern and central subspecies and one isolated southern population are recognized, of which the central is classified as Least Concern, the northern as Vulnerable, and the southern is not yet assessed.

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Background: Species with a restricted geographic distribution, and highly specialized habitat and dietary requirements, are particularly vulnerable to extinction. The Bale monkey (Chlorocebus djamdjamensis) is a little-known arboreal, bamboo-specialist primate endemic to the southern Ethiopian Highlands. While most Bale monkeys inhabit montane forests dominated by bamboo, some occupy forest fragments where bamboo is much less abundant.

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Carnivore populations are declining globally due to range contraction, persecution and prey depletion. One consequence of these patterns is increased range and niche overlap with other carnivores, and thus an elevated potential for competitive exclusion. Here, we document competition between an endangered canid, the Ethiopian wolf (EW), and the newly discovered African wolf (AW) in central Ethiopia.

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Studies of the effects of habitat fragmentation and degradation on primate positional behavior, strata use, and substrate utilization offer valuable insights into the behavioral and ecological flexibility of primates whose habitats have undergone extensive anthropogenic disturbance. In this study, we evaluated how positional behavior, strata use, and substrate utilization differed between Bale monkeys (Chlorocebus djamdjamensis)-bamboo-eating cercopithecids endemic to the southern Ethiopian Highlands-occupying continuous versus fragmented forests. Bale monkeys in forest fragments (where bamboo had been degraded or eradicated) spent significantly more time on the ground and in understory strata whereas those in continuous forest spent significantly more time in the middle and upper strata.

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