Altered states: Will forest-agriculture mosaic landscapes allow the long-term survival of a forest-specialist primate?

在人类改造的景观中管理野生动物对自然资源保护者来说是一个持久的挑战，即使在人与野生动物之间的直接冲突并不太明显的情况下。人类将土地转化为农业、修路和旅游等活动，都会极大地影响动物物种利用同一片土地的方式，以及在哪里和以多少人的数量找到这些土地。一些物种受到的负面影响尤其严重，包括大型、繁殖缓慢的哺乳动物，如灵长类动物，以及那些对原始森林有强烈偏好的哺乳动物。桑给巴尔红根瘤牛(ZRC)是研究这些问题的项目的理想研究物种，因为它可能非常脆弱，但似乎能够在它受到保护的Jozani-Chwaka湾国家公园以外的马赛克、密集占据的景观中生存。然而，2013-15年的一次总体普查发现，生活在公园以外的ZRC种群比保护区内的种群规模更小，繁殖速度更慢，它们的家园可能更容易受到人类影响。该项目将利用卫星图像和现场数据收集，描述ZRC生境的森林损失率和模式，并将这些与基于2013-15年人口普查的预测联系起来，以探索不同的森林损失和碎片化模式如何影响ZRC群体。它还将试验“行为评估”技术，使用对ZRC小组活动的详细观察来表征他们范围内每个不同部分对他们的价值。

Managing wildlife in anthropogenically-modified landscapes is a persistent challenge for conservationists, even where direct human-wildlife conflict is not too pronounced. Human conversion of land for agriculture, road-building and tourism, among other activities, can all dramatically affect the way an animal species can make use of that same landscape and where and in what numbers it will be found. Some species are particularly negatively affected, including large-bodied, slow-reproducing mammals like primates and those with strong preferences for primary forest.The Zanzibar red colobus (ZRC) is an ideal study species for a project looking at these issues, because it is potentially highly vulnerable but seems able to persist in mosaic, intensively occupied landscapes beyond Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park where it is protected. A total census in 2013-15, however, found that ZRC groups living beyond the park were smaller and reproducing less quickly than those in protected areas, and their home ranges may be more subject to human impact. This project will characterise rates and patterns of forest loss in ZRC habitats, using satellite imagery and field data collection,and relate these to predictions based on the 2013-15 census to explore how different patterns of forest loss and fragmentation are affecting ZRC groups. It will also trial 'behavioural valuation' techniques, using detailed observations of the ZRC groups' activities to characterise the value each different part of their range holds for them.