CHAPTER 1 HUMANWILDLIFE CONFLICT AND THE BUSHMEAT CRISIS

CHAPTER 1: HUMAN-WILDLIFE CONFLICT AND THE BUSHMEAT CRISIS: ASSESSING BUSHMEAT PREVALENCE IN THE TSAVO AREA

Hunting in Kenya: Illegal since 1987 That sport hunting should not be reintroduced in Kenya cannot be (stated enough). Kenya’s well documented past gives clear evidence it would lead to rampant poaching. Wildlife is our national heritage. (Kenya Coalition for Wildlife conservation and Management and Local Communities 2004) Kenya will not drop an 18 -year-old hunting ban despite calls for it to be lifted to cull high numbers of wildlife and reduce damage to farms. (President Mwai Kibaki 2005)

Food Insecurity Major Causes • Endemic poverty • Low economic growth • Drought-prone • Arid and semi-arid lands • High population • Human wildlife conflict (United Nations World Food Program Website)

Snares: Commonplace in the Kenyan Bush

Bushmeat • Defined as meat obtained from wild animals rather than animals that are domesticated or ranched, and is illegal in Kenya. • Commonly snared species include dik, zebra, gazelle and impala. (Born Free Foundation 2004 ) • Meat from snared wildlife may then be sold labeled as domesticated meat products (Bushmeat Crisis Task Force 2005)

The Bushmeat Trade • Widely documented in West Africa (Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN 2006) • Traditionally, bushmeat snaring was done only for subsistence (Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN 2006) • Has the bushmeat trade moved into a commercial industry in Kenya? • What percentage of meat sold in Kenya is really bushmeat?

Study Rationale 1) Provides insight into the community’s perception of wildlife and conservation 2) Can be used as a baseline to compare future measurements of bushmeat abundance 3) Differences can be used to measure the success of community-based ecotourism leading to wildlife conservation

The Born Free Study: • Eating the Unknown- A survey on the availability of bushmeat in 202 urban butcheries in Nairobi (2004) • First group to survey bushmeat availability in Nairobi, Kenya • Objectives: 1) To determine whether bushmeat is sold in Nairobi’s butcheries 2) To identify any patterns or “bushmeat hotspots” within Nairobi

The Born Free Study: Results & Limitations Results • 25% identified bushmeat • 19% identified as both bush/domesticated meat • 42% identified as domesticated meat • 13% unidentified • 1% unusable Study limitations • Analysis unreliable • Immunodiffusion limitations • No species level identification

Hypothesis: Results would be in congruence with those of the Born Free study

Locations of Butcheries Along Mombasa Road in Tsavo Region: Sampled 69 butcheries in 14 towns

Sampling Methods • We purchased. 25 kg samples labeled as beef and goat from each butchery • We collected at different times throughout the day during the week of July 12 th-July 19 th Recorded For Each Shop: 1) date 2) time 3) town 4) name of shop 5) quantity 6) purchase price 7) putative meat species

Sampling Methods: July 12 th-July 19 th 2005

Preparation of Samples • Approximately 1 cc of the sample was cut and labeled • The pieces were stored in Et. OH and frozen -20°C • Samples were transported to WKU’s Biotechnology Center in refrigerated containers for genetic analysis

Molecular Methods Differ Born Free: Eating the Unknown Immunodiffusion • Protein antibody-antigen reaction • High rate of cross-reactivity Our Study DNA Analysis • High degree of specificity • Unambiguous

DNA Extraction Mitochondrial • Lots of copies in single cell • Preservation DNA Cytochrome b Gene • A lot of research done • Mutations accumulate at right pace to determine species • Looking at 492 bp region

Extraction: (0. 25 mg) DNeasy Qiagen kit • Getting the DNA out of your sample • Tissue, scat, blood, saliva…. Digestion: DNeasy tissue digestion kit • Digestion- Heating up and breaking down your DNA sample • Blending, splicing, high heat, buffers PCR: Amplification of DNA • Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a technique which is used to amplify the number of copies of a specific region of DNA, in order to produce enough DNA to be adequately tested. This technique can be used to identify with a very high-probability, diseasecausing viruses and/or bacteria, a deceased person, or a criminal suspect. Gel Electrophoresis • Use counter current of electrons to visualize your DNA • Different lengths will appear in various places on the gel Clean PCR Products: Ultraclean DNA cleanup kit MOBIO® • Clean products to prepare for sequencing

Sequencing: ABI 3130® sequencer

Genebank • • • Contig Express® editing program Alignment by eye and with Align. X® NCBI genbank Basic local Alignment search tool (BLAST) Sequences for all typical bushmeat species were entered into NCBI by Dr. Kimwele Ran 5 positive controls with impala DNA

Results • 94 samples: 1 was lost and 6 could not be sequenced • Remaining 87 samples: we identified none as bushmeat • Our results are incongruent with the hypothesis €: e value : Expectation value. The number of different alignments expected to occur in a database search by chance with scores equivalent to or better the sample. The lower the E value, the more significant the score. Absolute zero is represented by 0. 00 β: Bit score: Has been normalized with respect to the scoring system, can be used to compare scores from different searches. 21 sequences were not aligned and “blasted” only with the forward or resverse

Binomial Test Results p(0)< 0. 000005 (highly significant) Unidentified Samples 13% Spoiled Samples 1% Domestic Meat 42% Bushmeat 25% Mixed Bushmeat/ Domestic Meat 19% Born Free’s Results

Percentage of samples identified as domestic livestock meat Bos or Capra 13% Other 1% Domestic Livestock Meat 86%

Species identification 50 46 45 40 Number of Samples 35 30 25 22 20 15 10 10 6 5 1 1 1 Sus scrofa other 0 Bos taurus Bos spp. Capra hircus Capra spp. Ovis aries

Did the identified meat match the putative species? 6% 27% Matched label * Did not match label ** Putative species unknown 67% *Includes 11 that only matched to genera Bos or Capra ** Includes 6 identified as Ovis aries

Discussion 27% of samples identified as mislabeled • Mistake on the part of the butcher (6 Ovis aries) • Error in recording the putative species. Incorrectly identified twelve samples (14%) • Non-domestic species within the Bos and Capra genera • More in Capra than Bos (10 to 1) • The natural range • No evidence of import to Kenya • Hemitragus jemlahicus Misidentifications are a result of molecular analysis • Bovine primer instead of IMP 494.

Why do our results differ form Born Free’s analysis? • Contamination in Born Free’s samples • Immunodiffusion cross-reactivity led to incorrect analysis • Born Free tested hot spots of bushmeat prevalence leading to biased results

We know poaching is occurring: Where’s the bushmeat? • Is the bushmeat being sold to restaurants? • Is the bushmeat trade informal? • Is bushmeat trafficked outside the country?

Future Research These results will serve as a valuable baseline for comparison with future studies • Using Similar Techniques • Restaurants in Voi • Meat markets and butcheries in Nairobi • Research the informal bushmeat trade in Kasigau • Social-networking analysis: track the flow of bushmeat