Ecology and Conservation Challenges of the Kori bustard in the Serengeti National Park

Abstract

The study focused on the ecology and conservation challenges of the Kori bustard in the Serengeti National Park. The main objectives of the study was to determine the factors that affect local ecological knowledge and perceived threats, density and occurrence, breeding ecology, seasonal migration and resource selection of the Kori bustard. The hypotheses were that, local people adjacent to the Serengeti National Park have good knowledge of ecology and the threats facing the Kori bustard. The Kori bustard population density in the grass plain varies with season and with different habitats, the breeding of the Kori bustard is influenced by the habitat and season and lasts for several months; and 1) the home ranges of male Kori bustards are larger than the home ranges of females during the breeding season due to displaying behaviour; 2) the home ranges of male Kori bustards are smaller than the home ranges of females during the non-breeding season; 3) Kori bustards migrate seasonally between breeding and non-breeding habitats, with males migrating over longer distances than females; and 4) the habitat preferences of the Kori bustard are gender specific and differ across seasons in response to temporal resource requirements.

Overall, the results indicated that local people close to the park, including the Maasai tribe, had good knowledge regarding the identification of the Kori bustard. Generally, males from all surveyed tribes showed better ability of identifying the species than females. Knowledge varied among age groups while educated and non-educated people showed similar levels of species identification. The results indicated that the Kori bustard population is smaller than before and observation frequency was declining. Illegal offtake is indicated as the main threat to the species in the study villages.

The density of Kori bustard in the study area is approximately 1.3 birds per km2 and is highest in the green grass habitat and during the short dry season. Further, the study revealed that the breeding season starts with a courtship display that peaks during the short dry and short rain seasons, whereas nests and chicks peak during long rain season. The adult sex ratio was skewed in different seasons, with male biases during the long and short rain seasons and female skewed during long and short dry seasons. Finally the results showed that Kori bustards have distinct movement patterns related to the breeding (December-June) and non-breeding periods (July-November). Males Kori bustards had larger home range movements that females and preferred open grassland during breeding season and shrublands during non-breeding season, whereas females preferred to use closed grassland vegetation, especially treed grassland. This knowledge is important in future conservation of this vulnerable species.