Summary

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Eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) are present in Kibale National Park.
The population size is unknown.
The chimpanzee population trend is unknown.
The site has a total size of 795 km².
Hunting and snare injuries are a key threat to chimpanzees.
Conservation activities have focused on veterinary intervention and snare removal.

Site characteristics

Kibale National Park is situated in southwestern Uganda. The park is contiguous with Queen Elizabeth National Park in the south. Established in 1993, Kibale National Park is famously known for the long-term research of chimpanzee communities inhabiting the area (see Kanyawara and Ngogo sites). In addition to the eastern chimpanzee, the park is home to other species of global conservation concern, including the forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), western red colobus (Procolobus badius), and L'Hoest's monkey (Cercopithecus l’hoesti) (BirdLife International 2020). With at least 339 bird species, the site is an Important Bird Area (BirdLife International 2020).

Table 1. Basic site information for Kibale National Park

Species	Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii
Area	795 km²
Coordinates	Lat: 0.487463 , Lon: 30.390052
Type of site	Protected area (National Park)
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist montane forest, Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest
Type of governance	Governance by government

Types of sites Governance types Habitat types

Ape status

Table 2. Ape population estimates reported for Kibale National Park

Species	Year	Occurrence	Encounter or vistation rate (nests/km; ind/day)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Survey area	Sampling method	Analytical framework	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii						Kibale National Park

Sampling methods Analytical frameworks

Threats

Table 3. Threats to apes reported for Kibale National Park

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Description	Year of threat
5 Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High (more than 70% of population affected)	Although snares are set up to mainly target small duikers and bushpigs, chimpanzees are at risk of falling victim to the snares and get severely maimed or killed (Dudley 2020).	Ongoing (2020)

Threats

Conservation activities

The park is managed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority.

Table 4. Conservation activities reported for Kibale National Park

Category	Specific activity	Description	Implementing organization(s)	Year of activity
2 Counter-wildlife crime	2.6 Regularly de-activate/remove ground snares	The Kibale Snare Removal Program (KSRP) was established in 1997 to reduce snaring in the park and involve the local community (Dudley 2020).		Ongoing (2020)
6 Species management	6.9 Rehabilitate injured/orphaned apes	Veterinary intervention when chimpanzees are injured by snares (Kibale Chimpanzee Project).		Unknown

Conservation activities

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Kibale National Park

Challenges	Specific challenges	Source	Year(s)
	Not reported

Challenges

Enablers

Table 6. Enablers reported for Kibale National Park

Enablers	Specific enablers	Source	Year(s)
1 Site management
2 Resources and capacity
3 Engaged community
4 Institutional support
5 Ecological context
6 Safety and stability

Enablers

Research activities

Kibale is an important site for research. Long-term projects based on the site include the Kibale Chimpanzee Project and the Kibale EcoHealth Project.

Changing perceptions of protected area benefits and problems around Kibale National Park, Uganda

Restoration Provides Hope for Faunal Recovery: Changes in Primate Abundance Over 45 Years in Kibale National Park, Uganda

Long‐term trends in fruit production in a tropical forest at Ngogo, Kibale National Park, Uganda

Recovery of tree and mammal communities during large‐scale forest regeneration in Kibale National Park, Uganda

Documented behaviours

Table 7. Behaviours documented for Kibale National Park

Category	Behavior	Observation type	Prevalence	Observation dates	Source	Habituation	Species	Comment
	Not reported

Behaviours

Exposure to climate change impacts

As part of a study on the exposure of African great ape sites to climate change impacts, Kiribou et al. subm. extracted climate data and data on projected extreme climate impact events for the site. Climatological characteristics were derived from observation-based climate data provided by the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP, www.isimip.org). Parameters were calculated as the average across each 30-year period. For 1981-2010, the EWEMBI dataset from ISIMIP2a was used. For the two future periods (2021-2050 and 2071-2099) ISIMIP2b climate data based on four CMIP5 global climate models were used. For future projections, two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) were used. RCP 2.6 is a scenario with strong mitigation measures in which global temperatures would likely rise below 2C. RCP 6.0 is a scenario with medium emissions in which global temperatures would likely rise up to 3C by 2100. For the number of days with heavy precipitation events, the 98th percentile of all precipitation days (>1mm/d) was calculated for the 1979-2013 reference period as a threshold for a heavy precipitation event. Then, for each year, the number of days above that threshold was derived. The figures on temperature and precipitation anomaly show the deviation from the mean temperature and mean precipitation for the 1979-2013 reference period.

The estimated exposure to future extreme climate impact events (crop failure, drought, river flood, wildfire, tropical cyclone, and heatwave) is based on a published dataset by Lange et al. 2020 derived from ISIMIP2b data. The same global climate models and RCPs as described above were used. Within each 30-year period, the number of years with an extreme event and the average proportion of the site affected were calculated (see Kiribou et al. subm. for details).

Table 8. Estimated past and projected climatological characteristics in Kibale National Park

Value	1981-2010	2021-2050, RCP 2.6	2021-2050, RCP 6.0	2071-2099, RCP 2.6	2071-2099, RCP 6.0
Mean temperature [C]	22.3	23.4	23.5	23.6	24.8
Annual precipitation [mm]	1234	1279	1359	1198	1448
Max no. consecutive dry days (per year)	17.600000000000001	22.1	25.7	24.2	23.3
No. days with heavy precipitation (per year)	6.7	8.9	8.6999999999999993	9.6	14.1

Table 9. Projected exposure of apes to extreme climate impact events in Kibale National Park

Type	No. of years with event (2021-2050, RCP 2.6)	% of site exposed (2021-2050, RCP 2.6)	No. of years with event (2021-2050, RCP 6.0)	% of site exposed (2021-2050, RCP 6.0)	No. of years with event (2070-2099, RCP 2.6)	% of site exposed (2070-2099, RCP 2.6)	No. of years with event (2070-2099, RCP 6.0)	% of site exposed (2070-2099, RCP 6.0)
Crop failure	4	0.14000000000000001	3	0.21	4	0.32	8	0.09
Drought	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Heatwave	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
River flood	1.75	2.67	4	3.87	2	0.09	6	3.28
Tropical cyclone	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Wildfire	30	1.1399999999999999	30	1.06	29	1.29	29	1.06

External links

Kibale Chimpanzee Project

References

BirdLife International (2020). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Kibale National Park. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 21/10/2020.

Dudley, A. (2020). In Uganda, safeguarding chimpanzees against the scourge of snaring. Retrieved 21 October 2020 from Mongabay.com. Web site: https://news.mongabay.com/2020/10/in-uganda-safeguarding-chimpanzees-against-the-scourge-of-snaring/?fbclid=IwAR0qzwA0DmheeoKtcX4ZYdyNTJOGBJX7yf0gPTTri5XdDGjIL0dSFXzW3J0#

Wrangham, R., & Mugume, S. (2000). Snare Removal Program in Kibale National Park: a Preliminary Report. Pan Africa News, 7(2), 18-20.

Kibale Chimpanzee Project (n.d.). Veterinary Intervention. https://kibalechimpanzees.wordpress.com/veterinary-intervention/

Page created by: APES Atlas Team Date: 2020-12-05