Are Namibia's Carnivores at Risk?

When assessing a species, experts consider more than just the total number of animals left on earth. They take into account whether or not these numbers have declined in the last ten years, and if so, by how much; the extent and quality of the area they now occupy, and if that area is smaller or more fragmented than it used to be; current population estimates; and ultimately their probability of extinction in future. Once these factors have been taken into account, experts assign the species to one of the IUCN categories of threat – known as the species’ status.

Besides species that are now extinct in the wild, or those we know too little about to assess, all others fall into one of the following categories (from worst to best status): Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened, and Least Concern. Conservationists are most concerned about species falling in the first three of these categories, which face high to extremely high risks of extinction in the wild. Near Threatened species still warrant monitoring, as these species could decline into one of the worse categories in future if we fail to address the threats they face today.

During the conference the carnivore experts presented their current knowledge on everything from lions to mongooses. Large carnivores, like the big cats, hyenas, and African wild dogs, are generally better-studied and understood than small carnivores, but they are under much greater threat due to human pressures. During the conference the experts gave preliminary Namibian statuses to all of the carnivores, which will be revised once all available data have been collated and analysed for each species. These preliminary statuses indicate that African wild dogs, cheetah, and spotted hyena have greater extinction risks in Namibia than they have globally (see Table 1).

Table 1. The Global and preliminary Namibian statuses for carnivores. Species not listed here are classified as Least Concern globally and in Namibia.

One of the reasons for the large carnivore status differences between Namibia and the rest of Africa is that their range and population densities are naturally limited by Namibia’s dry climate. For example, spotted hyenas are more common in high rainfall areas and are not as well adapted to desert life as brown hyenas. Namibia’s spotted hyenas therefore occur at relatively low densities, which increases their risk of extinction when compared to other spotted hyena populations.

African wild dogs are also confined to the wetter parts of the country (the northeast), but they are more susceptible to being killed by farmers than hyenas. The dogs are more visible as they hunt in packs and can be active during daylight hours, while their use of communal dens makes them vulnerable to farmer retaliation. Wild dogs are perceived to be incompatible with livestock farming, which means that if farmers find their dens, they can eliminate a whole pack in short order. Changing the perceptions and subsequent tolerance of farmers for wild dogs is thus a conservation priority.

Cheetahs are also under threat in Namibia, largely due to their conflict with livestock and game farmers. Despite Namibia co-hosting the largest population of cheetahs in the world with neighbouring Botswana, the vast majority of these cats occur on farmland that has no official protection status. There have been two recent calls [1, 2] to up-list the cheetah to Endangered globally, which will match the status given for Namibia. Currently cheetahs and livestock farmers coexist to some extent in Namibia, particularly in areas with healthy wild prey populations. Game farmers tend to be less tolerant of cheetahs, as these cats are efficient predators of their preferred prey species – e.g. springbok, blesbok and the young of larger, often high-value antelope.

Leopards are more broadly distributed within Namibia than either cheetahs or lions, but their Vulnerable status indicates that they remain a conservation concern, perhaps more so at the global level than in Namibia. The smallest cat in Namibia – the black-footed cat – shares its status with leopards, and poses even greater challenges to scientists trying to study it. Leopards are difficult to count due to their secretive, nocturnal nature, and black-footed cats are even worse! Both cats are secretive and nocturnal, but whereas leopards can be counted using heat and motion-sensitive camera traps, black-footed cats are rarely caught on camera.

In the process of writing the Red Data book carnivore experts in Namibia will access as many sources of reliable information as possible. Carnivore researchers conduct intensive surveys using camera traps and other methods, but these efforts are usually limited to specific study areas and time periods. Furthermore, small carnivore species (e.g. mongoose species, honey badgers and weasels) are rarely surveyed so intensively. While intensive studies provide the cornerstone of our data collection efforts, more data over a larger area of Namibia and over longer time periods are required to improve the accuracy of the extinction risk assessments.

The good news is that anyone who lives in or visits Namibia can contribute by becoming a ‘citizen scientist’ and collecting data for scientific purposes. Today you can do this very easily by getting the free Atlasing in Namibia Application developed for smartphones. This app contributes to the Namibian Environmental Information System, an online database that hosts a mind-boggling amount of information about the country.

After downloading the Atlasing app you can report any sightings of carnivores and a range of other animals and plants in a matter of seconds. The app uses your smartphone’s built-in GPS unit to provide an accurate location for your sighting, and you can even submit photos if you are unsure of the species’ identification. If you are not online when you record the sighting, the app will save your records and upload them when you choose to do so. Once you have entered and uploaded your sightings, you can visit www.the-eis.com/atlas to find your own and others’ contributions to the database on a map of Namibia.

The global extinction crisis is real. Nonetheless you can help dedicated wildlife researchers collect accurate information on species that are under threat. This knowledge is power, which will be used to guide our conservation actions and prevent further human-caused extinctions. Get the Atlasing app, and become part of the solution.