Charles Edward
The Sapo National Park, located in southern Liberia, is renowned for its astonishing biological diversity. Even though it houses a significant wildlife population, the habitat faces severe threats from illegal poaching and mining. Agricultural expansion around the park buffer zone continues to undermine conservation gains. Currently, there is limited information about dwarf crocodile ecology, breeding, and distribution in Liberia. The African dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis) was first assessed in 1996 and currently ranks as Vulnerable according to the IUCN Red List. Due to limited biological data to assist the IUCN status review process, not much conservation attention has been given to the species in Liberia. This impending classification implies an anticipated shift to Endangered status, emphasizing the urgency of conservation efforts. The aim of the project is to document the distribution, abundance, and threats affecting the crocodiles in the Sapo National Park and other surrounding locations. It seeks to document potential known habitats, estimate the encounter rate, and develop a distribution map of the species. The Sapo National Park is Liberia’s premium protected area located in the southeast of Liberia. It is one of the biologically diverse and rich forests and a globally significant habitat for endemic and threatened species.
The project utilizes the Rapid Assessment and Prioritization of Protected Area Management Methodology to assess critical threats affecting species conservation in and around the protected area. This will further be complemented by integrating both local and expert knowledge into threat identification and assessment. A better understanding of the nature of the threats at each habitat will be ascertained, which will serve a key purpose in designing and preparing action plans and habitat-specific threat management programs. The project also leverages the support of local stakeholders and community leaders as key pioneers of an integrated approach to sustainable management of the species in its habitats. Local communities' involvement will include participation in field surveys, awareness raising, and designing a community-led approach to wildlife management. We believe that local actors or stakeholders are the main custodians of the forest and continue to play a critical role in supporting conservation work in Liberia. It is expected that one peer-reviewed article will be published at the end of the project.