Biologists from Guinea and the University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM) in the United States have joined forces to produce studies and management recommendations on the fish populations and habitat of the Coastal Mangrove Zone and Fouta-Djalon regions of Guinea in the Guinean Forests of West Africa biodiversity hotspot.
Studies of land-based species in Guinea have shown dramatic decline in species numbers but there have been few studies of aquatic species. Thanks to CEPF support, the new project is producing baseline data on fish distributions and habitat associations, as well as documenting local and regional threats. Comprehensive collections for the two areas are being built with maps, databases and fish and tissue samples for genetic studies.
“There are a few scattered fish collections in Guinea, some more poorly curated than others, none in great shape, none computerized and accessible off-site,” says Frank Pezold, director and curator of zoology for the Museum of Natural History at ULM. “The research collection we are developing begins with the best of these and will be completely computerized and accessible to all researchers.”
Mangroves are important nursery and breeding grounds for marine species of fish supporting commercial fisheries and major migratory bird rookeries. The Fouta-Djalon highlands provide a hub of many isolated habitats for species adapted to its radiating rivers and streams. Catfish, cichlids and barbs are among fish families with distinctive species native to these waters.
Like so many parts of the world, increases in human population threaten the unique biodiversity of the region, particularly in the dry season when pools of water attract an overload of domestic activity such as washing and cattle watering. In some places, deforestation is also a problem, with original forest removed for agriculture and mining of iron ore and diamonds aggravating silt content. Over-fishing is also taking its toll.
The 2.5-year project to address the need for a comprehensive study emerged from a workshop organized by Pezold for West African biologists. Despite the intense pressures of neighboring political instability and refugee movement, commitment to conservation in Guinea is high and promisingly, a national biodiversity plan has been established.
Strong Progress
The project represents the first of its kind for CEPF investment in the Upper Guinean Forest, CEPF’s priority area in this hotspot. So far, a team of five Guinean scientists have travelled to ULM for training in collection management, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) data analysis and management alongside modern systematic and ecological practices and English language skills.
The team of visiting scientists included Abdourahmane Kaba, Centre National des Sciences Halieutiques de Boussoura; Bangaly Kaba, Centre des Recherches Scientifiques de Rogbane; Bakary Coulibaly, Direction National des Recherches Scientifique et Technologique; Moussa Elimane Diop, University of Conakry; and Samba Tenin Diallo, CNSHB.
In addition to the technical training and the contacts provided by the workshop, perhaps the most significant outcome was greater understanding and appreciation by the Guinean scientists of the importance of current geographic technologies to conservation.
As part of the project, in the winter of 2002-3, American and French scientists also joined Guinean colleagues in Guinea for fish surveys and habitat assessment in the Fouta-Djalon and coastal mangroves.
As well as producing the needed baseline data, the project aims to build local capacity for in-country research and training through the development of infrastructure, both physical and human.
“We have shipped 100 cases of jars to the collection (in Guinea) donated by Tulane University and have purchased alcohol as well,” Pezold says. “There have been previous fish collections in Guinea, but the specimens generated by those efforts are mostly in France. Studies of collections by the Belgians and the French date back to the 1950s and improvements in roads mean new access to more comprehensive data.”
The survey has already revealed worrying numbers of jellyfish in the coastal mangroves and the presence of the widely invasive Butis koilomatodon, which tends to move with the introduction of ballast water. The only previous record of this Indo-Pacific native species in West Africa was in Nigeria.
The Guinean researchers have since extended the collections to increase the database in both regions. Pezold is impressed with their dedication and commitment. “They have done phenomenal work that includes an excellent CD presentation of the field data,” he says.
Still to Come
The collected material has been transported to ULM and awaits the next component of the project: the training of two Guinean research students from the field study party. The two students—both graduates in biology—have taken English language classes as part of the project and applied for admission to the ULM graduate program.
Once they are confident in their English language skills, they will travel to ULM’s Museum of Natural History, which contains one of the largest collections of freshwater fishes in the world, to take up scholarships in master’s level education.
They will be supported through graduate research assistantships in the museum provided by the ULM graduate school. Their assistantship duties will entail processing and identifying the specimens collected and the development of the GIS database. They will also develop master’s thesis research projects from the collections and data obtained during the program. After finishing the program at ULM, both students will be encouraged to apply to the Ph.D programs at the University of Kansas and Texas A&M University, partner institutions in the Guinean project.
The project is proving to be a very successful collaboration between Guinean and U.S. scientists with much being learned on both sides. The collections created during this project will act as a research resource and allow Guinean scientists to more effectively monitor and address aquatic ecosystem changes in both the near and long-term future.