Select your language

Pauline de Haas / Wageningen University
Duration: December 2014-April 2015

The aim of this study was to determine the level of overlap in habitat use and diet composition of various wildlife and livestock species in Awash National Park, Ethiopia, to provide us with a better understanding of resource partitioning and interspecific competition between livestock and wildlife species. Plots were established by random sampling in grassland, bushland and wetland. Faecal subsamples were collected and microhistological faecal analysis was carried out to determine the diet composition of each species. The overlap in habitat use and diet composition was determined using the niche overlap index of Pianka (1973).The wildlife species did not show resource partitioning in habitat use with the livestock species that were ecologically similar. However, they showed food partitioning, except for East African oryx with cattle, since the other wildlife species and the livestock species consumed different plant species or the same plant species in different quantities. The East African oryx and Soemmerring’s gazelle did not seem to compete with cattle for habitat and food. However, lesser kudu seemed to experience competition for food with dromedary and goat. These conclusions show that restricting the amount of livestock and assigning wildlife conservation areas free from livestock are necessary for conserving wild herbivores.