Bushmeat trade in the Cross–Sanaga rivers region: Evidence for the importance of protected areas David W. Macdonald a,⇑ , Paul J. Johnson a , Lise Albrechtsen a , Sarah Seymour a,b,c , Jef Dupain a,d,1 , Amy Hall b,c , John E. Fa b,c a Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), Zoology Department, University of Oxford, The Recanati-Kaplan Centre, Tubney House, Abingdon OX13 5QL, United Kingdom b Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Les Augrès Manor, Trinity, Jersey JE3 5BP, United Kingdom c Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot SL5 7PY, United Kingdom d Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Koningin Astridplein 26, 2018 Antwerp, Belgium article info Article history: Received 14 July 2011 Received in revised form 12 December 2011 Accepted 19 December 2011 Available online xxxx Keywords: Bushmeat markets National parks Conservation policies West Africa abstract Exploitation of wildlife for meat in the tropics (‘bushmeat’) is a critical threat for biodiversity, particularly in Africa. Here, we investigate the importance of protected areas (National Parks and other forest parks) as sources for the trade by exploring patterns in pricing and condition of bushmeat carcasses. We surveyed car- cass prices in a large sample of trading points (87 markets surveyed, over a 35,000 km 2 area) in Cameroon and Nigeria in the Cross–Sanaga region of West Africa. We assessed evidence for national parks as the source of animals traded as bushmeat. The study area included rural and urban centers (Calabar, Nigeria, and Dou- ala, Cameroon) close to important protected areas: the Cross River National Park in Nigeria, and Korup National Park in Cameroon. Both parks host very high species diversity, including a range of endemics. Prices increased with distance from national park boundaries, particularly in Cameroon, where parks may be less depleted than in Nigeria. There was evidence that trading points closer to parks were more likely to function as wholesalers, with meat moving onto further trading points, rather than being sold to the end consumer. Carcasses were more often smoked (a treatment aimed at preservation) if they were not sold to their final consumers; smoking was also commoner at larger trading points. Prices were higher close to the road net- work, where opportunities for further trade were more available. We consider how wildlife harvests in and around protected areas may be managed to minimize depletion of animal populations, and if protected areas may, on the principle of marine no-take zones, be sustainable sources for regulated harvests. Ó 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. 1. Introduction Human consumption of wild animals (‘bushmeat’) is thought to be escalating in Central and West Africa, and may not be sustainable for many species (Fa and Brown, 2009). This has been brought about by increased commercial hunting. Bushmeat hunting is also a prob- lem in the neotropics, but at least until recently less pressingly so (Fa et al., 2002). Hunting for trade rather than for subsistence has been promoted by increased penetration of remote forests by logging roads (Wilkie et al., 2000) and by the greater access to modern weap- ons by hunters (Bowen-Jones and Pendry, 1999). At the same time, low incomes and lack of alternatives push hunters to sell bushmeat to other consumers (as well as consuming some themselves) either directly, at markets or via middlemen (Wilkie and Godoy, 2001; Wil- kie et al., 2000, 2005). Protected areas may become the main source of wild meat in many regions (Fa et al., 2006). There is increasing evidence for illegal hunting in protected areas throughout Africa for the bushmeat trade. Even in well estab- lished parks, the current level of protection is inadequate for some groups, including antelopes and their predators (Caro and Scholte, 2007). In the Dzanga-Sangha reserve, Central African Republic (CAR), for example, mammal populations are declining as hunting pressure increases (Remis and Kpanou, 2010). Brugiere and Maga- ssouba (2009) surveyed 16 trading points in different parts of the Haut Niger National Park, Guinea. They report unsustainable extraction of primates and some ungulates, and evidence for increasing extraction in the core area of the park, where hunting is illegal. They also observe that roads stimulated the trade. Hunt- ing in Korup National Park, one of the two large parks in our study area, is driving some of Africa’s threatened primate species to local extinction (Linder and Oates, 2011). Globally, protected areas are a cornerstone in conservation strategy, and while they may be effective in combating some threats to biodiversity loss (Bruner et al., 2001) our understanding of their effectiveness in protecting wildlife from bushmeat hunting and some other threats is incomplete (Gaston et al., 2008). In this 0006-3207/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2011.12.018 ⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 1865 393100. E-mail address: david.macdonald@zoo.ox.ac.uk (D.W. Macdonald). 1 Present address: African Wildlife Foundation, Boulevard du 30 juin No. 2515, Immeuble AFORIA, B.P. 2396, Kinshasa/Gombe, Democratic Republic of Congo. Biological Conservation xxx (2012) xxx–xxx Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Biological Conservation journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/biocon Please cite this article in press as: Macdonald, D.W., et al. Bushmeat trade in the Cross–Sanaga rivers region: Evidence for the importance of protected areas. Biol. Conserv. (2012), doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2011.12.018