400
500
extinct
100
10-18
The black rhino was formerly found in a large part of Africa, from South Mali / North Guinee in the west to Somalia in the east. It was first extinct in West Africa, doubtless just prior to the arrival of the Europeans. In central Africa, there were still several thousands at the end of 19th century.
20-30
100
40-60
30-35
190
100
The three parks and hunting zones represent more than 50% of the protected areas in Cameroon. A hundred people need to patrol these 1.930.000 ha, which is obviously insufficient. The rangers lack all kinds of equipment and incentives. It seems that most poachers are local people, and even the middlemen and first buyers. There is special suspicion towards the Chinese colony at Lake Lagdo (north of Benoue) although nothing has been proven. One thing is sure, the poached horns are exproted through Chad and Sudan to Yemen and East Asia. The repression of poaching is notoriously inefficient, arrests are usually quickly followed by release. One case is known of a buyer who paid $ 2000 for a horn, which is a huge amount in this country of low salaries.
general map of Cameroon
Within recent times, the distribution extended from the hills of Ngaound?r? in the south to the bend in the river B?nou? (north of Garoua). It is currently within the zone of three national parks: Faro, B?nou? and Bouba Ndjidah. These parks in total have 730.000 ha, and are surounded by hunting zones of another 1.200.000 ha. 40% of the rhinos live within the confines of the parks, except in B?nou? where they seem to have disappeared, and 60% in hunting zones. Some animals sometimes enter Chad from Bouba-Ndjida. With such a large area and limited number, the density is very low and the animals are much isolated from each other.
In central Africa, there were still several thousands at the end of 19th century. From 1910-1932, there was much pressure from the human population.
Up to the second world war, the rhinos had 3 main threats: the sports hunting, hunting for food, and trade of the horn. From 1925-1935, the price of the horn increased considerably. One threat is poaching. But also there is the pressure of the human population. The drought in the area at the northern side of its area of distribution has generated an influx of immigrants southwards. Those immigrants, mainly farmers, often do not follow the law and order which has always been a pillar of society in Cameroon. Also, all rural populations are increasingly poor, which makes them to overexploit the natural resources (cutting of trees for agriculture and firewood, poaching). At the same time the growing of cotton is a threat, as this is the only local cash crop and it takes more and more space. Some protected areas are being declassified to make space for cotton. The `invasion' of cotton is in two pockets which separate the Faro and B?nou? on one side, and the B?nou? and Bouba Ndjidah on the other side. The climate is also changing. The rainy eason is short, 4-6 months, with 850 mm annual rainfall. The temperatures average 35-45 degrees. The dominant vegetation is dry savannah with shrubs and treees. The watercourse, locally called mayo, are often partly or totally dry in the dry season.There is also a problem of insecurity. The government has few funds available for protection and its actions shows some failures. The local populations usually view the wildlife as an obstacle to their activities. That antagonism is neither recent nor limited to Cameroon. The hunting zones are often licensed to foreign hunters. The local population benefits indirectly, but they receive only a small part of the profit: 3 % in 1994-1995, against 25 % to the state and 72 % to the professional hunters.'
