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The Importance of Hunting and Habitat in Determining the Abundance of Tropical Forest Species in Equatorial Guinea

Understanding the impact of hunting on wildlife populations is crucial to achieving sustainability and requires knowledge of prey abundance responses to different levels of exploitation. While the abundance of primates has been shown to respond independently to hunting and habitat, habitat is rarely considered simultaneously when evaluating the impacts of hunting. Furthermore, the importance of these two factors in determining the abundance of other species has not been well investigated. We evaluate the independent effects of hunting and habitat on the abundance of a diverse assemblage of species, using a series of predictions and data from a study in Equatorial Guinea. Line transect surveys in sites of varying hunting intensity and habitat, and weekly interviews with hunters on current hunting effort in each site, were conducted. We also consider the role of past hunting, and discuss the interrelationships between hunting and habitat variables. We show that for primates, hunting is important in determining abundance, while for rodents and duikers, habitat is more important. Our findings show that the effects of hunting and habitat on abundance vary greatly between species, are often confounded and require an approach that isolates their independent effects to determine the true impact of hunting. Conservation managers must consider and incorporate habitat heterogeneity when managing hunting systems, taking into account the way in which the relative importance of these factors can vary between species.