Botswana

Harvesting_African Baobab_Botswana

Emma_Hemmerle — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 16:45:32 +0000

Harvesting_African Baobab_Botswana Emma_Hemmerle Wed, 02/09/2022 - 16:45

Affiliation

IIED

Date Of Record Entry

Wed, 02/09/2022 - 12:00

Type of wild species covered by the record

Wild species used in its natural habitat

Stage of the value chain covered by the record

Primary Producer/harvester (e.g., NTFP collectors, egg collectors)

Record Source

“Grey” literature (e.g., NGO reports, case studies, non-detriment studies; project documents etc. (not necessarily peer-reviewed))

Testing the Baobab’s Mettle: An Evaluation of the Sustainability and Economic Potential of Harvesting Adansonia digitata

Unknown/not recorded

Is the species endemic HIDE

Population Status

Unknown/not recorded

National Level

Unknown/not recorded

Threats/Pressures impacting the conservation of the species

Unknown/Not Recorded

Population Trend

Unknown/not recorded

Sub-national Level

Unknown/not recorded

Name

Emma Hemmerlé

Scientific Name

Adansonia digitata

Common Name(s)

African Boabab

Type of Use

Extractive (i.e., the entire organism or parts of the organism are removed from its environment)

If extractive, for the target species, is this use

Non-Lethal

Does this use involve take/extraction of

Only parts or products of the organism (e.g., feathers, leaves, branches, eggs, nuts)

Details of parts/products taken

The shells of the fruit are used to make bowls, cups, and jars.
Fruit is harvested for human consumption; young leaves are eaten as a spinach, and the seeds can be eaten as a snack either raw or roasted. The roots, when boiled, produce a red-purple dye that is suitable for dying fabric. Bark is harvested for traditional medicine purposes. Both bark and roots are harvested using axes. They are simply chopped off haphazardly when being used for traditional medicine purposes, whereas when the bark is to be used for rope or crafts a rectangular strip of bark is usually removed, sometimes spanning the entire circumference of the tree (ringbarking).

How is the primary use carried out?

Gathering/Cutting/Collecting Terrestrial Plants and Fungi or Their Products From the Wild

Are specific characteristics/traits being targeted?

Unknown/not recorded

Purpose of Use

Basic subsistence (meeting day to day essential needs)

Cultural/spiritual

Additional Details (if available)

the role it plays in the day-to-day lives of the people who live around it, through its usefulness as a source of food, medicine, and crafts.

What is the main end use for any living organisms, parts or products taken/extracted?

Food for People

Medicine/Pharmaceutical (human/veterinary)

Ornamentation, decoration and apparel

Amount

39.00

Units Of Measurement

Number of mature fruit-bearing trees accessible in the village

Time period over which this has been recorded

2009

What is the trend in the level of offtake within the period covered by this record?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Is there a regulatory or customary regime in place to govern this use?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Geographic Location

Sub-Saharan Africa

Country

Botswana

Sub region/state

Central District

Name

Getwa

Site Description

Gweta, population roughly 5000, is situated on the northern outskirts of the Makgadikgadi pans in the country’s Central District and is one of the main entry points for tourists visiting the pans.

Is the site legally/formally protected?

Unknown/not recorded

Ownership

Unknown/Not Recorded

Management

Unknown/Not Recorded

Unknown/not recorded

Is the use part of a strategy to generate conservation incentives, to finance conservation, or to improve tolerance/stewardship?

Unknown/not recorded

Is there evidence that the use is affecting the conservation status of the species? HIDE

Yes – use is negatively affecting the status (e.g., population is declining; extraction effort is increasing)

Is there evidence that the use is affecting natural selection?

Unknown/not recorded

Is there evidence that the use is affecting poaching of illegal wildlife trade?

Unknown/not reported

Is there any evidence that this use of the species is having a knock-on effect on the status of non-target species

Yes, it is having a negative effect (e.g., prey depletion, stress, disrupted breeding, movement, sleeping, feeding patterns)

Unknown/not recorded

Additional Details (if available)

At the moment, buffalo weavers are threatened by branch loss, which can and does cause their nests to drop from the trees.

Details of assessment carried out

Results suggest that baobab harvesting in its current form is detrimental to the trees’ health and may not be sustainable in the long term;
harvesting practices at present are causing damage to the trees and will result in diminishing returns to the village over time, especially where fruit is concerned. At the moment, fruit yields are almost certainly declining as a result of human exploitation. In the face of a growing human population, pressure on the trees will increase, and as a result the benefits they provide to the community will gradually wither away. If pushed farther, even the trees themselves could begin to be killed as has happened with fungus-infected baobabs in Namibia;

Has a valuation of financial flows from this use at the site/national/international level been recorded

Contribution to GDP

Unknown/not recorded

Food

Energy

Medicine/healthcare

Education

Training/Skills

Land/Resource Rights

Decision Making

Conflict- people

Conflict- wildlife

Climate Change

pulp contains six times the vitamin C of an orange, more calcium than milk, numerous antioxidants, and a high concentration of vitamin A. The leaves are also high in vitamin A, can be eaten as a green, and are used medicinally to treat fevers and diarrhoea.

Has the use of the species been recorded as resulting in changes to human health in this record?

Unknown/not recorded

Has the species in use been noted as being of particular disease risk to humans?

Unknown/not recorded

Has the use of the species resulted in changes to animal welfare in this record?

Unknown/not recorded

Are there particular practices which have increased the risk to human or animal health or welfare in the use of this species?

Unknown/not recorded

Does the use of this species increase susceptibility to pathogen spread?

Unknown/not recorded

Support from NGOs

Absent

Biological characteristics of target species

Present

Is this use legal or illegal?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Source Reference(s)

Rhodes, Benjamin, "Testing the Baobab’s Mettle: An Evaluation of the Sustainability and Economic Potential of Harvesting Adansonia digitata" (2009). Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection. 727.
https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection/727

Results suggest that baobab harvesting in its current form is detrimental to the trees’ health and may not be sustainable in the long term; Human usage was linked to increased branch loss and to the severity of infection by rot fungi.

Who is involved in the use?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Is there any gender/age specificity in the various roles

Unknown/not recorded

How many of these local jobs accure to the following categories?

How many people outside the local area are employed

Is there any evidence of other economic benefits associated with this use beyond direct income and jobs

Unknown/Not recorded

Scale of Assessment

Individual Site

IUCN National Red List Category

Not Evaluated (NE)

IUCN Global Red List Category

Not Evaluated (NE)

Green Status Global Category

Indeterminate

Yearly Financial Flows

Yes, considered unsustainable

Country reference

Botswana

Angling_Tigerfish_Botswana

Emma_Hemmerle — Thu, 27 Jan 2022 10:22:53 +0000

Angling_Tigerfish_Botswana Emma_Hemmerle Thu, 01/27/2022 - 10:22

Affiliation

IIED

Date Of Record Entry

Thu, 01/27/2022 - 12:00

Type of wild species covered by the record

Wild species used in its natural habitat

Stage of the value chain covered by the record

Primary Producer/harvester (e.g., NTFP collectors, egg collectors)

Record Source

Scientific publication (e.g., journal articles and book chapters independently peer-reviewed)

Physiological Response to Angling of Africa's Premier Freshwater Angling Species, the Tigerfish Hydrocynus vittatus

Unknown/not recorded

Is the species endemic HIDE

Population Status

Unknown/not recorded

No formal international protection in place

National Level

Formal national protection in place

Threats/Pressures impacting the conservation of the species

Agriculture

Climate Change

Pollution

Dams and other System Modifications

Illegal/Unregulated Fishing

Population Trend

Unknown/not recorded

Sub-national Level

Unknown/not recorded

Additional Details (if available)

It has declined in some rivers in southern Africa due to pollution, water abstraction and obstructions that prevent passage, such as dams and weirs. Unregulated gillnet fisheries locally threaten the species. Juveniles form an increasing component of the catches of fishers as other more valuable food fishes are fished out, most notably on the Barotse floodplains (D. Tweddle pers. obs. 2017). East African populations are threatened by heavy fishing pressure, silt loading due to agricultural activities or deforestation, and pollution due to pesticides for agricultural use. Threats in other regions are not known.

Name

Emma Hemmerlé

Scientific Name

Hydrocynus vittatus

Common Name(s)

Tigerfish

Type of Use

Non-Extractive

Are specific characteristics/traits being targeted?

Unknown/not recorded

Purpose of Use

Recreational

Additional Details (if available)

Hydrocynus vittatus is not popular as an eating fish and is generally not kept by recreational fisherman; however, it does form the basis of the catch-and-release (C&R) fishery in the Okavango Delta.

What is the main end use for any living organisms, parts or products taken/extracted?

Food for People

What is the trend in the level of offtake within the period covered by this record?

Increasing

Is there a regulatory or customary regime in place to govern this use?

Yes, formal (e.g., quotas, viewing or catch-size limits) and complied with

Additional Details (if available)

In Botswana a recreational angling licence is a requirement for anglers visiting the area. The license stipulates that only five fish, regardless of species, may be kept daily. The remainder (including all juvenile and undersized fish) must be released.

Geographic Location

Sub-Saharan Africa

Country

Botswana

Name

Panhandle of Okavango Delta

Site Description

The Okavango Delta is a subtropical floodplain, situated at the northern end of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana (Figure 1). During the seasonal floods, the delta fluctuates between 12 000–15 000 km2, and during the dry season between 6 000–8 000 km2 (Merron and Mann 1995). The study area (Figure 1) was situated in the panhandle region of the Okavango, just north of the Delta itself, close to the town of Shakawe and is characterised by slow-flowing, meandering water.

Is the site legally/formally protected?

Unknown/not recorded

Ownership

Unknown/Not Recorded

Management

Unknown/Not Recorded

Local people (e.g., individuals, communities, co-operatives)

National external (individual, groups. e.g., hunters, anglers, photographers, tourists)

International external (individual, groups. e.g., hunters, anglers, photographers, tourists)

Is the use part of a strategy to generate conservation incentives, to finance conservation, or to improve tolerance/stewardship?

Unknown/not recorded

Is there evidence that the use is affecting the conservation status of the species? HIDE

No – no clear evidence of the impact of use compared to other factors influencing

Is there evidence that the use is affecting natural selection?

Unknown/not recorded

Is there evidence that the use is affecting poaching of illegal wildlife trade?

Unknown/not reported

Is there any evidence that this use of the species is having a knock-on effect on the status of non-target species

Unknown/not recorded

Details of assessment carried out

Angling and handling times along with nutritional status were likely influential factors in the range of glucose, cortisol and especially lactate levels in this study. These data suggest that C&R causes physiological stress to tigerfish, but could nonetheless be a valuable fisheries management tool, ensuring the sustainability of fish populations.

Has a valuation of financial flows from this use at the site/national/international level been recorded

Contribution to GDP

Unknown/not recorded

Food

Energy

Medicine/healthcare

Education

Training/Skills

Land/Resource Rights

Decision Making

Conflict- people

Conflict- wildlife

Climate Change

Has the use of the species been recorded as resulting in changes to human health in this record?

Unknown/not recorded

Has the species in use been noted as being of particular disease risk to humans?

Unknown/not recorded

Has the use of the species resulted in changes to animal welfare in this record?

Unknown/not recorded

Are there particular practices which have increased the risk to human or animal health or welfare in the use of this species?

Unknown/not recorded

Does the use of this species increase susceptibility to pathogen spread?

Unknown/not recorded

High financial returns from use

Present

Biological characteristics of target species

Absent

Is this use legal or illegal?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Source Reference(s)

Gerber, R., Howatson, G., Greenfield, R., Wagenaar, I., & Smit, N. (2017). Physiological response to angling of Africa’s premier freshwater angling species, the tigerfish Hydrocynus vittatus. African Zoology, 52(2), 91-98. doi: 10.1080/15627020.2017.1300069

Threats/pressures impacting the species at the scale of this record

Unknown/Not Recorded

Who is involved in the use?

Unknown/Not Recorded

Is there any gender/age specificity in the various roles

Unknown/not recorded

How many of these local jobs accure to the following categories?

How many people outside the local area are employed

Is there any evidence of other economic benefits associated with this use beyond direct income and jobs

Unknown/Not recorded

Scale of Assessment

Individual Site