Field Notes

We packed only the essentials as we prepared for our trip into the Ebo forest. From start to finish this trip would be six days; every one of them fun-filled to be sure. Today we drive to a tiny village of Iboti on the edge of the Ebo Forest. Though it is only 55 miles from Duoala, it proves to be a long 55 miles on terrible roads. As we laced our way along dirt logging roads we stopped here and there for essential visits with the local gendarmes, local representatives of the government, village chiefs and various non-governmental groups like World Wildlife Fund. We also met Jacqueline, a young woman who works with Bethan. She travels from community to community along the edge of the forest collecting data and learning all she can about the thriving bushmeat trade. This is a delicate and extremely risky job. Jacqueline in many ways might just be the one to do it: very bright, youthful and attractive. She knows better than to be direct and simply starts conversations. As Bill and I listen to the stories she relates to Bethan, we realize that there is more going on than we had imagined.
 
Bushmeat and poaching is an enormous business and one quite important to the local communities. In these communities without law or money, it is a business that might well be protected by extreme measures. Bethan and her team are concerned primarily with assessing and studying populations of drills, the largest of all the monkeys, but it is clear that this basic science could not be done even in feigned ignorance of what is happening around you — or the impact you might have. What she and her team say and do while in these areas determines not only their ability to carry out their studies, but also to ensure to whatever degree possible, the safety of themselves and the animals they are studying.
 
After meetings with gendarmes and forestry representatives we finally made it to the small village of Iboti just before dusk. We set up tents in the classrooms and settled in for the night to rest before the long trek in to the research camp. [Sunni Black]

PHOTOS: Iboti Villagers (w/Sunni & Bethan), Classroom “Camp,” Iboti Porter
PHOTOGRAPHERS: Sunni Black, Bill Toone

While media attention has largely focused on the impact to Monarch butterflies, illegal deforestation is also having grave effects on the lives of local villagers in Michocan, Mexico, who are fighting against outside logging syndicates to protect their resources and livelihoods.

Indigenous communities are being threatened and coerced by armed logging syndicates, after trying to intervene and stop the logging. This issue is inciting civil unrest and violence. Community leaders are trying to get the attention of Mexican federal and state officials in a desperate attempt to end the cycle of corruption initiated by illegal deforestation. To date, the Mexican government has failed to adequately address these illegal activities or to take action.

ECO-LIFE Foundation has created a website — www.morethanmonarchs.org — to ensure the voices of the local community are heard. Morethanmonarchs.org allows the full story to be told, as it unfolds, without distortion or interference by third parties, and broadcasts the plight of these peoples to the world.

Morethanmonarchs.org captures the stories and accounts of those experiencing the loss of their livelihoods, their forests and the Monarch butterfly. The goal of this website is to allow the people of this region to speak directly to the Mexican government, in order to end the destruction of these precious resources. By supporting these communities’ in protecting their forests, we can help them persuade the Mexican government to support local law enforcement efforts to uphold existing laws protecting the reserve.

Most conservation issues are addressed after it is too late to stop the destruction of environments. While illegal logging has already devastated thousands of acres of forests in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, there is still a chance to salvage this habitat from irreparable damage if we act now to put pressure on the Mexican government. [Bill Toone]

Traveling in developing countries can be jarring to our senses. Nothing is as it is at home, and this alone is probably the single best reason to travel. Bill and I have spent most of our professional lives working with or for the Zoological Society of San Diego. As a result, whenever we travel we are almost always invited to the local zoo or wildlife rehabilitation center. The answer is generally a polite “no thank you.” We are so aware of how badly treated animals are in many of these facilities. We are most often in communities unable to properly care for the human population much less their pets and even less so the local wildlife. Bethan however had other plans for us and arranged for us to see the Limbe Wildlife Centre and have a brief tour with their director Dr. Felix Lankester. After a brief introduction in his office where we learned of the centre’s evolution from a disastrous zoo to a viable Wildlife Care Centre.

Felix was surprising. We really enjoyed him. As a veterinarian, he has brought his full force of skills and knowledge to significantly improving the quality of life for many animals. Other than two crocodiles (one dwarf and one Nile) the facility is pretty much exclusively dedicated to primates: gorillas, mandrills, chimpanzees and more…all orphans of the bushmeat trade and/or the illegal pet trade. They arrive in his care in a variety of ways and conditions. Seemingly without fail, they appear to flourish under his supervision and the care of nearly 40 employees; all from the local community of Limbe. This makes the Limbe Wildlife Centre one of the largest employers in town. His staff has received international recognition for their work not only with the animals in their facility but for outreach and teaching within the local community.

Millions of Cameroon Francs have been spent on upgrading the facilities, providing food and medicine and on training the talented and dedicated staff. They are supported entirely on donated funds. The food bill alone runs about $3,000 US every month. Felix is the director, head veterinarian, development director, PR manager, designer and planner. He has his hands full and is doing a great job. In a moment of fundraising genius he decided to respond to the ten to twelve emails a month from the US and Europe by people wanting to volunteer at the facility. He welcomes them, but before they come, they know they will have to pay for the opportunity. Each person makes a significant financial contribution and in return they spend a month in a fine facility learning from real masters in animal care and compassion. It’s worth the trip. [Sunni Black]

PHOTOS: Dwarf Croc, Chimp, Bill Toone & Dr. Felix Lankester
PHOTOGRAPHER: Sunni Black

Today was the first day to test our hiking skills and begin to shape up for the long trek to Ebo Forest coming up in a few days. Bethan dropped us off on a black sand beach with Aman, her right-hand guy in her field studies and Jo, a volunteer botanist from the Kew Botanical Gardens. It was really a most beautiful walk. The beach, its black sand derived from the volcanic activity of Mount Cameroon, was stunning. Monstrous clouds filled the sky and the air was heavy, wet and warm. Off the coast, fisherman in their pirogues worked the Atlantic waters for fish. After nearly an hour of walking along the beach tightly buttressed by forest, our trail turned inland and upwards. Through the forest above us we could see the old remains of a lighthouse high above the water. We walked up, viewed the ruins of the lighthouse, and enjoyed an incredible view of the forest and ocean, then continued on. The path was littered with orchids, flowers of the para-aristilochia, fallen fruits and rocks.

We spotted a tiny frog nestled in a cocoon of its own mucus, beautiful butterflies and incredible birds. No mammals were seen and in one area shells from a shotgun were found on the ground.

We traveled up a steep and overgrown gorge. Trees at the top of the gorge dropped their roots down over the rocky sides. Lianas covered much of the area like living nets. Finally it seemed we could go no further. An abrupt wall of stone seemed to mark the end of our trip. Closer inspection showed that steps had been cut by machete into one of the larger vines. We carefully climbed the vine and crested the stone face. In front of us was the most beautiful crater lake. Nearly perfectly round, surrounded by scrubby forest. A loud splash as a large Nile monitor dove into the water and swam away. Grebes dotted the surface and an African Finfoot worked the overgrowth along the waters edge. The hot, sweaty walk up the steep hills was quickly forgotten.

The walk back was every bit as interesting as the walk in…albeit there was a sense of a horse heading back to the barn after a long day. We worked our way through a field of manioc and papaya to find the road where we could meet Bethan. On the way we passed by a two room primary school that was in session. We walked by, hoping to be unobtrusive, but it was not to be. One of the instructors came out and shook our hands. He told us he had been telling the students about tourism and wondered if we would come into his class for a moment. It seemed a sterling moment. As is the case in all the schools I have visited in Africa, class is run with a firm hand and the students are extremely well behaved. As we entered they all stood and greeted us in a single chorus. Sitting the kids down, the teacher launched into his presentation, telling the kids about “…white people (just look at us) from Europe and America who come to places like Cameroon because we had no beaches or lakes in our countries.” He pointed out that our presence was positive and helpful to their economy and that we should be treated kindly. Though his presentation was rife with misinformation, the point was probably good. The kids had an exciting day, and it could be attributed to the wonderful characteristic of the place they lived in and would one day be making decisions about. [Sunni Black]

PHOTOS: Frog, Crater Lake, School
PHOTOGRAPHER: Sunni Black

In Cameroon, the marketing of bushmeat for profit is forbidden without a permit signed by the Minister. Nonetheless, the sale of bushmeat (defined here as any wild animal bought or sold for human consumption) is quite prevalent. There are a number of reasons how the sale of an illegal commodity can be carried out along main highways such as the one we are traveling between Yaounde and Duoala.

First and foremost, and at the root of most problems in Cameroon, is corruption. While recent reports place Cameroon as the thirteenth most corrupt country in the world, it was not so long ago that it was rated as the first. It is difficult to tell if they have improved or other nations have declined. Laws are not enforced as long as the person breaking the law can pay an officer for his freedom from prosecution. Because of corruption, money seldom goes where it should. Law enforcement officials do not have the vehicles they need to simply drive the main highway and enforce the laws. This would not necessarily mean arresting the guilty: if all that occurred were the regular confiscation of animals offered for sale, the trade in illegally harvested wildlife would be hugely reduced.

In the first two photos, we see examples of illegally killed roadside bushmeat from degraded or secondary forest: including a monitor lizard, an african civet and a cusimanse, as well as an agitated hunter who would prefer that his illegal harvest be un-noticed or at least undocumented by tourists or conservationists. In the third photo there is a bay duiker: a species found in healthy forests (note also firewood). The presence of the bay duiker in the trade reflects access into areas of remote and primary rain forest provided by roads developed for resource extraction. [Sunni Black]

PHOTOS: Illegal Roadside Bushmeat, Angry Hunter, Bay Duiker
PHOTOGRAPHER: Sunni Black