Human-wildlife conflicts are common across the globe. In Namibia, cheetahs roam freely on privately owned farmland and occasionally prey on cattle calves. Drawing on GPS data obtained and analyzed in close collaboration with farmers, the CRP unraveled the spatial sytem of cheetah society and identified communication hubs as hotspots of cheetah activity and farmer-cheetah conflict. In a new range-wide study we aim to understand these patterns in a wider context across the range - and potentially upscale a successful conservation solution
Anthrax is an infectious bacterial disease endemic in some parts of Africa. It affects people, livestock as well as wildlife. Using GPS telemetry data, a team of scientists from the Cheetah Research Project of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) reconstructed a special case of anthrax infection in Namibia: Three free-ranging cheetahs in the Namib Desert died within 24 hours after feeding on a mountain zebra that tested positive for the disease. The zebra is the first described case of a wild animal infected with anthrax in this arid region. The case also shows that there might be previously unknown risks to cheetah populations in the desert. It is described in detail in the scientific journal “Frontiers in Veterinary Science”.
Human-wildlife conflicts are complex and require scientific facts as well as trustful collaboration and communication among all the stakeholders involved. At the IZW, the integration of stakeholders into the research process is an important strategy not only to improve the societal relevance of the scientific results, but also to break down barriers between science and society in terms practically applying these newly gained insights. In a new video the CRP and the Leibniz-IZW explain in detail why we think a new quality of our science-to-society interface is necessary and how we use the real-world lab concept in our cheetah research.
Capturing cheetahs with cage traps is one of the spines of the Cheetah Research Project. For several research questions addressed in the CRP, long-term data and information obtained from free-ranging cheetahs in the core study area are essential. Theoretically, this is a task that can be carried out at any time of the year - still, there are high-times of trappings and quieter times. Are there “trapping seasons” and if so, for what reasons? Here we explore the rationale behind the first concentrated trapping campaign of the year 2021.
In early 2021 our team joined forces with data visualization expert Cédric Scherer vom the Leibniz-IZW to create a map from our recent PNAS study. The intent was to illustrate the key findings of the paper and to submit the map to the MoveMapCompetition from the Special Interest Group “Movement Ecology” of the British Ecological Society. We are very happy for the support of all the voters who made us win the ‘pretty map’ category and runner-up for the RMaps category. In a blog post for the BES’ Journal of Animal Ecology website we wrote about the creation of the map and the research behind it!
The central study area of the IZW Cheetah Research Project is situated east and northeast of Namibia’s capital Windhoek and covers an area of approximately 40.000 km². Nearly every square meter is utilized by commercial farmers, who mainly conduct cattle breeding. In 2020, the CRP is again running a comprehensive camera trap survey in this area employing camera traps to gain insights into the behaviour of the cheetahs and to estimate their density.
“Carnet de Conservation” (Conservation Diary) is a travel diary by veterinarian, travel addict and illustrator Emmanuelle Chave. The book that offers insight into the daily life of wildlife research in Namibia. We follow Rubén into the desert to study and capture cheetahs with the Cheetah Research Project, a project of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research. At the crossroads of scientific research, conservation, and travel, this book is a tribute to the people who dedicate their lives to wildlife research. An adventure in watercolor paintings to describe the daily life in the field, the passion of wildlife and the desert beauty.
IZW science communicator Jan Zwilling visited the Cheetah Research Project in November, 2019, in order to visually tell the story of how exactly research into the spatial ecology is helping to solve a long-lasting human-wildlife conflict. Together with South African filmer Sean Viljoen from Conservation Film Company he produced a short film on that subject - and used his rare free time on the set and in the field to create photographs. His passion for photography as a means to bring together science, nature and art made him explore both the aesthetic and the factual aspects of this story.
Our long-term Cheetah Research Project is located in the savannahs of Central Namibia, investigating the health status, immunology, reproduction and spatial ecology of the elusive and threatened cat. Additionally, the research team is carrying out a cheetah survey across Namibia since 2015 to estimate the density of cheetah in different habitats throughout the country. The final aim is to estimate the total population size using empirical data collected at field following a scientific procedure.
We are glad to communicate that our seroprevalence paper on apicomplexan parasites was published yesterday. In this work, we tested more than 500 individuals of 12 wildlife species sampled on Namibian farmland and National Parks. The main results are that seroprevalence of apicomplexan parasites in carnivores ranged between 52% in cheetahs and 93% in lions (and 92% in brown hyenas). We also show that older individuals have higher Toxoplasma infections than younger ones.
Cheetah experts in many zoos around the world are at a loss. Despite all their efforts, these cats often do not reproduce in the desired manner. Researchers from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW), together with colleagues from the Allwetterzoo Münster, have now found a key to the issue: the age of the mothers at the first pregnancy is the decisive factor. In contrast to the wild, felines kept in zoos are often bred only years after they have reached sexual maturity. From the study results, the researchers derive recommendations for keeping cheetahs in zoological gardens. The study was published in the journal "Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research".
Scientists of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz IZW) in Berlin analysed the spatial behaviour of cheetahs. They showed that male cheetahs operate two space use tactics which are associated with different life-history stages. This long-term study on movement data of over 160 free-ranging cheetahs in Namibia has now been published in the scientific journal ECOSPHERE.
A comprehensive assessment of cheetah populations in southern Africa reveals the critical state of one of the planet’s most iconic big cats. An international group of scientists presents evidence that realistic population estimates of cheetah in southern Africa are lower than previously recognised and that their population decline support a call to list the cheetah as “Endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The study is published in the open-access journal PeerJ.
