Assessing the prevalence of protected species consumption by rural communities in Makira Natural Park, Madagascar, through the unmatched count technique

In tropical Africa, wild meat consumption by rural communities who live in or near protected areas can be a major challenge in the conservation of threatened species. Lemurs and the fossa are among the species consumed in Makira Natural Park, Madagascar. Because of their low reproductive rates and the high human population density, these species are known to be hunted unsustainably. We estimated the prevalence of lemur and fossa meat consumption in villages within and around Makira Natural Park using an indirect questioning method, the unmatched count technique (UCT), and compared it with results from direct questioning. The UCT revealed that 53.0% of households had eaten lemur meat over the previous year (95% confidence interval [CI]: 42.0-64.1%) and 24.2% had eaten fossa meat (95% CI: 14.2-34.2%). The percentage of households that ate lemur meat estimated through the UCT was more than 3.3 times higher than that obtained from direct questioning, and 12 times higher for fossa. Our estimates will be used to define the scale needed for a behavior change campaign to be conducted in the study area and will serve as a baseline to assess the impact of conservation activities aimed at reducing the consumption of lemurs and fossas.

Automated summary

Consumption of wild meat poses a challenge to the conservation of threatened species by rural communities in tropical Africa. A study conducted in Madagascar's Makira Natural Park using the Unmatched Count Technique (UCT) revealed a significant prevalence of lemur and fossa meat consumption among households, highlighting the need for behavior change campaigns. The results from the UCT method were significantly higher than those obtained from direct questioning, indicating a potential underestimation of wild meat consumption through traditional surveys.