What are the threats for the survival of the Barbary macaque?
Ronald Troostwijk
The reasons for the rapid decline in the wild population can be divided in 2 categories:
- Habitat degradation and destruction
- Illegal live trade in infants from Morocco to Europe
The destruction and degradation of the macaque's forest habitat is the most serious threat to the species. Severe habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation have been caused by domestic and industrial consumption of wood, use of fire, clearing for cultivation and overgrazing by sheep and goat herds (Taub 1977, Fa 1984, Camperio Ciani 1986, Menard and Vallet, 1993). Especially in Parc National d'Ifrane, this is exacerbated by poor forestry management (often Cedrus atlanticus is favoured and efforts are made to reduce Quercus ilex, but the latter is a crucial resource for macaques: Ménard and Vallet, 1986, 1997). Additionally, in recent years shepherds have increasingly settled near water sources. As shepherd tribes move into the forest, they often enclose open water sources with cement wells so they can extract water for their herds. As a result, macaques and other wildlife have been excluded from water sources in areas where it was previously accessible to them (Camperio Ciani et al. 2003).
The degradation and destruction of the macaque's habitat has been going on for many decades and despite attempts to manage the forest areas, the human impact has proven to be too severe, causing the macaques and other species to decline in numbers.
The illegal live trade in infant macaques from Morocco to Europe is also a significant threat to the wild Barbary macaque population. It is estimated that up to 100-300 infants are taken annually from the Moroccan habitats (van Lavieren 2004, 2008). Most of the specimens taken from the wild are for the international pet trade to Europe. Reports of capture for the international pet trade date back to 1977 (Deag 1977), and since then the trade has increased markedly (van Lavieren 2004, 2008). Sanctuaries and zoos in Europe have become overstocked with Barbary Macaque infants offered to them by authorities and ex-owners, most infants coming straight from the wild (van Lavieren 2004, 2008). AAP, a sanctuary for exotic animals in the Netherlands is the only sanctuary left in Europe that takes in this species as the problem has become so large, and maintains a long waiting list for taking the species in. In France, where the problem is the largest of all, wild-caught macaques are euthanized frequently because of lack of shelter.
Infant Barbary macaques are offered openly and covertly for sale on markets all over Morocco, and prices of up to 200 Euro per animal have been recorded (van Lavieren 2004, 2008). People can easily smuggle the monkeys across the border to Spain (by ferry), especially in the summer months, when most macaques are sold to tourists and Moroccans living in Europe, as the customs have to deal with a large amount of cars passing through.
The maximum sustainable offtake of macaques in the Central Middle Atlas region hs been estimated at between 200 and 250 individuals per year (van Lavieren, 2004, 2008). If the estimation of 300 macaques taken annually from the wild is correct, then the offtake exceeds sustainability by up to 50% per year.
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