Pygmy Hippos "Rediscovered"

Concerned URL	http://www.ml.duke.edu/projects/hippos/Newsletter/Mar08.html
Release date	03/06/2010
Contributor	Boye Johnson
Geographical coverage	Liberia
Keywords	pygmy hippos, biodiversity

The sudden appearance in Liberia's Sapo National Park of a pygmy hippopotamus thought to be dwindling in population has ignited hope and high expectations in the minds of many conservationists that all was not lost at all for the survival of one of the most elusive and secretive large mammals on the earth. After, two civil wars, illegal logging and poaching - it was thought this was more than enough to wipe out Liberia's population of pygmy hippos.

But this rare and endangered species has survived against the odds and there are photographs to prove it. It all started when a team comprising the Zoological Society of London - ZSL - led by Dr. Ben Collen, Flora and Fauna International - FFI, and Liberia's Forestry Development Authority (FDA), undertook extensive monitoring of the Sapo National Park in Liberia to find the endangered pygmy hippopotamus. They were delighted to discover that, despite their fears, the hippo population had not been wiped out. Just three days after setting up hidden cameras in the Liberian forest, the team of zoologists were amazed to capture the pygmy hippos on film. Ben Collen of the London Zoological Society said he remained highly concerned about the survival of the little hippos because they still face the threat of deforestation and bushmeat hunters.

FDA Managing Director John T. Woods, having received the information couldn't conceal his excitement when he remarked, "Until this camera trap experience I was pessimistic about the existence of the presence of the pygmy hippopotamus at Sapo. The results only confirm the richness of the biodiversity of the Liberian forest. We finally recognize and preserve the true worldwide biological value of Liberia's forests."

The pygmy hippo (Hexaprotodon liberiensis) is classified on the IUCN Red List as endangered, with its rapid decline put down to habitat degradation and bushmeat hunting. During the wars, hungry groups of displaced people, rebels and child soldiers ate anything that came their way - Liberia after the conflict was virtually devoid of animals, domesticated or wild.

It is believed that less than 3,000 of them remain in their natural habitat, the Upper Guinean forest which covers parts of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. As only 10% of the original forest is left, the pygmy hippos live in a shrinking world. Although war is now over in Liberia, the challenge will be to control illegal logging and poaching, which continue to put the pygmy hippo at risk.

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