Conservation of vervets, Africa’s most ubiquitous primates
When conservation concerns are multiple but budgets finite, conservation priority setting is often linked to the threat status of a species. Here, I aim to make a case for proactive conservation of common species. Vervets are ecologically flexible, widespread, relatively abundant monkeys with few major threats. Data were obtained through systematic literature reviews (habitat use, crop-raiding), analysis of CITES trade records (international trade, trophy hunting), websites and internet posts (trophy hunting) and direct observations at the Vervet Monkey Foundation (VMF) in South Africa (rescue centre intake). Vervets occupy mangroves in Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Senegal, and, to a lesser extent, Tanzania and Kenya. A potential habitat shift extension has been observed in Côte d’Ivoire where vervets were observed outside their previously described range. Vervets dominate the CITES-reported international trade in individual primates of African origin, accounting for 35% of captive-bred trade and 51% of wild-caught. Although hunting only accounts for 3% of wild-caught trade, it has been increasing, particularly over the last decade. Baboons and vervets dominated with 100 hunting establishments in 9 countries offering vervets. They are the cheapest primate to hunt and are often ‘opportunistic’ kills offered free of charge. Farmers rank vervets as problem animals with reported damage ranging from 2-20% of crops; the most common crops grown were also the most common crops raided by vervets. Intake in the VMF amount to almost 200 vervets over a decade, some injured (vehicle collision, shooting), most orphan infants. Combined these results imply that, while vervets are common and adaptable, they face a plethora of anthropogenic risks because of their ability to exploit human-altered environments. It suggests we need to pay more attention to common species, their extraction, and, perhaps most importantly, try to address human-monkey conflict and the associated perceptions and obstacles to conserving common species.
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