Species Diversity, Abundance, and Habitat Association of Medium- and Large-Sized Mammals in Harego Forest, South Wollo, Ethiopia.

Abstract

Despite the importance of the knowledge of mammals' diversity, abundance, and habitat association for designing feasible conservation measures, most of the studies so far are emphasized in protected areas which in turn affects due understanding of the faunal records and conservation endeavors. Hence, we aimed to investigate species diversity, abundance, and habitat association of medium- and large-sized mammals at Harego Forest, South Wollo, Ethiopia, from November 2020 to October 2021, covering both wet and dry seasons. We classified the study area into natural forest, bushland, and Erica woodland habitat types based on the topography and vegetation cover. The line transect technique was employed to study the diversity, abundance, and distribution of mammals. The counting of mammals was carried out along 16 transect lines from 06:00 to 10:00 h in the morning and from 15:00 to 18:00 h late in the afternoon when most animals are active in the study area. A total of 260 individual of medium- and large-sized mammals belonging to 15 species, 10 families, and 5 orders were recorded. Among the recorded mammal species, Theropithecus gelada was the most abundant species while Felis serval was the least in the study area. The abundance of mammals varied significantly among the different habitat types. The highest and lowest mammalian species richness was recorded in the forest and Erica woodland habitats, respectively. The highest species similarity was observed between forest and bushland habitats. The study area is home to different species of mammals including the endemic mammals of Ethiopia that urges conservation stakeholders to design effective conservation measures to sustain the habitat and the mammalian species.