Projects

Summer school on the integration of Ecohealth approach in sustainable wildlife management and zoonotic risk prevention of Dahomey Gap + Abstract

Spatial and Behavioral Ecology of the White-bellied Pangolin in the Lama Forest Reserve in Bénin + Abstract

The project carried out by the PhD student of the RADAR-BE team is a starting point for scientific investigations on the ecology of the white-bellied pangolin in Benin and will enable the collection of ecological data on the white-bellied pangolin in the Lama Forest Reserve using radio telemetry. This information is essential for policy makers to carry out in-situ conservation efforts to save the pangolins from the risk of extinction in Benin. More specifically, this knowledge will be important for practitioners to address the escalating poaching in the Lama Forest Reserve. The study specifically aims to : (i) study the size of the home range, activity patterns, habitat selectivity and selection of white-bellied pangolin refuges (ii) characterise white-bellied pangolin refuges.

AFRICoV- Genomic monitoring of SARS-CoV-2(-like) viruses in African bushmeat markets, and perceptions of health risks related to COVID-19 and bushmeat consumption + Abstract

Consumption and trade in wildlife are held to be the main culprits for the current VIDOC-19 pandemic. To date, SARS-CoV-2-like viruses have been isolated from only two Asian mammals (bat and pangolin). Given the diversity of the SARS-CoV viruses and their recognised ability to cross inter-species barriers, the spectrum of diversity of SARS-CoV-2-like viruses remains to be described. Such a knowledge gap could explain the current inability to identify the infectious process that led to the current pandemic, the most preferred scenario being that of multiple recombinations between SARS-CoV-2-like viruses from unknown intermediate hosts. Because wildlife trade is directly linked to the spread of emerging diseases, wildlife surveillance is a crucial sentinel for anticipating future epidemics, particularly those related to SARS-CoV-2. The consumption of bushmeat is a culture established in tropical Africa, and is implicated in the occurrence of several emerging diseases. The most recent work supports the hypothesis that the diversity of SARS-CoV-2-like viruses remains almost unexplored in mammals, and we hypothesize that a knowledge gap in tropical Africa remains to be filled. This is all the more true since mammals positive for SARS-CoV-2-like in Asia have representatives in Africa (pangolin and rhinolophe). In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the study of reservoirs and practices related to wildlife trade is a prerequisite for effective health surveillance. AFRICoV is addressing the issue of SARS-CoV-2 infection from the original prism of reservoirs, in the context of the bushmeat trade in Africa - which has recently also been linked to Asia via the pangolin trade. Our overall objective is to conduct health surveillance and risk assessment regarding the potential for a future SARS-CoV-2-related pandemic in tropical Africa; an objective that is particularly relevant given the lack of public awareness of health issues related to bushmeat consumption. AFRICoV is structured around four main objectives: (i) assessing the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2-like viruses in mammals, (ii) characterising the evolution of SARS-CoV-2, (iii) anticipating new reservoirs in tropical Africa, and (iv) implementing effective measures to protect African countries against new zoonotic diseases. Through a comparative approach involving three countries (Côte d'Ivoire, Benin and Cameroon), AFRICoV proposes a multidisciplinary approach linking genomic characterization of SARS-CoV-2-like viruses, health surveillance of mammalian reservoirs and study of bushmeat trade stakeholders' perceptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Members of the AFRICoV project have acquired expertise on bushmeat trade surveillance, involving genetic/genomic characterization of hosts and their pathogens, as well as the study of health awareness of communities involved in the bushmeat trade. This work, carried out upstream of AFRICoV, provides an exceptional opportunity to access the African bushmeat market network and assess the associated public health risks. The main deliverables from AFRICoV will consist of (i) a better understanding of the evolution of SARS-CoV-2(-like) viruses, (ii) an unprecedented estimation of new reservoirs in tropical Africa, (iii) validation of RT-PCR diagnosis for virus screening in hosts, (iv) South-South training on viral molecular diagnosis, (v) production of educational materials on the link between bushmeat consumption and public health, and (vi) a regional restitution workshop in West Africa including policy makers.

Ecosystem impact and sustainability of bushmeat exploitation in Benin + Abstract

Taking into account the impact of wildlife exploitation on the dynamics of plant communities has recently emerged as a necessary prerequisite for the sustainability of tropical ecosystem services. In Benin, the bushmeat trade is a crucial source of protein and income, and is also linked to traditional medicinal and spiritual uses. However, access to such natural resources by local communities is invasive and uncontrolled, and threatens the integrity of the country's last remaining forest islands. In this context, the young research team associated with IRD and called RADAR-BE aims to diagnose the access to bushmeat in its sustainability in terms of wildlife and forest conservation in Dahomey Gap, an integral part of the Guinean Forests hotspot. We propose (i) to trace the magnitude of bushmeat trade networks in southern Benin, (ii) to provide indicators (diagnostic markers) of the population dynamics of the main species targeted by this trade and of the woody species making up the forest islands, and (iii) to model the relationship between forest area, dispersant population sizes, dissemination efficiency and the level of invasibility of forest islands by local communities. A meta-community approach with a "mainland - island" configuration will be used, with the Lama Classified Forest (16250 ha) as the source habitat surrounded by sacred forest patches (from 1 to 10 ha). Socio-economic surveys will be combined with field observations to characterise the sampling of fauna and flora in the forests and the bushmeat sales networks. Molecular typing (barcoding, microsatellites) will be used to support bushmeat identifications and for a few target market species (pangolin, blue duiker, aulacode) in order to provide diagnostic demographic indicators. Forest plant communities will be characterised by their diversity, their dissemination syndromes and their use by local communities. Statistical analyses will be carried out on the collected data in order to estimate the intensity of sampling and its impact on the genetic diversity of the fauna and the dissemination of plants, integrating the parameter of invasibility (sampling pressure) of forests. In fine, a model for predicting the dynamics of plant species as a function of the intensity of bushmeat sampling will be built. The results of the work will be reported to local communities and forest managers in Benin. The RADAR-BE project, beyond the indicators for monitoring access to natural resources that it proposes to establish, should result in scientifically argued recommendations for a sustainable and ecosystem-integrated management strategy for the bushmeat sector in Benin. The populations living near the prospected forests will be strongly involved through the implementation of an awareness campaign on the importance of natural resource conservation. The research results will be popularised through communications, the elaboration of an educational booklet, posters, leaflets and scientific publications at both local and national levels. A joint policy and science workshop will also be held in Bohicon to demonstrate the need to incorporate wildlife issues into forest management plans.