Return from 2nd field site

Just returned on Friday from the 2nd field site in the village of Bushali in the groupement of Kalambo in the chefferie of Burhinyi. The most stark observation is the landscape matrix dominated by agricultural crops and fallow patches with intermittent forest patches. The slash and burn agricultural practice has created this matrix where the forest patches (secondary and primary) are quickly going away. The community feels some frustration as they have been asked not to cut the forest but depend on the land for their crops. The community does not seem to do extensive hunting, except for the setting of snares for small mammals and birds. So far they have not worked with or received support from any organizations but seem open to that. My team and I, with the help of local trackers, found a few small groups of chimpanzee nests. The nests were mostly old (starting to decay) but a couple were fairly new (green leaves). This shows the presence of endangered Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii near the community but, apparently not in abundance, during this dry season. We did not see signs of gorilla presence but there are reports of gorilla presence several kilometers from where we were. Despite the degraded landscape, there is presence of endangered and critically endangered apes outside the protected area of the Itombwe Nature Reserve. This ape presence combined with the willingness of the community to work with conservation reveals potential for ape and other wildlife conservation in the area. These are just preliminary observations. I will learn more upon transcription of interviews and downloading of GPS points and other data.