A new research station in Senegal

A new research station has been established in Senegal. It will also be used by Czech scientists who are committed to the protection of antelopes

There are only 250 remaining individuals of the largest antelope, the western giant eland, in the world. A group of Czech scientists from the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague have been helping to protect them in Senegal for 25 years. The last refuge of these largest antelopes in the world is the Niokolo Koba National Park. The Czechs traveled to its heart, among other things, to open a new research station, Assirik.

"For us, this is a strategic location. The Assirik guarding post, where the new research station is now located, is the closest place to the last documented occurrence of the western giant eland in the world," says Dr. Karolína Brandlová, chair of the Czech NGO Antelope Conservation, which has been operating in Senegal for a quarter of a century. "Given that the western giant eland is no longer found in the wild anywhere else, opening the Assirik base to scientists is an absolutely crucial step."

The research station in one of the largest national parks in West Africa was established thanks to a grant from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the involvement of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Senegal, and cooperation with the conservation organization Panthera Senegal.

"When we started working in Niokolo, there were almost no lions. Thanks to cooperation with the national park rangers, we did a lot of work, reduced poaching and thus increased the population not only of lions, but also of other large mammals - for example, buffalo, roan antelope or giant eland," explains Chele Martinez, project manager of Panthera Senegal.

With the support of the Czech Republic, the guarding post, which can contribute to a deeper understanding of endangered species, was equipped with everything necessary for conservation and research. "We built five concrete platforms here, on which tents for researchers will stand. We purchased a satellite phone, GPS and a solar panel necessary for the operation of the base. At the same time, we improved the social facilities and access to water. Thanks to this, the post is ready for even more students and scientists from all over the world to come here and help support the protection of local biodiversity," adds Chele Martinez.

Professor Pavla Hejcmanová from the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague has extensive experience with research in Senegal. She has participated in several international research programs in Niokolo Koba. The most recent was the aerial census of wildlife in the national park in 2018.

"I have been going to Senegal since 2000 and I see the development - how the park management, the motivation of local rangers, the fauna, but also the conditions in which scientists and conservationists can work are changing. Niokolo Koba is home to many unique species, including the western giant eland, whose population is critically endangered," explains Prof. Pavla Hejcmanová. "Unfortunately, we did not record any eland in the park during the last aerial census. But finally, we have data from camera traps placed in various places in the national park. Thanks to this, we can estimate that the giant eland population is about two hundred individuals. Since Niokolo is the last place where these largest antelopes in the world occur, this is a very fragile number," she points out.

Czech scientists associated with the NGO Antelope Conservation are now focusing on analyzing data from camera traps. "In the future, we would like to add more camera traps directly to the places where antelopes are found. We are also collecting antelope droppings, from which we can obtain information about the state of the population thanks to genetic analyses. We are also interested in the composition of lion droppings, because from it it's possible, for example, determine whether antelopes are their preferred prey," explains Karolína Brandlová and adds: "We are gradually expanding our expertise to include other species of antelopes. And our wish for the future is to collar antelopes - that is, to use satellite collars to collect as much data as possible that will tell us more about the movement and life of individual animals. Unfortunately, this is an expensive operation that cannot be carried out without strong partners. So we will probably have to wait a while longer," explains Karolína Brandlová, chair of the NGO Antelope Conservation.

Niokolo Koba National Park covers an area of 9,000 km2 and the opening of the Assirik research station is essential for understanding the situation of many unique animal species - it will help scientists answer many key questions for the protection of critically endangered species, while also leading to a better understanding of the rare ecosystem.