AN ASSESSMENT OF HUMAN-MONKEY CONFLICT IN URBAN COMMUNITIES IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Human population increase in urban areas leads to loss of urban wildlife habitats. Habitat loss not only affects wildlife populations but causes conflicts with resilient urban wildlife species like the mona monkey (Cercopithecus mona). This study was carried out between March and July 2018 and aimed at assessing the population of mona monkeys, occurrence, and causes of Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC) involving this species in four urban communities, Soluyi, Magodo, Agiliti, and University of Lagos. Data collection was through total count of monkeys encountered and administration of 200 structured questionnaires. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analyses. University of Lagos had the highest troop size of 19, Magodo and Agiliti had 6 individuals each and Soluyi had 2 individuals. All the 175 respondents indicated the occurrence of HWC in their communities. Presence of fruit trees in peoples’ compounds and lack of food in monkeys’ habitats were the main causes of HWC as indicated by 99.7 % and 90.8 % of respondents respectively. Only age of respondents had significant difference on their opinions and HWC. Age of respondents had significant effect (F = 3.00, P < 0.05) on their opinion on causes of monkey raids. The presence of monkeys in these locations implied that the area was their natural habitats. The highest number of monkeys in University of Lagos is attributed to vegetation cover. The depleting habitat and low population of mona monkeys in urban areas requires the designation of protected urban forests for the species’ population recovery and conservation