Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
fish and Crombie and Pregill (
1999
) state that further import of these turtles
should be prohibited and their presence eradicated.
Recommendations for management
This paper has attempted to discuss the scale and priorities of conservation
concerns on Ngeaur. Resources such as money and time are often limited in
dealing with introduced species. Can years of effort and expense towards eradi-
cation of monkeys be justified when other, more dangerous species to human
health and to the economy exist? For species not causing substantial harm, the
most cost-effective method might be to exert some control over their numbers
and practice the LTL approach- Learn to live with 'em (Davis,
2009
). It is
difficult for primatologists to understand how such interesting animals cannot
be viewed as a unique resource. They are the only macaque population in all
of Oceania. They could be promoted as a tourist attraction to a much greater
extent than they are. Tourists are likely to be upset, however, and perhaps at
some risk at seeing the hunting of macaques and dead macaques as we were
during our brief stay in 1994. The macaques are, nevertheless, not generally
viewed as a unique resource.
Management of the macaque population on Ngeaur Island is also a con-
clusion reached by Farslow (
1987
) and he suggests, as only one of several
options, the trapping and selling of some macaques. Respondents to the survey
by Marsh-Kautz and Singeo (1999), favored continued hunting and the selling
of macaques to foreigners. Who should be the managers? A good place to start
might be with the community-based sakura-kai organization. This organiza-
tion could use tourist and perhaps government money to organize conservation
efforts and macaque management and it could compensate some of the local
people who suffer crop damage.
The best antidote for monkey-free gardens may be the ubiquitous presence
of humans and dogs, guarding the fields, and preventing the macaque's access
to the fields; a sort of human fence that would be on-guard for monkeys. While
labor-intensive, it is still the most effective means based on my experience
in Bali and Kalimantan. Other primatologists such as King and Lee (
1987
)
also found this to be effective in Malawi against crop-raiding vervet monkeys.
Perhaps the best that one could do on Ngeaur is, as humanely as possible, get
the macaques out of the swampy taro producing areas in the entire southern
third of the island. Keeping the monkeys north of the village using guarding
tactics, dogs, and residences might be effective in preventing the animals' return
to the south. The southern half of the island could then be used for gardening,
betel nut trees, and taro. Perhaps too, a bitter variety of taro can be planted
