Original Research Article I Volume 11 I Issue 1 I 2023
Bird Ecology in the Ruzizi Delta, Northern End of Lake Tanganyika in Burundi and in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Bashonga Bishobibiri Alexis; Eric Sande; Gaspard Ntakimazi; Charles Kahindo
Biolife, Volume 11, Issue 1, 2023, pp 12-20
DOI:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7686228
Abstract:
Bird ecology in the Ruzizi Delta was investigated during the months of April, July and October 2019-2021. Three species of water birds were the most prominent, the Cattle Egret (Ardeidae), Bubulcus ibis (Linnaeus, 1758) «Héron garde boeufs», the Black Crake (Rallidae) Amaurornis flavirostris (Swainson, 1837) «Râle à bec jaune» and the Africana Jacana (Jacanidae) Actophilornis africanus (Gmelin, 1789) «Jacana a poitrine dorée». The objective pursued by the research is the sustainable conservation of birds by protecting their habitats, the wetlands of the Ruzizi Delta, particularly the unprotected Ruzizi Congolese Delta. The research documents 490 bird species including 99 (20%) in the unprotected Ruzizi Congolese Delta, 191 (39%) in the protected Rusizi Burundian Delta, and 200 species (41%) in both the Ruzizi Congolese Delta and Rusizi Burundian Delta. The research presents 60 newly reported species in the Ruzizi delta of which four are reported only in the unprotected Ruzizi Congolese Delta, 37 in the protected Rusizi Burundian Delta and 19 newly reported species both in the Ruzizi Congolese Delta and Rusizi Burundian Delta.
Keywords:
Ecology, conservation and management of birds; Ruzizi Delta; Wetland areas; Habitat degradation; Water birds.
References:
[1] Arendt, W. J. (1988). Range expansion of the Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) in the Greater Caribbean Basin. Colonial Waterbirds 11: 252–262, 10 pages.
[2] Ashoor, A. (2010). Breeding Biology and Success of the Little Egret Egretta garzetta in Karfestan Ab-bandan, Roudsar, Gilan Province, Northern Iran. Podoces, 5(1): 29 34, 6 pages.
[3] Bachir, A. S., Barbraud, C., RCéréghino, & Santoul, F. (2012). Cattle Egrets Ardea ibis use human made habitat in a newly colonised area in North-Algeria. Ostrich 83: 51–53, 3 pages.
[4] Bachir, A. S., Ferrah, F., Barbraud, C., Céréghino, R., & Santoul, F. (2011). The recent expansion of an avian invasive species (the Cattle Egret) in Algeria. Journal of Arid Environments 75: 1232–1236, 4 pages.
[5] Bank, W. (2018). Lake Tanganyika Environmental Management Project (P165749), Project Information Document/ Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet (PID/ISDS). Washington DC, USA: Public Disclosure Authorized, 21 pages. http://www.worldbank.org/projects 02/11/2021.
[6] Bashonga, B. (2013). The Importance of Ruzizi Congolese Plain, South Kivu, DRC for the Conservation of Birds. A dissertation submitted to the DRGT in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of a degree of Master of Science in ENR of MUK, Uganda. Kampala: Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, 112 pages.
[7] Bashonga, B. A. (2019). Public Awareness on tne Reauction of Threats to Crocodiles and Hippopotami in the Ruzizi Plain and the Lake Shore in Uvira DRC, Northern End of Lake Tanganyika. CEBioS, Buxelles, 4 pages. http://cebios.naturalsciences.be 07/10/2021.
Article Dates:
Received: 28 December 2022; Accepted: 18 February 2023; Published online: 28 February 2023
How To Cite:
Bashonga Bishobibiri Alexis, Eric Sande, Gaspard Ntakimazi, & Charles Kahindo. (2023). Bird Ecology in the Ruzizi Delta, Northern End of Lake Tanganyika in Burundi and in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Biolife, 11(1), 12-20. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7686228 Received: 28 December 2022; Accepted: 18 February 2023; Published online: 28 February 2023
