Scientists estimate that there are less than 8,000 African cheetahs in all of Africa, but this number drops to just 2,000 units if we talk about the savannah.
Every year thousands of animal species go extinct on our planet, not only caused by climate change, but also by humans, and a number of animals that previously inhabited the African continent in large numbers are very close to disappearing as the wild dog and also the cheetah.
Now researchers of the Oxford University have discovered that accounting for these animals in the continent Africa, especially in the savannah, has been overlooked in recent decades, and there are far fewer units than is believed.
“Research effort is significantly biased towards lions and against striped hyenas, despite the latter species having the widest continental range“, it states Paolo Strampellifrom the University of Oxford.
“African wild dogs also exhibited a negative bias in research attention, although this is partly explained by their relatively restricted distribution.“, Add.
Scientists estimate that there are less than 8,000 African cheetahs in all of Africa, but this number drops to only 2,000 units if we talk about the bed sheet. The savannah is characterized by grasses and small or scattered trees and is the largest biome in South Africa, covering 46% of the region.
In fact, data from 2016 showed that the cheetah population in the savannah was 2,000 units, and 90% lived in protected areas.
“Our findings highlight the urgent need for further assessments of the cheetah population, particularly in the northern, western and central parts of Africa”, clarifies the researcher.
On the other hand, hyenas are the ones with the largest number of units, with more than 100,000 individuals, but that number is also drastically reduced in the savannah.
Wild dogs also endangered
The population of wild dogs, which has a diminishing presence in the savannah, is also greatly affected.
They criticize that biodiversity monitoring may not be distributed evenly or not being done where it is most needed.
Affirm that “reducing biases would help ensure that all species have an adequate knowledge base, which could improve their perspective”.
The report, published in PeerJ, concludes that “It is essential to carry out more evaluations of the population of African wild dogs, particularly as the species is threatened with extinction”.
Source: computerhoy.com
