Bushmeat Database

The searchable Bushmeat Database contains more than 700 citations, including peer-reviewed journal articles, books and book chapters, technical papers, reports and conference proceedings. Citations include direct DOI-based links to the articles on the original journal or publisher’s website. To see the data displayed in a visual format, visit the Bushmeat Data Map.

Bushmeat trade in Techiman, Ghana, West Africa
Author
Author	Swensson, J.
Year
Year	2005
Secondary Title
Secondary Title
Volume
Volume
Pages
Pages
Abstract
Abstract	The hunting for bushmeat (the meat of wild animals) in West and Central Africa is today recognized as the major immediate threat to the survival of countless number of wild animal species. The bushmeat markets across West Africa are nowadays dominated by small bodied, fast reproducing species such as rodents. This is most likely a result of historical depletion: vulnerable, slow reproducing species such as primates and other large bodied mammals have been hunted out, so that mainly rodents and small antelopes are now hunted. This study seeks to find out if this pattern also prevails in Techiman, an important market town in central Ghana. Biological data on animal carcasses traded as bushmeat were collected during a period of two months. Interviews were conducted to get an informed idea on knowledge and awareness among bushmeat traders and hunters in the study area concerning aspects of legislation of bushmeat trading and hunting. The results clearly show that the bushmeat trade in Techiman is dominated by rodents (95 %), in particular the grasscutter (86 %). Awareness and knowledge among the traders and hunters in the area is generally low. For example, only 3 out of the 34 respondents could state the correct time period of the closed season (when hunting is restricted/prohibited). These results highlight the serious bushmeat situation in Techiman as well as in the rest of Ghana and West Africa.
DOI
DOI

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