THE Cyber—Trackers - computerized recording of Bushmen's knowledge about animals helps protect African wildlife

Animals, Sept, 2000 by Joni Praded

To gain wider acceptance, Liebenberg may have to get more biologists to recognize tracking as a science. And that might happen as more projects, such as the one in the Odzala rainforest, achieve good results. "In the Congo," says Liebenberg, "they got 3,000 observations from four units in the first month alone."

That's the quantity of data needed when studying Eden. The vast rainforest clearings that startled biologists with their congregations of forest elephants, bongos, and other large, savanna-loving creatures turned out to be vast salines, or bais--mineral-rich geological features found nowhere else in central Africa. The forests around them supported the world's largest concentration of gorillas. And more surprises were to come. "Deep in the heart of the Congo Basin forest block," reports ECOFAC's Aveling, lives another anomaly: the last surviving forestdwelling lions.

Researchers have a chance to view a comer of paradise and save it even before it is in serious danger. "Poaching for elephants is an ever present threat," and an increasing one since the international body governing trade in endangered species allowed a one-time ivory sale, according to Aveling. "But otherwise the major part of the park is still relatively unaffected by human activities, as there are so few people living in the area. There is no commercial logging adjacent to the park, but this might change in the future, in which case pressures on the park are likely to change dramatically."

Liebenberg and ECOFAC team members are updating their PalmPilots with hundreds of icons that will depict the goings-on of more than 400 Congo-dwelling species. Over time, more will be added. More will be learned. And all of it will be mingled with data from other technologies to paint a picture of regional life never before possible. It's an endeavor whose rewards are great: the Congolese government recently decided to quadruple the park's boundaries-protecting 5,000 more square miles of this unique wilderness area.

Joni Praded is a contributing editor for Animals.