FIRST ASSESSMENT OF CENTRAL AFRICAN FOREST DUIKER AND ELEPHANT DIET USING FECES EXTRACTED SEED GERMINATION

Central African duikers and elephants play a major role in seed dissemination, thus regenerating and structuring the forest. However, this forest mammal ecology is still poorly known, especially their diet. One possible explanation might be to gather field data and to experiment in a limited constrained environment. So, this study aimed to use a simple and efficient technique, seed germination, to determine central African forest duiker and elephant diet. A total of 43 fecal samples (34 duikers and 9 elephants) were collected in Lopé national park, central Gabon, and germinated into 96 pots containing either sterilized soil or cotton discs. Of the 96 germinating pots, 30 succeeded (31%) and 66 failed (69%); the highest germination success rate was recorded in soil (44%) and in elephant extracted seeds (33%) respectively. Furthermore, seven plant taxa were identified out of the germination experiment: Cesalpiniaceae, Lamiaceae, Loganiaceae, Melastomataceae, Rubiacaee, and two unidentified taxa. Of these, most germination success (23/30; 76,67%) were from the Rubiaceae family and more specifically from the savanna plant species Sarcocephaluslatifolius (Smith) Bruce(also known as Nauclea latifolia). Results of the present study proved to be useful as a first step in determining Central African duiker and elephant diet. However, these results should be further complemented with other techniques such as DNA metabarcoding or isotope analyses.