Beyond Uniqueness

The sheer size of our vast country has blessed Ethiopia with a myriad of different eco-systems. It is this wealth of geological variety that has contributed to Ethiopia’s status as one of the world’s 12 centers of bio-diversity. Our country is home to 31 endemic mammals, 24 amphibians and 16 bird species. Among the rarest of the mammals is the Ethiopian wolf- the only member of its family in all of Africa and a unique canine.
Dr Zelalem Tefera is a researcher who has devoted years to studying this handsome animal and this week, shares with us some of his findings about the endangered Ethiopian wolf.

The Ethiopian Wolf, (Canis simensis) the most threatened canine in the world and the only wolf species to be found in Africa.Known in Amharic as “Key Kebero”, it is found in Afro-alpine grasslands and heathlands where vegetation is less than 0.25 m high and altitudes between
3000-4400 m. The animal is likely to live 8-9 years in the wild, generally preys on rodents ranging in size from the giant mole-rat to the common grass rats.
Dr. Zelalem Tefera is one of the most prominent researchers on this endemic animal. He has a PhD in Biodiversity Management from the University of Kent at Kantrbury, United Kingdom. Now he is working as a Project Coordinator on the Afro-alpine Ecosystem Conservation Project at Frankfurt Zoological Society, founded in 1858. In the 1950s, Prof. Bernhard Grzimek’s pioneering work in Africa paved the way for the Society’s current mission of global nature conservation. Today, FZS’s nature and species conservation efforts include 80 projects in 30 countries in some of the world’s most valuable ecosystems. Dr. Zelalem is married and has two children. Capital’s Tedla Desta conducted an interesting discussion about the Ethiopian wolf and related issues with the eminent scientist.
Excerpts follow:

Capital-What is the Afro-alpine Eco-system Conservation Project?
Dr. Zelalem- The project is designed to protect the afro-alpine areas of Ethiopia. The habitat is fragmented and isolated as it is found at altitudes of 3400 to 4000 meters above sea level. It is a very important place because it is a water catchment area and most of Ethiopia’s endemic wildlife are found in these areas. There is also a high animal population density and it is a so called biodiversity hotspot. We operate in the North Western part of Ethiopia, Amhara, Menz in northern Shewa Abune Yosef in South Wello and Semien National Park.

Capital-What sort of activities are you focussing on?
Dr. Zelalem-We develop community based conservation, awareness creation; prepare bylaws and develop legislation to enable sustainable use of natural resources. To this end, we have established community conservation councils. We also encourage children to learn about the environment. The project includes protecting the Ethiopian Wolf and the Chelada Baboon by monitoring and censing the distribution, abundance and threats to these animals. The main threat to the Ethiopian Wolf is rabies. So we organize vaccinations, work on rehabilitation activities, and maintain tree nurseries. This is through providing seedlings for communities to plant-and generate income for themselves.
Community based ecotourism development is another aspect. We encourage them to come visit these facilities. We are now building a Tourist and Information Center that benefits the community, which will be inaugurated and begin operating by the new third millennium.

Capital- It was reported in 1996 that the number of Ethiopian wolves was at one thousand. How accurate was it and how many remain today?
Dr. Zelalem- One thousand was a very liberal figure. It was rather 500. Their numbers fluctuate because of habitat loss, human activity, fragmentation of territory, and disease from domestic animals mainly rabies and related diseases, and poisoning. There are also biological factors like in-breeding and out-breeding depression - meaning that as they breed with domestic dogs their genetic purity is diluted.
The largest concentration is found in the Bale Mountains; half of these were affected by rabies. The remaining are found in the other mountain ranges of the country- Semien, Guassa area of Menz, Wello highlands and the Arsi Mts. Their present population is in the range of 500 to 600.

Capital-What makes Canis Simensis unique?
Dr. Zelalem-The very first thing is that they are found only in Ethiopia and are the only wolf in Africa. With fewer than 500 to 600 individuals remaining in seven small and isolated populations, the Ethiopian wolf is the rarest canis in the world. It is a localized endemic and is confined to some isolated pockets of Afroalpine grasslands and heathlands in Ethiopia. Initially considered to be of Afrotropical origin as a specialized derivative of the common jackal, it is now known to be of Palaeartic origins. Genetic work has shown that it is most closely related to the grey wolf (Canis lupus) from which it diverged an estimated 100,000 years ago. Ethiopian wolves live in packs, with a discrete social unit that communally shares and defends an exclusive territory. Unlike many carnivores, pack members forage and feed alone on small rodent prey, which they commonly dig out from their burrows. The Ethiopian wolf is most active by day, when it feeds almost exclusively upon diurnal small mammals.
They also have got a very strange social life as they live in groups but however, hunt and feed singly.

Capital-Many wolves in the Bale Mountains died in a 1991 rabies outbreak Is rabies still a major threat?
Dr. Zelalem- The first deaths were in 1991 and ended with the rabies outbreak destroying more than half of the wolves. Since then their population has been increasing but between the end of 2003 and beginning of 2004, another outbreak occurred killing nearly 1/3 of the population in the Bale Mountains.
Recently, there has been a distemper outbreak. All these diseases are associated with domestic dogs in the wolf habitat. So the threat is still there mainly because the wolf is affected by livestock grazing, human settlement and subsistence agriculture.
Other risks include the rapidly expanding human population that has turned most wolf territory into farmland and other uses.

Capital-Do you have a captive breeding program?
Dr. Zelalem-No. There is no such a program. because it is very expensive, needs considerable expertise and in many species, captive animals cannot easily be released in the wild.
Capital-What are the legal implications of hunting the wolves?
Dr. Zelalem- Hunting the Ethiopian wolf is strictly prohibited. Severe penalties await any individual that harms or kills a wolf as this rare animal is under the protection of Ethiopian law.