Aspects of the Community Ecology of Waterbirds in Mole National Park

ABSTRACT

Mole National Park is the largest and oldest national park in Ghana. With a large number of species of birds, mammals and reptiles, the number of tourists in Mole National Park keeps increasing and therefore creating room for human disturbance in diverse ways. Using the total area count method, this study established the species of waterbirds at Mole National Park and determined the seasonal variations in their diversity and abundance in four permanent wetlands from August 2015 to February 2016. It also assessed the nature and levels of disturbance to waterbirds and determined the alert and flight initiation distances of selected species of waterbirds through daily monitoring of waterbird flushes and the conduction of flushing experiments. A total of 29 species belonging to 6 orders and 12 families were recorded of which Lana Pool had the highest proportion of the birds’ abundance (58.08 %) while Asibey Pool recording the least (6.20 %). With White-faced Whistling Duck (Dendrocygna viduata) being the most abundant species in the study area, the highest number of species (26) occurred in Haraba Pool and the least (18) at Asibey

Pool. Species richness and abundance of waterbirds in Mole National Park varied between the wet and dry seasons with the dry season generally recording higher number of waterbird species richness and abundance. Waterbird at Mole National Park on the average spend 84.95 seconds per hour due to flushing. Majority of the flushes were caused by indeterminate factors (70.5 %). Average time spent in flight by a waterbird as a result of human flushing was 17.55 seconds per hour which constitute only 20.66 % of a waterbird’s average time in flight due to flushing. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) had the longest mean AD and FID whilst Green-backed Heron (Butorides striata) and Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) respectively recorded the shortest AD and FID. Grass height, grass cover, shrub height, group size and the number of heterospecifics in a group had a significant multiple regression weight with the AD of some waterbirds. It was recommended that bird watchers should schedule their visit to the park during the dry season so as to encounter more species. When considering set-back distances in the design of path ways in Mole National Park, it

should consider the alert distance of the largest species as this will help reduce disturbances of smaller ones.