Perception of the local population of the forest relics and agrosystems of the regions of Haut-Sassandra and Marahoue on the Avifauna (Centre-West, Cote d’Ivoire)

Man is an essential link in the modification of landscapes. Over the centuries, man has shaped his environment through the use of land and natural resources. All these practices have led, in one way or another, to the erosion of wildlife resources. In order to reverse this trend, it is vital to understand how birdlife is perceived by people living near forest relics and agrosystems in the Haut-Sassandra and Marahoué regions. To achieve this, the methodology employed involved individual and group interviews using structured questionnaires. A total of 69 peoples from Bété (22 individuals) and Baoulé (47 individuals) ethnic groups were interviewed. The study revealed that birdlife is used for a variety of purposes, including food (86.97%), commercial (27.54%), magico-religious (7.24%) and medicinal (7.24%). Mann Whitney test revealed that the use of species did not depend on ethnicity (p = 0.97). Skin and meat were the most commonly used organs in the medicinal category (VUx = 3). Our studies showed that organ use did not vary according to the ethnicity (p = 0.179), sex (p = 0.240) or age (p = 0.513) of the respondent. In addition, the value of the respondent's diversity of use index was low (UD = 0.43 < 0.5). This means that the vast majority of respondents have little knowledge of the different uses made of birds. This knowledge is well distributed among respondents (EU = 0.93 > 0,5). This study has thus generated useful information that could opinion for decision-making in favour of the community conservation biodiversity of forest fragments.