Ethnozoology, an Approach to the Conservation of Mammalian Wildlife. Case of the Itombwe Nature Reserve (INR), South Kivu, DR Congo

Throughout the world’s long history, the protection of nature has been inscribed by populations as an essence that enables them to understand it and remain in close collaboration with it. The Itombwe Nature Reserve, in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, is home to the ethnically diverse Bantu and Batwa peoples. Their vast ethnozoological knowledge demonstrates their tenacity to contribute effectively to the conservation of mammalian fauna, in addition to other important aspects of the management and preservation of biodiversity. Through interviews with professional hunters and bushmeat sellers, we identified the concept of use that combines the perceptions and activities of the people of the Itombwe Nature Reserve. A list drawn up of the mammalian fauna in a grid area within a radius of 4 Km2 shows 43 species divided into 9 orders, including 11 Rodentia, 10 Afrosoricida, 9 Carnivora, 7 Primates, 2 Pholidotes, 1 Cetarthiodactyla, 1 Carniformia, 1 Hydracoidae and 1 Proboscidea. Among these families, the small Rodentia mammal, Cricetomis emini, is widely observed. It should be noted that one species is Critically Endangered (CR), 6 Vulnerable (VU), 3 Endangered (EN), 3 Near Threatened (NT) and 30 of Least Concern (LC). Wild mammals are used in the Itombwe Nature Reserve firstly for food, then medicinally (zootherapy) and finally culturally (superstition, amulets, sacredness, taboo, ceremonial use). Taking into account the diversity index (species per mesh), particular attention should be paid to the Malambo, maternities in the local language, located in Mandja, Kitopo, Ngusa and Miki. Ethnozoology’s use of wild mammals in the Nature Reserve landscape is proving to be a strategic conservation approach that must be combined to motivate communities to become more involved and to perpetuate their know-how and their interaction with mammalian fauna.