The 'anatomy of disturbance' - a study of anthropic disturbance on Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) troops in the Middle Atlas, Morocco

The endangered Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) is the only macaque found wild outside of Asia. Its population has declined by over 50% in the last 23 years with the main threats including habitat loss through logging, overgrazing by livestock, illegal trade and developing negative effects of tourism. The last refuge of this species is in the Middle Atlas Mountains, Morocco. This refuge is becoming highly degraded through the effects of overgrazing. The aim of this study was describe how disturbances created by humans and their domesticated animals impinge upon the macaques ranging behaviour. This aim was achieved through the creation of a theoretical framework (anatomy of disturbance) to characterise the different element of anthropic disturbances events and how they affect the impact of the disturbance on the macaque troops. A ranking system was created to classify the severity of each disturbance Longitudinal data was utilised from the ‘Barbary Macaque project’ and used to calculate three study troops home ranges (Kernel tests) which were tested for relationships against temporal, cause and response elements of Disturbance events. Human disturbance was successfully categorised and shown to have an effect on the study troops ranging behaviour, linked to seasonal effects on their home range. A significant relationship was demonstrated between the cause of disturbance and the response of the macaques and the influence of seasonal effects on the cause of the disturbance events (combination of Berber shepherd, dog or sheep/goats). Conservation recommendations were made at the end of study to deal with the effects of overgrazing and feral dogs that was highlighted through this study.