Marina and her NGO Herp-Cameroon are reviving endemic amphibian populations and boosting sustainable livelihoods in Southwest Cameroon’s Mount Manengouba, a global hotspot for threatened amphibians.

SKY ISLAND FROGS

One of the most important biodiversity hotspots in central Africa and an Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) site, Mount Manengouba is a 500 km2 ‘sky island’, a region of isolated and forested mountain ranges surrounded by completely different lowland terrain, and part of the Cameroon Volcanic Line. The fertile montane rainforests, crater lakes, and highland grasslands are home to almost half of the country’ s known amphibians, including over 100 species of frog and toad. Nearly 30% of the frog species here are threatened with extinction largely due to human activity, with populations declining by over 70% since 2000.

Marina and her team’s eight target species include the Critically Endangered Manengouba, Nsounga long-fingered frog and the redbelly egg frog; three Endangered species – Perret’s squeaker frog, the ornate egg frog and Merten’s egg frog; the Near Threatened Cameroon range night frog, and the vulnerable blackspotted long-fingered frog. They are vital indicators of freshwater health and habitat integrity and also play an important role in pest control.

MOUNTING THREATS

Across the 16 local villages, more than 90% of the inhabitants who live on the middle and lower slopes are farmers. Critical threats to the area include habitat degradation from slash and burn agriculture by cattle herders, deforestation for logging, livestock grazing, chemical pesticides and invasive species. This activity is devastating for sensitive amphibian communities and adversely affects the under- story microhabitats around streams and springs. Additional pressure is added by chytridiomycosis, a deadly fungus which has caused worldwide declines in amphibian populations.

COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS

To generate pride in conserving the unique ecosystem, Marina and Herp-Cameroon have already engaged more than 5,000 residents in remote areas, including farmers, elders and youth, in amphibian conservation. From identifying habitat and breeding sites for restoration to awareness programmes, 95% of Herp- Cameroon’s activities are proposed by the communities themselves. The team has trained more than 1,500 children, and provided alternative sustainable livelihood training to over 200 households to reduce habitat pressure while boosting incomes. Marina and team will scale up their impact by restoring mountain habitat, and training 500 farmers in biopesticide- based agroecology to reduce slash-and-burn practices by 40%, leading to healthier soils and higher crop yields for local families. The team will also conduct habitat and population surveys from ten new stations for community monitoring of target frog species. Marina aims to safeguard 70% of amphibians endemic to the area through promoting environmental stewardship and benefiting all those who live on Manengouba’s slopes.

With the Whitley Award Marina and her team will:

• Train 500 farmers, ensuring half are women, in sustainable agroecological practices to reduce habitat destruction and improve livelihoods
• Establish community-led monitoring to provide population, habitat and distribution data
• Advocate for a 500-hectare expansion to the country’s first Protected Area for amphibians
• Restore 200 hectares of mountain habitat through community planting of native trees

“Saving a species from extinction for me has become like protecting my own child. Which mother would like to lose her child?”