Cave protection.
Protecting roosts of at-risk cave-dwelling bats and the communities that depend on these ecosystems
WHY CAVES MATTER
A single cave disturbance can collapse an entire colony
Across West Africa, caves and cave-like roosts are home to some of the continent's most ecologically important and threatened bat species. A single disturbance event at a roost can collapse an entire colony. Hunting, cave visits, and habitat destruction around cave entrances are pushing species to the brink of extinction.
© SMACON
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Egyptian Fruit Bat
Rousettus aegyptiacus
This cave-roosting fruit bat is highly dependent on stable roosting environments. Disturbing a single colony can cascade through the local population. It is among the most commonly hunted bat species in the region.
Photo: © SMACON
Straw-coloured Fruit Bat
Eidolon helvum
This tree-roosting fruit bat is highly migratory, traveling vast distances across the continent. Often found in large communal colonies in tall trees, it is a key seed disperser but faces significant threats from intensive hunting and the loss of its roosting sites.
Photo: © Iroro Tanshi/SMACON
ALTERNATIVE PROTEIN SOURCES
Reducing bat hunting pressure through alternative livelihoods
Our evidence-based approach to reduce hunting pressure on the Egyptian fruit bat and prevent potential zoonotic disease spread.
Rural livelihoods are inextricably linked to nature. Our community partners are primarily forest-dependent small-holder farmers whose resilience and adaptation against climate change and loss of ecosystem services requires multi-stakeholder effort. Through our mission to safeguard local livelihoods we empower local communities to stand for nature, by shifts in protein and income sources, climate-sensitive agricultural land management.
For many families around Afi Mountain, protein often comes straight from the forest. Bats, particularly the Egyptian fruit bat, which roosts in accessible caves, are easy targets for hunters. As demand grows and populations shrink, the cycle becomes harder to reverse.
Our Alternative Protein Project started from a simple question:
"What if communities could raise their own preferred, affordable protein source without turning to the forest?"
In a socio-ecological survey, community members identified cane rats (locally known as grasscutters) as a preferred and widely consumed alternative protein source. This insight led directly to a pilot farm providing an alternative to bat hunting. In 2024, the project saw significant progress with a large increase in litter.
The project has since expanded to two additional communities.
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Farm sites
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Buanchor, Katabang, and Olum communities Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary
2024
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First litters
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Confirming breeding viability at the pilot farm in Buanchor
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Bat hunting pressure
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Long-term objective through sustained alternative protein sources
