
Based on their collected telemetry data, presence-absence-analyses, and detailed data on habitat structures they found that Otus ireneae occurs spatially restricted in dense Cynometry woodland, where tall, old Cynometra trees are available. The students are going to publish their work very soon – together with the local collaborators. Unfortunatelly, the Arabuko Sokoke Forest is under severe environmental pressure, due to various reasons: (i) climate change (with subsequent negative effect on food security, which increases the pressure on the forest for alternative income – from wood and game), (ii) illegal usage of forest ressources like wood and bush meat (see pictures below), (iii) very high demograhic pressure (need of land), (iv) very high densities of elephants inside of the forest (which are fenced to prevent human wildlife conflicts). Find some impressions below (pictures taken by Ivon Constanza Cuadros Casanova and Camilo Zamora).