Bushmeat in Nigeria as a Natural Resource with Environmental Implications

Abstract

The value of protein from wild animals (‘bushmeat’) in Nigeria was examined, especially with respect to the consumer market. Surveys were made of roadside sales, meat prices in markets, and bushmeat consumption by the general public. The results showed that, in the 1970s, over 50% of the population ate bushmeat regularly, and that bushmeat was popular with all income-groups. The results have wide environmental implications. The case is made for investigating in more detail than hitherto the potential for domestication and game-cropping. In addition to economic advantages resulting from careful management of animal wildlife as a renewable resource, there appear to be others—including major environmental ones through the maintenance of large-scale reserves.