On November 14th, 2007, Dr. Gail W. Hearn of the Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program at Drexel University presented the lecture "Monkeys in Trouble: Biodiversity Conservation on Africa's Bioko Island." The lecture poster's picture said it all: the plight of monkeys in Africa—a macaque monkey was depicted behind a chain link fence. This lecture was part of the Dean's Seminar Series sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences.

Hearn began the lecture by saying that things have changed for monkeys since this lecture was first given. She asked whether or not monkeys are in less trouble now. If they are in less trouble, then this news is very heartening, considering the negative trends in the killing and selling of monkeys.

Hearn, by way of introduction, described the problem area for these monkeys—the almost-untouched Bioko Island. The whole country has less than half a million people. The government is fairly stable and the people "value the stability very greatly." Hearn said, that "the most interesting thing about the country is its wealth. They discovered oil," and thus have a high average yearly salary. The wealth is concentrated on few people, but it is trickling down, so people are quite satisfied and content. The country, though stable now, has a bad reputation due to the previous brutal dictatorship of Francisco Macias, who was the country's President from 1968 to 1979.

Bioko Island is important for conservationists. There are seven species of monkeys on the island—a very high density of monkey species – that are at risk from being hunted for food. Bioko also has four species of nesting sea turtles, including leatherbacks and green turtles. The island is rich and unique in biodiversity. Conservation International tries to identify such "hotspots" where there is a high variety of species because protecting those areas means protecting more species in a smaller area of land. The island is an animal paradise.

But the loss of species is accelerated because of human activity. Since there are very few settlers on Bioko Island, the only threat to the wildlife of the island is commercial hunting in Malabo. These hunters arrive from the mainland and settle in separate camps from the locals. They carry out all their dirty work from these camps. Sometimes this hunting needs to be done because it is the only source of protein, but for the most part, the commercial hunters kill these animals for luxury meat markets.

There are two protected areas that comprise 40% of the island, but this is not real protection. "The boundaries are known, but no one respects them," Hearn said. There are no guards. There are only signs that hunters use as kindling. There are monkeys in zoos, and some people keep these rare monkeys in captivity, but the number in zoos isn't enough to keep a species alive.

Conservation efforts monitor both the markets and the forest. Because the bushmeat market, or the hunting of any animal not traditionally regarded as "food," such as primates, was so prominent, conservationists have focused on this market for their tissue samples, body counts, and information. Every dead thing, method of capture, place of capture is recorded from these markets. Monkeys are also weighed and tissue samples taken for DNA analysis. All monkeys, the third most hunted species of the island, are killed by shotgun, not traps. They are taken in large numbers. For a few years, the number of monkeys killed dropped, but then increased again as conservation efforts went full swing because the monkeys then became more valuable.

There are a number of strategies for conservation that have been used over the years: First, there needs to be numbers and data concerning the threatened species to make a case with the government. The Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program (BBPP) trains students in conservation of Bioko and plan a trip to the Gran Caldera on Bioko each year.

Second, conservationists partner with the oil companies and the National University (UNGE) in the area. Many oil workers come from Texas, but these hunters are also concerned with biodiversity conservation, so they were willing partners. Plus, conservation makes oil companies feel good about their reputation with the government. ExxonMobil funded the Moka Wildlife Center which provided a research site for BBPP.

Third, the conservationists engage in basic conservation activities. They go after people for funding, they make treks around the island for basic census tracking, they do environmental education for children and universities, they partner with Conservation International, and they provide the government Ministries and other important persons with conservation updates. They distributed information flyers all over the island and to everyone they could find to increase the awareness of the decline of the monkeys.

Over the past decade, the monkeys have been in serious trouble with hunters from the mainland. However, the monkeys might finally enjoy some respite. A Presidential decree was made very recently to prohibit all hunting of monkeys and other primates in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. It is now strictly forbidden to kill them. Hunters are subjected, per primate, to fines between $200-1000, and all articles used in the killing and capture are confiscated. Because of this decree, monkeys are gone from the bushmeat markets.

Hearn said, "You need the good biology to persuade the government" that something needs to be done. There are very few believers of biodiversity conservation in Africa, which makes conservation there a challenge. People must be convinced that these animals are worth saving. This decree may very well be the first important step in the saving of the animals in Africa and the continued safety of the monkeys of Bioko Island.

Charlotte Lenox is majoring in English at Drexel, and is a transfer student from the University of Alaska Southeast. She was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska.