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Background: This study explores the role of local ecological knowledge (LEK) in climate change prediction and adaptation in Africa, including a case study of the Middle Zambezi Biosphere Reserve (MZBR), Zimbabwe. The study used both 228quantitative and qualitative methods to collect data that included household surveys, desktop reviews of published journal articles, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions (FGDs). The household surveys, key informant interviews, and FGDs focused on climate change prediction as well as biodiversity-related coping and adaptation strategies. Both the literature review and the case study indicated that local communities at the agriculture-wildlife interface rely on both ethnobotanical and ethnozoological knowledge, particularly ethnophenology to predict and cope with the changing climate. By observing the phenology of animal and plant species and abiotic indicators, local communities are able to predict climatic events. Relevance: Ecosystem-based adaptation strategies such as water conservation and harvesting of wildlife resources for consumption have enabled local communities to develop resilience to climate change. Local communities harvest wildlife resources to avert food shortages during drought periods. There is therefore a need to promote sustainable utilization of wildlife resources during drought periods to avoid disappearance of the species under a changing climate. LEK plays a vital role in promoting climate change resilience within terrestrial socio-ecological systems and consequently sustainable rural livelihoods and conservation of wildlife resources.

Understanding local community perceptions on impacts, causes, and responses to climate change is vital for promotion of community resilience towards climate change. This study explored local ecological knowledge (LEK) held by local communities on climate change trends and impacts in the Middle Zambezi Biosphere Reserve (MZBR), Zimbabwe. The objectives of the study were to (i) investigate local community perceptions on trends and causes of climate change, (ii) identify biophysical impacts of climate change at the local level, and (iii) explore the ecosystem-based adaptation strategies towards climate change. The study used a mixed methods approach where a household questionnaire survey (n=320), key informant interviews (n=12), and focus group discussions (n=8) were used to collect data between April 2015 and October 2016. Results from the study show that local communities have observed decreasing rainfall and increasing temperatures as key indicators of climate change. Local communities observed water scarcity, changes in vegetation phenology, livestock and wildlife mortalities, and food shortages due to drought as the major impacts on their livelihoods. LEK can contribute to adaptive management strategies that enhance resilience of socioecological systems (SES) in the face of climate change by providing information on the status and use of biophysical components of the environment and by highlighting potential local adaptation strategies that can sustain key livelihood practices.

The important role indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) is described in redefining the biodiversity conservation agenda of the Chibememe and Tshovani communities in the Sangwe Communal Lands, Chiredzi, in the management of dryland ecosystems of the southeastern low veld of Zimbabwe. These communities constitute part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GLTFCA). We explored ways in which the use of IKS by Chibememe and Tshovani communities have contributed to the conservation and sustainable utilisation of forest, water and wildlife resources in light of existing contemporary scientific value systems, policy and institutional frameworks. Participant observation, interviews with traditional leaders and elders, focus group discussions and literature review techniques were employed within a case study framework. Our results revealed that IKS approaches are used in the management of dryland forest, water and wildlife resources in the Chibememe and Tshovani communities and have contributed positively to the conservation and sustainable utilisation of dryland resources. We conclude that IKS play a critical role in the management of dryland forest, water and wildlife resources at the local community level and have potential to contribute to the conservation of transfrontier conservation area resources such as in the GLTFCA, provided they are recognised, respected, preserved, protected, as well as integrated into mainstream dryland ecosystem conservation. We recommend that, for communities and their biodiversity to survive, conventional science and IKS should complement and should not seek to undermine each other.

A study on the seasonal variation in population structure and status of the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer), the greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) and the common impala (Aepyceros melampus) was carried out in the Mana Pools National Park floodplain, Zimbabwe. Data was collected during the wet (February) and dry (September) seasons of 2012. The simple random sampling method was employed in transect placement. A total of 10 transects were sampled. The line transect method was used to estimate dry and wet season populations of buffalo, kudu and impala. Results from the two tailed t-test showed no significant variation for the populations of kudu (P>0.05) and buffalo (P>0.05) with season. However, impala population varied significantly with season (P 0.05). Dry season mean group sizes for buffalo, kudu and impala were 9.8, 3.6 and 14.1 respectively. The population of buffalo declined from 446 in 1995 to 174 in 2012. The populations of kudu and impala showed an increasing trend between 1995 and 2012. Results from this study suggest that seasonal variation in forage availability could be the primary factor influencing the status of herbivores in the MPNP floodplain. There is an urgent need for management to revise staff and ration quotas for herbivores and increase law enforcement efforts to assure the sustainable management of herbivores in MPNP.

Post-release monitoring of wildlife is essential to the success of ecological restoration initiatives. Translocation of wildlife to new ecosystems is associated with changes in diet profiles of individuals and ultimately animal performance, since productivity of rangelands varies in time and space. The population decline and local extinction of buffalo and other species in Umfurudzi Park, Zimbabwe, in the late 1980s led to temporary suspension of hunting activities. Recently, efforts have been made to resuscitate Umfurudzi Park through wildlife reintroductions and active ecosystem management. We assessed the diet profile and diet quality of the African buffalo ( Syncerus caffer) between 2011 and 2012. A total of 42 grass species constituted the diet spectrum of buffalo. Heteropogon contortus, Eragrostis racemosa, Steroechlaena tenuifolia and Themeda triandra contributed significantly to the buffalo diet during the four seasons of the study period. Although a wide spectrum of grass species was selected in the wet season, the diversity of grass species selected was not significantly different among the seasons. Grass species crude protein deteriorated from 4.5% in the wet season to 3.5% in the dry season. Crude protein and phosphorus levels in buffalo faecal samples were within the recommended nutrient scale for southern Africa large herbivores. We conclude that feed availability and quality may not be limiting the persistence of the reintroduced buffalo. There is a need to closely monitor grass availability, dietary shifts, and forage quality over time, as well as resource partitioning with other feeding guilds.