US-Botswana Planning Visit: Wetlands Management: The Role of Hippos in the Okavango Delta

Oregon State University, Corvallis OR

Investigators

Abstract

0139127 Bechert This is a planning visit for Dr. Ursula Bechert, with the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Oregon State University, to travel to Maun, Botswana to consult with Dr. Lars Ramberg, Director of the Harry Oppenheimer Okavango Research Center. The purpose of the visit is to finalize plans for the initiation of a cooperative, multi-disciplinary project to study the role of hippopotamuses in wetland ecosystems and their interactions with humans. Hippopotamuses are a keystone species of the Okavango Delta, and many other animal and plant species are dependent upon them. No systematic studies have been conducted on the hippopotamuses in the Okavango Delta, and it is anticipated that such a project will yield valuable information on their population biology and interactions with their environment.