Population growth of red lechwe, Kobus leche leche Gray, in the Busanga Plain, Zambia

Abstract

An isolated population of red lechwe living in the Busanga Plain, Zambia, has been protected from human hunting since 1948. Probably as a result the population has increased, as indicated by reliable census data. From 1956 to 1972 this increase has very closely fitted an exponential rate; the calculated value of the infinitesimal rate of population increase (r) is 0–131, and the finite rate of increase is 14‐0% per year. This exponential phase is considered to represent a segment of a logistic curve. Copyright © 1972, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved