Wild animals, from ants to elephants, represent a natural resource
of great significance for most forest-dwelling communities, as
well as for those living in many other rural contexts. In spite
of this, most development projects ignore their role in subsistence
as well as non-subsistence rural economies. The purpose of this
Community Forestry Note is to fill the vacuum left by the fact
that in community forestry, as well as in agroforestry and other
development activities, the contribution of wildlife to rural
livelihoods has been greatly undervalued. The intent is to raise
wild animals to their rightful value in the community forestry
development process, and to provide an input for designing projects
in ways that better fit the reality of most rural people in the
tropics.