IVORY COAST: FARMERS CONSIDER AGOUTIS , RAT LIKE CREATURES TO BE SPOILING THEIR CROPS BUT SOME IVORIANS SEE THEM AS A DELICACY FOR EATING
Record ID:
183590
IVORY COAST: FARMERS CONSIDER AGOUTIS , RAT LIKE CREATURES TO BE SPOILING THEIR CROPS BUT SOME IVORIANS SEE THEM AS A DELICACY FOR EATING
- Title: IVORY COAST: FARMERS CONSIDER AGOUTIS , RAT LIKE CREATURES TO BE SPOILING THEIR CROPS BUT SOME IVORIANS SEE THEM AS A DELICACY FOR EATING
- Date: 1st November 2001
- Summary: ABIDJAN AND ADZOPE, IVORY COAST (RECENT) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. AGOUTI HUNTERS SITTING ROUND CAMP FIRE 2. CLOSE UP OF FIRE 3. AGOUTI HUNTER DENIS LATH NOMEL WITH RIFLE/ SHOOTING 4. DENIS RELOADING RIFLE 5. VARIOUS NIGHT SHOTS OF DENIS WALKING THROUGH BUSH SEARCHING FOR AGOUTIS 6. (SOUNDBITE) (French) DENIS LATH NOMEL, HUNTER "The python when it's hunting its prey is hidden somewhere, the moment that it sees a torch lit up you're going to hear "grrrrrrrrrrrrr" "grrrrrrrrr" and as soon as you hear that you know automatically it's a python." 7. DENIS WALKING BACK TO CAMP FIRE 8. VARIOUS DAY SHOTS OF AGOUTI TRAPS 9. DEAD AGOUTI ON TABLE 10. (SOUNDBITE) (French) DENIS LATH NOMEL "Despite the fact that hunting is illegal there are lots of rodents which mess things up all the time. You've got to understand that you buy a hectare of palm seeds, 140, at 140,000 CFA Francs. As soon as you've planted, the rodents come and eat them. You can see what that's like. So I try to annoy them a bit too." 11. GRILLED AGOUTI MEAT 12. VARIOUS OF DISHES WITH AGOUTI MEAT 13. LOCALS EATING AGOUTI MEAT DISHES 14. PILE OF SKINNED AGOUTIS 15. EXTERIOR OF SAP LA MER CENTRE 16. VARIOUS OF AGOUTIS IN CAGES 17. AGOUTI MEAT DISH 18. (SOUNDBITE) (French) YATIE SUZANNE KRA, MAQUIS MANAGER "I've never seen agouti being raised. Ours come from the bush." 19. AGOUTIS IN SAP LA MER CENTRE BEING FED 20. MAN STROKING AGOUTI 21. MAN HOLDING DEAD AGOUTI 22. AGOUTIS IN CAGES 23. AGOUTIS BEING SOLD IN LOCAL MARKET 24. AGOUTI SELLER SYLVAIN ASSI MONIN WAITING TO GET TO MARKET 25. (SOUNDBITE) (French) SYLVAIN ASSI MONIN "If they are a bit bigger they bring a better price. It depends on their size. A very big one can sell for about ten thousand, most go for anywhere between five and ten thousand." 26. DENIS WORKING HIS LAND 27. (SOUNDBITE) (French) DENIS LATH NOMEL "You know each week, every Friday because I'm lucky enough not to work on Saturdays I take my time up to midday and then I rush to get back to the plantation. That's really important to me, it's priority number one. Then I do a quick tour around 2 or three o'clock to check that nothing is amiss and then the rest of the Saturday I spend the time in the bush. That's my passion. That's how it is." 28. DENIS WALKING THROUGH BUSH 29. CLOSE UP AGOUTI MEAT DISH 30. LOCALS ORDERING MEAT DISH 31. NIGHT SHOTS OF DENIS LOOKING FOR AGOUTIS 4.59 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 16th November 2001 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: ABIDJAN AND ADZOPE, IVORY COAST
- Country: Ivory Coast
- Reuters ID: LVAAEZP31GPJJ9ZN9X2IFOH0BQHO
- Story Text: Agoutis are strange rat-like animals, that are
keeping some Ivorian farmers on their toes. The animals are
eating the farmers' crops and now one particular farmer,
Denis Lath Nomel, has declared them the fight. For Denis, it
means many dark nights out in the cold to catch the animals.
Not many people would choose to leave the warmth
and comfort of a log fire, for a night out in the bush. But for this
hunter in Ivory Coast nighttime is the right time.
His mission is to kill or scare the rodents that are
plaguing his land and eating his crops. He's armed only with
a shotgun and a torch. Bare feet ensure stealth as he moves
towards his target: a large, rat-like animal called an
agouti.
And it's a risky business. Several night hunters have
been shot in accidents or as people use the cover of
darkness and firearms to settle old scores.
Snakes too are an ever-present danger. Denis Lath says
he's on constant alert for pythons.
Hunter Denis Lath Nomel says "The python when it's
hunting its prey is hidden somewhere, the moment that it
sees a torch lit up you're going to hear
"grrrrrrrrrrrrr" "grrrrrrrrr" and as soon as you hear that
you know automatically it's a python."
Despite his effort, tonight is not his night. The
agouti have beaten him. He returns home.
The next day Denis resorts to another way of catching
agouti - the trap. On his farm he's planted cassava,
aubergine, yams and palms for palm oil. The traps are empty
today, but the elusive agouti is a perpetual threat.
Denis says "Despite the fact that hunting is illegal
there are lots of rodents which mess things up all the time.
You've got to understand that you buy a hectare of palm seeds,
140, at 140,000 CFA Francs. As soon as you've planted, the rodents
come and eat them. You can see what that's like. So I try to annoy them a
bit too."
Most Ivorians, however, see the agouti not so much as a
pest, and more as a delicacy. Agouti meat is considered a
specialty. It's much prized in the maquis, or restaurants of
the capital for its tangy flavour. Cooked with sauce grain,
made from palm oil, it's one reason why Ivorian cooking has
such a fine reputation across West Africa.
But the passion for agouti meat comes with
controversy. Almost all agouti is killed in the wild - by
farmers like Denis - and then sold. Being wild, its meat is
tough and muscular, and tasty.
Yet at the Sap La Mer centre in the Ivory Coast town
of Adzope a new type of agouti is being developed: agouti
reared in captivity. So far it's yet to make a big impact in
the capital.
Maquis Manager Yatie Suzanne Kra says"I've never seen
agouti being raised. Ours come from the bush."
This agouti centre aims to improve the agouti stock
through breeding and to provide animals for other agouti
rearers. It also hopes to protect a population threatened by
hunting.
At the farm the animals are fed maize. And what
determines whether an animal gets to enjoy a long and successful
love life or goes straight to the butcher's? Stroking. If a male agouti
allows itself to be stroked it's a sign that it'll will
adapt to cage life and become a good breeder. If not - well
there's always the cooking pot.
At six months a male is ready to reproduce and is
placed in a cage with four young females. Each female
produces at least four babies and the total is considered as
one family.
Sape La Mer has started to supply other farms with
its agouti. But it's yet to become a major market force. For
many, agouti is bought here at the roadside.
Agouti Seller Sylvain Assi Monin says "If they are a
bit bigger they bring a better price. It depends on their
size. A very big one can sell for about ten thousand, most
go for anywhere between five and ten thousand."
After a week in the office, Denis heads back to the
security of his farm. Like many Ivorians he's prefers farm
life to life in the city.
Denis says "You know each week, every Friday because
I'm lucky enough not to work on Saturdays I take my time up
to midday and then I rush to get back to the plantation.
That's really important to me, it's priority number one.
Then I do a quick tour around 2 or three o'clock to check
that nothing is amiss and then the rest of the Saturday I
spend the time in the bush. That's my passion. That's how it
is."
For Denis the choice has been made. The joys of the
farm over the town. For him Ivory Coast's premier bush-meat plays a dual
role: nuisance and delicacy, plague and favourite dish. So
there's a constant battle with the rat-like rodent he loves
to hate.
ENDS
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