Editing Wildebeest (section)

==Threats and conservation==
The [[black wildebeest]] has been classified as a least-concern species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in the ''[[IUCN Red List]]''. The populations of this species are on an increase. Now, more than 18,000 individuals are believed to remain, 7,000 of which are in Namibia, outside their natural range, and where it is farmed. Around 80% of the wildebeest occurs in private areas, while the other 20% is confined in protected areas. Its introduction into Namibia has been a success and numbers have increased substantially there from 150 in 1982 to 7,000 in 1992.<ref name=iucngnou>{{cite iucn |author=Vrahimis, S. |author2=Grobler, P. |author3=Brink, J. |author4=Viljoen, P. |author5=Schulze, E. |date=2017 |title=''Connochaetes gnou'' |volume=2017 |page=e.T5228A50184962 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T5228A50184962.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
[[File:Furs by Justin Hodge, Cape Town (08).jpg|thumb|Bag made with wildebeest skin]]

The [[blue wildebeest]] has also been rated as of least concern. The population trend is stable, and their numbers are estimated to be around 1,500,000 – mainly due to the increase of the populations in [[Serengeti National Park]] (Tanzania) to 1,300,000 as of 1998.<ref>{{Cite book |last=East |first=R. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/44634423 |title=African antelope database 1998 |date=1999 |publisher=IUCN Species Survival Commission |others=International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Antelope Specialist Group |isbn=2-8317-0477-4 |location=Gland, Switzerland |oclc=44634423}}</ref> However, the numbers of one of the subspecies, the eastern white-bearded wildebeest (''C. t. albojubatus'') have seen a steep decline.<ref name=":0" /> Population density ranges from 0.15/km<sup>2</sup>. in [[Hwange National Park|Hwange]] and [[Etosha National Park]]s to 35/km<sup>2</sup> in [[Ngorongoro Conservation Area]] and Serengeti National Park.<ref name=iucntaur>{{cite iucn |author=IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group |date=2016 |title=''Connochaetes taurinus'' |volume=2016 |page=e.T5229A163322525 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T5229A163322525.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>

Overland migration as a biological process requires large, connected landscapes, which are increasingly difficult to maintain, particularly over the long term, when human demands on the landscape compete. The most acute threat comes from migration barriers, such as fences and roads. In one of the more striking examples of the consequences of fence-building on terrestrial migrations, Botswanan authorities placed thousands of kilometres of fences across the Kalahari that prevented wildebeests from reaching watering holes and grazing grounds, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of individuals, reducing the wildebeest population to less than 10% of its previous size.<ref name=Williamson>{{cite journal|last=Williamson|first=D.T.|author2=B. Mbano |title=Wildebeest Mortality During 1983 at Lake Xau, Botswana|journal=African Journal of Ecology|year=1988|volume=26|issue=4|pages=341–344|doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.1988.tb00987.x}}</ref> Illegal hunting is a major conservation concern in many areas, along with natural threats posed by main predators (which include lions, leopards, African hunting dogs, cheetahs and hyenas). Where the black and blue wildebeest share a common range, the two can hybridise, and this is regarded as a potential threat to the black wildebeest.<ref name=hybrid1/>