2008 Projects

Species Research - Terrestrial

From studying the predatory behavior of African lions to documenting habitat needs of lowland gorillas, science-based species research equips wildlife conservationists, citizens, policy-makers and other stakeholders with an expanded knowledge of animals and their environment. Research findings can be applied to help resolve human-animal conflict and lead to sustainable conservation solutions – a critical goal of the Fund.

Throughout the range of African wild dogs, multiple threats are putting this extraordinary canine species in danger. Habitat fragmentation, snaring, disease, and competition with lions are factors that have been identified, assessed and battled by the African Wildlife Conservation Fund and its wild dog program in Zimbabwe's Save Valley Conservancy.  With support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, this program will be expanded to monitor and protect globally significant wild dog populations in three countries - Zimbabwe, South Africa and Mozambique. 

In and around Tanzania's Tarangire National Park, the lives of lions and humans are increasingly interwoven.  For habitat, the lions use protected and community lands, often triggering intense conflict with humans who also live on and rely on these lands. Exacerbating this situation is an increasing human population, subsistence farming and trophy hunting.  With continued support from the Fund, this project is researching the demography and dynamics of these human-lion conflicts.  This project also is documenting specific areas the lions require for survival, and collaborating with local groups to protect these key lands. The outcome will be a landscape that can accommodate people and lions alike.

Birds don't really pay attention to border patrols.  Several species of concern - including the Cerulean Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler and Wood Thrush - call both Nicaragua and North Carolina home. With support from the Fund, Audubon North Carolina will be embarking on a signficant international initiative aimed at supporting ornithologists in both regions. Audubon has reached out and connect North Carolina-based groups such as the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory and the NC Museum of Natural Science with several Nicaraguan conservation groups, including Alianza Ala Doradas, El Grupo Ceruleo, Nicaragua National Parks, and Finca Esperanza Verde.  Through this cross-border collaboration, scientists and citizens will be able to better monitor and survey these at-risk birds in both regions. Specifically, the Fund grant is being used to provide training, oversight and connection to the global bird community for the people committed to saving these birds and their diverse habitats. 

Among all animals, jaguars are on the A-list - they're beautiful, stunning, powerful predators. But within Brazil, the status of the jaguar in the Cerrado biome is unknown. Galvanizing support for protecting jaguars can potentially help save the entire habitat on which it relies.  As a large-sized species with wide distribution and high ecological requirements, the jaguar needs large protected areas. With support from the Fund, researchers are tackling some of the most challenging and timely questions. How can we periodically evaluate habitat quality? In what configuration should we design the components of a network of reserves?  Based in Brazil's Grande Sertão Veredas National Park, this research project will address some of the gaps in knowledge and will provide baseline information for jaguar monitoring, population modeling and landscape conservation planning, with the aim of applying this data toward future jaguar conservation across Latin America.

There are approximately 60 free ranging Mexican gray wolves in the southwest United States. Thus, each individual wolf is important to the long term survival of the population. Scientists believe there is the biological potential in Mexican wolves to establish vigorous wild populations if conflicts with humans can be resolved.  A Fund grant is helping the California Wolf Center reduce and potentially prevent wolf conflicts with human-related activities. Specifically, the Fund is providing financial support to the Mexican Wolf Interagency Field Team to continue implementing and enhancing proactive programs to address emerging problems Mexican wolves frequently encounter. The outcome will be the increased survival of free-ranging Mexican gray wolves.

The Bornean elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis) has recently been confirmed as a separate taxon, dramatically increasing its importance in terms of biodiversity. It is estimated that between 1,200-1,500 elephants survive in Borneo, mainly in eastern Sabah, making this the world's most endangered member of the Proboscidae family.  Information on the distribution and movement of the elephants, their mating system and dispersal, genetic differentiation between populations, and threats to genetic diversity are lacking. With support from a Fund grant, Cardiff University researchers will focus on the Kinabatangan elephant population via satellite-tracking, behavioral observations of family units, and relatedness analysis using non-invasive genetic samples such as dung.  This data will be collected, confirmed and shared with the Sabah Wildlife Department, enabling this agency to apply that information to conservation strategies.  

Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) - Central Asia's ecological equivalent to the puma - are declining across their 12-country range due to human disturbance, habitat degradation and fragmentation. Little is known about this endangered felid's behavior or ecology. With support from the Fund, a Mongolian non-profit and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences are placing GPS satellite-linked collars on five or more snow leopards in the Altai or South Gobi mountains for intensively tracking their daily and seasonal movements. Resulting information on movements, prey kill rates, foraging behavior, habitat patch use and resource selection will be used to devise effective management and conservation strategies for snow leopards and their prey in all home ranges. Capacity-building in conservation techniques is another important project objective.

As one of the world's most endangered primate species, the golden-headed langur (Trachypithecus poliocephalus poliocephalus) calls Vietnam's Cat Ba Island home.  Barely surviving 40 years of massive habitat exploitation by humans, the golden-headed langur population has decreased by 98%. While the United Nations declared the Cat Ba Archipelago a Biosphere Reserve for its natural riches and fragile state, the remaining langur groups are fragmented and suffer from low reproductive output and continued habitat loss. With support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, the Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project is working in close cooperation with indigenous societies and local authorities on optimal protection and management of the langurs and their habitat, supported by capacity building and awareness raising activities.

The Javan leopard (Panthera pardus melas) for many years was believed to have been locally extinct throughout much of its historical range. Yet in 2002, Conservation International was able to photograph this elusive creature by using a camera trap in Gunung Gede-Pangrango National Park. Through support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, the project will assess the Javan leopard's status in the park by deploying camera traps and by distributing questionnaires to assess its distribution, conflicts, and people's knowledge, attitudes and behavior regarding its conservation. The project will serve as a foundation for bigger initiatives that are planned to assess the current status of the species in Java aimed at developing conservation strategies covering policy interventions and on-the-ground protection to avoid extinction, as has happened with its relative, the Javan tiger.

Community forests in Nepal are gradually being converted to monoculture - tree farms. More emphasis is given to promoting timber species, especially Sal shorea robusta. Adequate research has not been carried out to determine the extent of this conversion. With support from the Fund, the Development and Awareness Club of Nepal will study the impact of the forest changes.  The project will prepare a userfriendly biodiversity monitoring manual for the locals to use.  It is expected that the local communities will then be able to carryout biodiversity monitoring and management plan preparation/updates themselves with the knowledge, skills and documents to be obtained from this project.

Sumatran tigers are critically endangered because they are threatened by habitat loss and poaching. Consequently, their survival has the greatest prospects inside protected areas. For these areas to be effective, conservation managers require accurate and timely information on the distribution and abundance of tigers, their prey and their threats. With a grant from the Fund, the overall aim of this project is to conserve tigers inside the 3000-square kilometer data-deficient Batang Hari Protected Area, West Sumatra. More specifically, this project will increase local capacity of forest rangers, through training, to establish the first camera trap monitoring program to collect scientific tiger, prey and threat data. This data will then be used to develop the first tiger conservation management plan for the Batang Hari Protected Area.

The goal of this project is the conservation of the Manombo Forest and its biodiversity, including critically endangered lemur species. Building on extensive experience in the area, the Durrell Institute aims to develop participatory survey methods to monitor the lemurs over time. This will be combined with the development of a GIS-database to consolidate existing knowledge and provide a basis for the development of a Management Plan for the future protected area. With support from the Fund, the project is focusing on integrating monitoring with the local communities, conducting capacity-building events to train key stakeholders, and raising awareness concerning the unique biodiversity of the area.

Wild populations of black-crowned cranes (Balearica pavonina) and grey-crowned cranes (Balearica regulorum) are severely impacted from trade for food, illegal trade, traditional use, and domestication.  A mitigation plan to address the trade threat was developed by a multi-stakeholder group in October 2007. Three key priorities were identified: the need to determine the population status and assess the trade situation in Sudan, the need for an improved population estimate for grey-crowned cranes in Kenya and Uganda, and the development of a research plan for grey- and black-crowned cranes. With support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, this information will allow for improved mitigation actions and decision making related to the species' IUCN Red List status and the proposal to uplist the CITES status of the crowned cranes to Appendix I.

The critically endangered Cao Vit gibbon (Nomascus nasutus) is found only in a block of forest bordering Vietnam and China. Fauna & Flora International has worked to protect this gibbon since its rediscovery in Vietnam in 2002, and extended its activities to China in 2006 after gibbon groups were discovered in contiguous Chinese forests. A Fund-supported trans-boundary census in 2007 showed an important increase in the gibbon population, indicating that conservation activities to date have had a measurable impact. However, it also underlined that limited habitat is an important restriction to long-term conservation of this species. This year, with continued support from the Fund, the project is supporting critical research on the ecology of the Cao Vit gibbon to inform conservation efforts, with the aim of developing support for gibbon conservation among local Chinese communities.

Habitat loss and fragmentation by expansion of cattle, agriculture and urban areas are global realities. As consequences, biodiversity decreases, especially for specialists and wide-ranging species.  To reduce the negative effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, researchers have developed several tactics, such as forest corridors. Forest corridors are linear structures that connect at least two forest patches, but their implementation does not mean that they are effective for animal movement at landscape level. To evaluate the effectiveness of forest corridors, some of the 21 forest corridors created by the Golden Lion Tamarin Association at the São João River Basin in the Rio de Janeiro State of Brazil will be studied. With support from the Fund, cameras traps are being installed to observe if corridors have been used by golden lion tamarins (and other small mammals) and how exactly animals are using these areas.

The Grevy's Zebra Trust was established to address the urgent need to conserve Grevy's zebra in the community rangelands of northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. One of the main goals is the protection and monitoring of Grevy's zebra populations against poaching and persecution, particularly in areas where there has been little or no conservation investment to date. The El Barta region is one such area where the Trust is developing the Grevy's Zebra Ambassador Program with local communities. With support from Fund, the program aims to provide protection to Grevy's zebra, determine their status through community monitoring and capture-recapture techniques, raise local awareness and develop a long-term community-led conservation program for Grevy's zebra. In addition, an inter-tribal Peace Committee will be established for the area to facilitate conflict resolution.

Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces in Vietnam boast some of the largest populations of the black-shanked douc and six other primate species. While 40 percent of total land areas are covered by forest, only 10 percent is included in protected areas. Because of habitat degradation and hunting pressures, these primates are on the threshold of extinction. With support from the Fund, this project will study the conservation status of the black-shanked douc, including distribution and current or potential threats to primates in forest remnants of the two provinces. The methodology will be based on line-transect surveys and interviews of local people. Results gained from this project will enhance the scientific understanding of the black-shanked douc and other primates, and also serve as a basis for protection activities and proposing new protected areas for the country.

After 11 years working with tapirs in the Atlantic Forest, Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas is launching a country-wide Lowland Tapir Conservation Initiative. With support from the Fund, this project will be established in the Pantanal. Once again, tapirs will be used as ambassadors for conservation, catalyzing habitat conservation efforts, environmental education, outreach and capacity-building. Ecological, epidemiological, and genetic data on tapirs will be collected, stakeholder perceptions assessed and main threats as well as conservation demands identified. As in the Atlantic Forest, results will help inform the design and implementation of a specific set of conservation recommendations for tapirs and their remaining habitats.

With a grant from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Species Programme will complete the Global Mammal Assessment by the end of 2008. This assessment is an initiative to completely reevaluate the threat status of all 5,000 plus mammal species globally. In 1996, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals estimated that 24 percent of all mammals were threatened with extinction. The Global Mammal Assessment will allow for comparison with those estimates. This work will benefit researchers, conservationists and the public at large by providing them with information to clearly determine interventions to preserve mammalian biodiversity worldwide.

Following photographic evidence that endangered sifaka lemurs are hunted in the remote forests of Anosibe An'ala in eastern Madagascar, this project seeks to determine the extent and frequency of human consumption of lemurs and the socioeconomic factors that are involved. Support from the Fund is enabling monthly data collection of meat consumption, availability of lemur meat, commodity prices and interviews, all of which will provide the framework for understanding the fundamental reasons for hunting lemurs and will act as a guide for future conservation action. As ongoing forest loss threatens the lemur populations and the income of hunters, real opportunity exists to forge a strong relationship between those who exploit the forest and its wildlife and those who wish to conserve it.

The Philippine Eagle, Philippine's national bird, is an IUCN critically endangered species. Forest loss and shooting limit the population of this slow-reproducing, late-maturing, forest specialist. Education and regulating human use of eagle habitats are important. These efforts are well underway in Mindanao Island where more is known about the species. In Luzon, population surveys are implemented and are meant to evolve into a full eagle conservation program. In contrast, no eagle conservation program exists in Leyte and Samar Islands where eagles are historically found. The Search for Haring Ibon Project, supported by the Fund, will be the first study of eagles in Leyte and Samar after four decades. It will build baseline information and local constituency in preparation for a full eagle conservation program in these islands.

Magnificent and powerful, eagles evoke public passion, awe and even veneration by some indigenous peoples. Several eagles, including the Philippine eagle and Spanish Imperial eagle, are among the most endangered birds in the world, precariously surviving habitat degradation, poaching and other threats. To address this, the Eagle Conservation Alliance was formed recently at a meeting in Spain, sponsored by the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund and the Zoological Society of San Diego. The group identified its mission and niche as well as a number of high priority eagle projects to launch. Support from the Fund provides seed money for three priority projects and partial support for a second meeting to expand the work and audience of the Eagle Conservation Alliance and identify new, high priority eagle conservation targets.

The Geo-Fencing Project addresses the problem of human-elephant conflict, specifically the competition for space and resources by local agriculturists and crop-raiding elephants that results in destruction of economic livelihood for the farmers and retributive injury or death to the elephants. Geo-fencing is an innovative application of GPS-GSM elephant tracking pioneered by Dr. Douglas-Hamilton. Virtual fence lines are designated within a computer GIS, and when elephants near human settlements, the system automatically sends alarm signals to mobile phones, alerting residents and authorities to take preventative action. It empowers farmers to protect their own crops in a peaceful manner, rather than awakening to a raided field. With a grant from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, Save the Elephants will build from successful preliminary studies to implement geo-fencing on a larger scale and with more advanced programming in Kenya.

Insectivorous microbats are highly secretive, but provide important ecosystem services, such as the control of insect pests. In Australia's temperate agricultural zone, the future of microbats is highly uncertain. Livestock grazing poses a significant threat to native trees that are used by bats as roosting and foraging habitat. Based on extensive field surveys coupled with statistical and spatial modeling, this Fund-supported project aims to compare different livestock grazing regimes to assess where native trees are or are not regenerating, create quantitative habitat models for poorly understood bats in the study area, and identify which grazing regimes will best maintain tree cover and bat habitat into the future. The findings will contribute significantly to the long-term sustainability of one of the world's most threatened ecoregions.

For the past 15 years, the Mabula Ground Hornbill Research & Conservation Project has harvested the second chicks of ground hornbills, which usually die of starvation. This project occurs within Kruger National Park and other non-protected areas of South Africa.  After harvesting, the chicks are hand-reared and released back into suitable wild groups in their original habitat. The purpose is to augment existing but non-viable groups to prevent serious population decline and extinction and to increase the population of this protected species over the next 10 years. In addition, this project operates a population count, an awareness and education campaign, nest searches and placement of artificial nests. With Fund support, a new research and monitoring programme at Mabula is now in progress.

The only natural population of Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) occurs in Australia's island state of Tasmania. However, the species has suffered local declines of up to 74 percent. In 2005, this ecologically important scavenger was listed as vulnerable under the state's Threatened Species Protection Act. The primary cause of the population's decline is a fatal and contagious epidemic called Devil Facial Tumor Disease. With support from the Fund, the University of Sydney is developing sperm collection and storage methods to establish a Tasmanian devil genome resource bank, and conducting preliminary feasibility studies of assisted reproductive technologies, including artificial insemination. Such technologies will help to establish permanent sources of valuable genetic material with the potential to maintain the species' genetic diversity, an approach that may also help to reduce disease transmission.

The only endangered ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) population in the United States occurs in southern Texas. The Corbett and Yturria Ranches appear to be part of a larger population occurring in northern Willacy County. Although a crude population size has been speculated at less than 100 individuals, biologists lack a confident estimate of actual population size. With support from the Fund, Wild Cat Conservation, Inc. will gain a realistic estimation of population size, fluctuation, and distribution which is fundamental to successful conservation and recovery of the ocelot. Additionally, understanding ocelot spatial patterns, habitat use, competition, and prey population dynamics will enable biologists to better identify management needs and factors which promote population expansion or contraction. Because private landowners hold significant portions of ocelot habitat, an ocelot habitat management plan also is needed to mitigate habitat declines on private lands.

With support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, this project aims to increase the breeding population of the globally threatened scaly-sided merganser - a fish-eating duck - in the Kievka River basin in Far-East Russia.  The goal is to increase from 50-70 pairs to 100-120 pairs by 2010.  This will be done by maintaining existing artificial nests, building and erecting another 30 artificial nests and involving the local community in this process to engender ownership of the project by local people. Work over the last eight years has demonstrated that nest sites are currently limiting the population because of habitat destruction through logging of riverine forests between 1940 and 1970. Erection of artificial nest sites increases both the number of breeding pairs and productivity. Local people, especially schoolchildren, are very keen to help with the project, and want to help save the scaly-sided merganser.

Due to pressure from increased logging activities, bushmeat hunting, and devastating diseases such as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, gorilla populations in western Equatorial Africa have undergone a dramatic decline leading to their reclassification by the IUCN as being critically endangered. Detailed demographic data are required to further assess and to allow for the planning of population recovery. The Mbeli Bai Study has been operating since 1995 with the overall goal of ensuring the long-term protection of gorillas and other forest mammals via several research and conservation based objectives. With multi-year support from the Fund, the Mbeli Bai Study has provided major and unique insights into the social organization and population dynamics of these elusive species, combining applied research, habitat protection, capacity building and conservation education.

Mount Gede in Pangrango National Park provides habitat for the majority of frog species in West Java, Indonesia. Many of the species in this region have never been observed and studied. With support from the Fund, the aim of this study is to map the current distribution of West Java's tree frogs and collect baseline data on the bio-ecology and habitat of the Javanese endemic tree frog (Rhacophorus javanus) to assessconservation status and management. The frog will serve as a flagship species to promote frog conservation to the general public through conservation education at the Bodogol Conservation Educational Centre, located at the western slope of Mount Gede.