Nearly exterminated in southern Africa in the 19th century, the black rhino is now making a come-back thanks to the efforts of the National Parks Boards and other authorities. Successful translocations have been achieved in three national parks, including the Kruger, and two reserves, and more are planned.

The author was one of the first people to see the white-winged guan Penelope albipennis, an endemic Peruvian bird thought to be extinct, after its rediscovery in September 1977. It is believed now that a few hundred of the birds may survive, and if protected could become a viable population. But some are taken for food, and it is urgent to create a sanctuary for them. The author is Head of the Department of Ornithology and Mammalogy in the Natural History Museum in Lima.

Until 1976 Gray's monitor lizard was known to science only by two museum specimens, neither of which gave any data more precise than ‘Luzon’. In 1975 the author discovered a third which identified an area on Luzon, and in 1976 he went to the Philippines and found this large monitor, which some scientists had thought might be extinct, widely distributed in forests in southern Luzon. But large areas of these forests have been and continue to be destroyed, and with them go the monitor’s habitat. Also local people hunt it for meat. The author discusses the ecology and distribution of the monitor and urges that a new national park be created.

Cattle ranching for beef is slowly spreading in the Amazonian flood-plains and could lead to a serious loss of wildlife habitats. The author suggests that the indigenous capybara could be a satisfactory alternative for ranching, and one that would not require swamps or areas that are flooded seasonally to be drained.

Indonesia, a land of forests, is still rich in wildlife, with tigers, rhinos, orang-utans and even elephants still surviving despite the enormous pressures of human population. But saving the wildlife means preserving large areas of forest, and timber is Indonesia's second largest export. However, the Government has now committed itself to a conservation programme that includes the promise of 100,000 sq km of nature reserves by 1984. Since 1974 John Blower has been in charge of a UNDP/FAO Nature Conservation and Wildlife Management Project, selecting areas for conservation in national parks and other reserves, and drafting legislation and management plans. WWF has promised $1 million to support the schemes. The author has high hopes that Indonesia/s foresters are coming to realise that conservation and sustained-yield timber production can be combined to the benefit of both.

The wildlife of the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia is a remarkable mixture of Asian and Australasian forms, with many endemic species. But it is being rapidly destroyed as a result of timber logging, hunting and agriculture. However, Dr MacKinnon, who is manager for two World Wildlife Fund projects in North Sulawesi, believes that action now could save most of the larger animals. With Indonesia's new interest in conservation he is optimistic that this will be achieved.

The author, who has studied and advised on wildlife management and park problems in Africa, describes some of the differences he noted in India. He looks at the effects of management in Kanha National Park, where the bans on stock grazing and tree felling and the removal of villages have benefited two endangered species—tiger and barasingha—and shows the need for more study and understanding of the large herbivores in order to manage the park successfully.

Early in 1971 the pygmy hog, widely believed by scientists to be extinct (though many people in the Himalayan foothills must have known otherwise) was ‘re-discovered’ in the Manas Sanctuary in north-west Assam (Oryx September 1971). Since then attempts to breed the species in captivity have been largely unsuccessful, and nothing has been done to protect them in the wild.

Are the seabird colonies in the Galapagos Islands harmed by the ever increasing numbers of tourists? So far the National Park authorities have been able to safeguard the main nesting grounds from trampling by keeping visitors to prescribed paths, but the birds could be harmed in other ways and these need to be investigated. The author describes the research he is doing to find out the facts. This work has been aided by a grant from the Oryx 100% Fund.