The Nubian dragon tree Dracaena ombet, which is categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, is found on the highest slopes of Gebel Elba National Park in Egypt, with scattered populations in Sudan, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia. The Gebel Elba population is threatened by drought. Surveys were conducted in the Park to assess the condition and document the distribution of the species to prepare a baseline for conservation efforts. Eight sites were surveyed during 2007–2009: trees were tagged and their locations were recorded using a global positioning system, and tree density, diameter at breast height and population status were estimated. Of 353 trees recorded only 46% (161 individuals) were alive and only 27% (96 individuals) were in a healthy condition. Only 1% (2 individuals) were young trees, indicating a low regeneration level. Field-based observations suggest that 80% of the D. ombet population in Gebel Elba may soon be extinct. A conservation action plan is needed for this flagship species in Egypt and throughout its range.

There is little information on the changing role of bushmeat hunting in the agricultural areas of West Africa. We assessed the status and role of bushmeat hunting and rural consumption in three communities in Ghana, through household surveys (n = 250), and interviews with hunters (n = 69), eatery owners (n = 18) and bushmeat traders (n = 3). Hunting was embedded within dynamic livelihood strategies, with two broad categories of hunters identified: a large group who targeted pests on their own farms using traps, and a smaller group of professional hunters. The professional hunters included a group of young men who hunted with dogs, and another group of older firearm hunters who tended to be members of Hunters’ Associations. All professional hunters reported a decline in bushmeat availability and expressed concerns about the viability of hunting as a livelihood. The frequency of consumption of bushmeat increased with distance from the region's main urban centre, Kumasi, but bushmeat was not found to be a major component of the diet in any of the villages. Few men self-identified as hunters, although bushmeat hunting continued to play an important role in the rural economy, primarily for crop protection. Conservation efforts need to consider the full spectrum of hunting behaviours. Specific measures should target forest-based hunters, who are more likely to damage forest ecosystems than crop pest hunters but also show more concern for the sustainability of hunting, and commitment to hunting as an institution.

I present data on the decline of Hose's langur Presbytis hosei over a 7-year period in the Kayan Mentarang National Park in the remote northern part of East Kalimantan, Indonesia. In 1996 Hose's langurs were among the most common primates in the Nggeng Bio valley, occurring at densities of over two groups km−2, and could be observed almost daily. A repeat census of the same area in 2003 indicated that these densities had dropped by 50–80%, and observation of the species in the valley had become a rare occurrence. During the 7-year period the forest remained in a relatively pristine condition but, despite being part of a National Park, active protection of the valley was lacking and hunting was common. From interviews with local hunters and Park staff it appeared that hunting for bezoar stones (visceral excretions found in langurs and used in traditional medicine) was the primary reason for the observed decline in Hose's langur. In 1998 a merchant calling at a nearby village had expressed an interest in the stones and guaranteed to purchase them, and this sparked excessive hunting of Hose's langur in the area, to such an extent that 3 years later this hunting was no longer economically viable. This study demonstrates that, with increasing access to markets, hunting large vertebrates for medicinal purposes, even for short periods only, can have a dramatic impact on population numbers. In such cases, habitat protection alone does not guarantee preservation, and more active protection of wildlife is required.

Tropical forest regions in equatorial Africa are threatened with degradation, deforestation and biodiversity loss as a result of land-cover change. We investigated historical land-cover dynamics in unprotected forested areas of the Littoral Region in south-western Cameroon during 1975–2017, to detect changes that may influence this important biodiversity and wildlife area. Processed Landsat imagery was used to map and monitor changes in land use and land cover. From 1975 to 2017 the area of high-value forest landscapes decreased by c. 420,000 ha, and increasing forest fragmentation caused a decline of c. 12% in the largest patch index. Conversely, disturbed vegetation, cleared areas and urban areas all expanded in extent, by 32% (c. 400,000 ha), 5.6% (c. 26,800 ha) and 6.6% (c. 78,631 ha), respectively. The greatest increase was in the area converted to oil palm plantations (c. 26,893 ha), followed by logging and land clearing (c. 34,838 ha), all of which were the major factors driving deforestation in the study area. Our findings highlight the increasing threats facing the wider Littoral Region, which includes Mount Nlonako and Ebo Forest, both of which are critical areas for regional conservation and the latter a proposed National Park and the only sizable area of intact forest in the region. Intact forest in the Littoral Region, and in particular at Ebo, merits urgent protection.

This paper describes the results of field surveys for two Endangered lemurs, Milne-Edward's sifaka Propithecus diadema edwardsi and the black and white ruffed lemur Varecia variegata variegata, in the unprotected Fandriana-Marolambo forest corridor in south-east Madagascar. Published range maps show P. d. edwardsi and V. v. variegata present in the corridor, although few surveys have been conducted in this area. A total of 292.9 km of surveys were conducted at eight sites in the corridor but P. d. edwardsi and V. v. variegata were each located at only one site. Absence of these species at other sites may be the combined result of altitudinal and anthropogenic effects. Conservation plans for P. d. edwardsi and V. v. variegata are complicated because gaps in forest cover prevent dispersal of conspecifics from nearby protected areas. Conservation authorities should be cautious in using range maps based on the presumed distribution of lemur species.

Tourists approaching wild animals can potentially cause disturbance as a result of the perceived predation risk. Risk effects arise when prey alter their behaviour in response to predators. This response may carry costs through its impact on fitness-related activities such as foraging. We recorded behavioural responses of whale sharks Rhincodon typus to experimental vessel and swimmer approaches. We simulated the disturbance caused by ecotourism in the foraging site of this planktivorous fish in Bahia de Los Angeles, Gulf of Baja California, Mexico. Stress-related behaviours (vigilance, change of direction, diving and acceleration) were more common directly after both types of disturbance than before, in particular after approach by a swimmer. Individuals were more likely to be vigilant when they were new to the bay, but we did not find evidence of within-season behavioural habituation. Sharks were 24% more likely to forage before human stimuli than after. Our study highlights negative effects of vessel and swimmer approaches on whale shark behaviour, with a short-term increase in stress-related behaviours potentially carrying energetic costs, combined with a decrease in food intake following the disturbance. Our results indicate concerns about the impact of ecotourism on large fish species. An important next step would be to determine whether these short-term behavioural responses to the perception of predation risk negatively affect fitness. Among other guidelines, we recommend preventing swimmers from approaching if whale sharks stop feeding when a vessel approaches.

A major threat to river dolphins in Brazil is habitat loss and fragmentation as a result of the construction of hydroelectric dams. We examine the degree of overlap between the distributions of two river dolphin species (boto Inia geoffrensis and tucuxi Sotalia fluviatilis) and hydroelectric projects and provide an initial quantification of impacts. The locations of dams were overlaid onto a map of the known distributions of the dolphins. Two types of impacts were evaluated: population fragmentation and effects on prey. For each of these a binary score (for absence or presence) was assigned for each dam. The sum of all impact scores for each dam, in each of the three watersheds in which dolphins are found, including realized and potential impacts, was calculated as the impact index. Thirteen dams affect the distribution of I. geoffrensis (as could a further three dams under construction and seven planned), and three dams affect S. fluviatilis (as could three under construction and two planned). Overall, the impact index was higher for I. geoffrensis than for S. fluviatilis. The Araguaia–Tocantins and North Atlantic watersheds have higher impact index values than the Amazon watershed. Although some impacts of damming could not be considered in this study, our approach was a rapid initial risk assessment that provided an overall understanding of how river dolphins are and may be affected by hydroelectric projects in Brazil. Our method may be applicable to other freshwater cetaceans and species facing similar threats when information about impacts is incomplete.

The Alaotran gentle lemur Hapalemur griseus alaotrensis is found only in the marsh vegetation surrounding Lac Alaotra in Madagascar. This habitat is shrinking and becoming fragmented due to conversion to rice cultivation. In addition, lemurs are hunted for pets and food. There is no protected area within their limited range. This paper presents the results of a 6-month field study assessing the distribution, population size and conservation status of the lemur. The population consists of about 7500 animals, split into at least two subpopulations. If no conservation action is taken in the near future, drainage of the remaining 13,000 ha block of marsh vegetation will probably lead to the extinction in the wild of this primate taxon.

In 2004 an intensive survey of Latakia and other Syrian beaches was undertaken to improve and update knowledge of Syria's marine turtle nesting populations. The survey confirmed that loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta nest in Syria (eight nests recorded), distributed diffusely along the coast, but also identified hitherto undescribed green turtle Chelonia mydas nesting aggregations. The most important green turtle nesting site was the 12 km of beach south-east of Latakia that ranks in the Mediterranean's top 10 rookeries for this species (in terms of maximum number of nests), with 104 of the 106 nests recorded in this study. Mean clutch size of green turtles (108 ± SD 25.1, range 72–164, n = 29) was comparable with other Mediterranean rookeries, and hatching success (percentage of eggs that produced hatchlings) of successful nests was 83.5%. The main problems facing the turtles and their nests were found to be deliberate killing of adults, nest predation and hatchling disorientation. We recommend initiation of annual monitoring and nest protection at the main green turtle nesting beach and investigations of possible at-sea turtle populations together with a campaign to raise awareness and acceptance amongst stakeholders.

In 1971 John MacKinnon spent seven months in Sumatra studying orang-utans in the wild. This report compares his findings with those of his earlier and much longer study in Sabah, the report of which was published in Oryx September 1971, and also comments on some other mammals in his study area, including the Sumatran rhino.

Reliable information on wildlife populations and the threats they face is crucial for assessing the performance of conservation strategies. As part of its efforts to improve the effectiveness of Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia, and aid the recovery of flagship species, the Park's management authority designated a 1,000 km2 forest block an Intensive Protection Zone. To set a baseline from which to evaluate the performance of this zone, we investigated the density of tigers Panthera tigris sumatrae, and spatio-temporal interactions between tigers, their principle prey and threats. The estimated density of tigers was 2.8 per 100 km2, whereas in 2002 camera-trapping failed to record any tigers in the Intensive Protection Zone. We found the study area contained a rich prey base, with muntjac deer Muntiacus muntjak, macaques Macaca nemestrina and wild pigs Sus scrofa occupying 85–98% of the area, and sambar Rusa unicolor 61%. Despite these promising findings we also recorded a relatively high number of people entering the Park illegally, with 77 incidents over 6 months, of which 20% involved armed poachers. The poachers operated mainly at night and were concentrated in two locations. Law enforcement patrol teams were active during the day, and therefore had little overlap with the poachers. Prioritizing these at-risk areas for increased protection by rangers would further secure the Intensive Protection Zone, and expanding ranger activity across the Park would support efforts to remove the Park from UNESCO's List of World Heritage In Danger.

Biodiversity indicators are essential for monitoring the impacts of pressures on the state of nature, determining the effectiveness of policy responses, and tracking progress towards biodiversity targets and sustainable development goals. Indicators based on trends in the abundance of birds are widely used for these purposes in Europe and have been identified as priorities for development elsewhere. To facilitate this we established bird population monitoring schemes in three African countries, based on citizen science approaches used in Europe, aiming to monitor population trends in common and widespread species. We recorded > 500 bird species from c. 450 2-km transects in Botswana, > 750 species from c. 120 transects in Uganda, and > 630 species from c. 90 transects in Kenya. Provisional Wild Bird Indices indicate a strong increase in bird populations in Botswana and a small decrease in Uganda. We also provide comparisons between trends of habitat generalists and specialists, of birds within and outside protected areas, and between Afro-Palearctic migrants and resident birds. Challenges encountered included recruiting, training and retaining volunteer surveyors, and securing long-term funding. However, we show that with technical support and modest investment (c. USD 30,000 per scheme per year), meaningful biodiversity indicators can be generated and used in African countries. Sustained resourcing for the existing schemes, and replication elsewhere, would be a cost-effective way to improve our understanding of biodiversity trends globally, and measure progress towards environmental goals.

Wild animals have played an important role in the lives of Maya Indians but recent evidence from a small Maya community in south-eastern Mexico suggests that their importance as a source of food may be diminishing. The persistence of subsistence hunting despite low kill rates suggests that hunting is still culturally important to the Maya community as a whole. By combining subsistence hunting with other subsistence and commercial activities, such as gardening and the extraction of chicle latex from sapodilla trees Manilkara zapota, contemporary Maya hunters are preserving a culturally important activity while simultaneously adapting to internal and external pressures to modernize their society.

Silver arawana Osteoglossum bicirrhosum are increasingly popular on the international aquarium fish market, but the routine killing of mouth brooding adults to collect juveniles for the trade may threaten wild populations. We describe the aquarium trade and fishery for silver arawana in the Peruvian Amazon. This is the first such report on the species for South America, and is based on field interviews with trade participants and fishermen, and on a review of government statistics. The regional trade is large, expanding and valuable (over 1 million juveniles worth USD 560,000 exported in 2001), of considerable economic importance to the rural poor, and in urgent need of research, monitoring and management. Outright bans on arawana fishing are likely to be ineffective and to destabilize an export fishery that provides significant part-time employment for the rural poor and substantial foreign earnings. Experimental studies are called for that compare the impacts on arawana yields of alternate fishing techniques, such as catch and release of brooding males, as a basis for developing more effective management schemes in Amazonia.

In the Cook Islands the population of Pteropus tonganus tonganus is thought to be declining, but a lack of knowledge of its status, feeding and roosting requirements has precluded effective conservation plans. We surveyed P. t. tonganus on the Cook Islands through observations, counts and interviews with local residents. We estimated the population to be c. 1,730 on Rarotonga and 78 on Mangaia. A lack of suitable habitat on Mangaia was the most important factor affecting abundance. Overhunting appears to have reduced the populations on both islands. All roost sites were found in undisturbed forest on steep slopes and ridges in the inner and most inaccessible parts of the islands, with roost preference determined by the relative safety from humans rather than food availability. The residents of the Cook Islands seem generally unaware of the serious threat the bats face, with little thought for sustainable hunting. For successful conservation it will be important to alter people's negative perception of these mammals, promoting the value of the bats both ecologically and as a potential source of income from tourists. Habitat protection and enhancement, particularly on Mangaia, will be essential.

Seventeen protected areas in south-east Thailand were surveyed for the Endangered pileated gibbon Hylobates pileatus during April 2004–March 2005, with the objectives of establishing the species’ current distribution, obtaining approximate population estimates for the largest forest areas, and assessing threats to the species’ survival. Landsat images and a geographical information system were used to identify the remaining suitable habitat within the species’ range. We conducted auditory surveys to census the gibbon populations in the five largest protected areas of Khao Yai, Pang Sida, and Tab Lan National Parks, and Khao Soi Dao and Khao Ang Ru Nai Wildlife Sanctuaries. Small protected areas within the range of the pileated gibbon (five parks and seven sanctuaries) were also evaluated, using questionnaires and interviews with local staff and villagers. Approximately 3,800 km2 of suitable canopy forest with an estimated 3,000 breeding groups, containing c. 12,000 individuals, remain within the four largest areas of forest. Pileated gibbons are also still present in 10 of the smaller protected areas. The largest populations of pileated gibbon in Thailand should be viable over the long-term provided that hunting, habitat degradation and further fragmentation are controlled. Hunting is now the most significant problem, and gibbon densities are well below the carrying capacity of the habitat and declining. As patrolling is not sufficiently effective to control poaching, the cooperation and support of local villagers must be sought in future conservation efforts.

Overexploitation is a significant threat to biodiversity, with live capture of millions of animals annually. An improved understanding of live capture of primates is needed, especially for Madagascar's threatened lemurs. Our objectives were to provide the first quantitative estimates of the prevalence, spatial extent, correlates and timing of lemur ownership, procurement methods, within-country movements, and numbers and duration of ownership. Using semi-structured interviews of 1,093 households and 61 transporters, across 17 study sites, we found that lemur ownership was widespread and affected a variety of taxa. We estimate that 28,253 lemurs have been affected since 2010. Most lemurs were caught by owners and kept for either short (≤ 1 week) or long (≥ 3 years) periods. The live capture of lemurs in Madagascar is not highly organized but may threaten several Endangered and Critically Endangered species.

Information on spatial and temporal variation in abundance is crucial for effective management of wildlife. Yet abundance estimates for the Critically Endangered Sumatran tiger Panthera tigris sumatrae are lacking from Riau, the province historically believed to hold the largest percentage of this subspecies. Recently, this area has had one of the highest global rates of deforestation. Using camera traps we investigated tiger abundance across peatland, flat lowland, and hilly lowland forest types in the province, and over time, in the newly established Tesso Nilo National Park, central Sumatra. We estimated densities using spatially explicit capture–recapture, calculated with DENSITY, and traditional capture–recapture models, calculated with CAPTURE. With spatially explicit capture–recapture the lowest tiger density (0.34 ± SE 0.24 per 100 km2) was estimated in the hilly lowland forest of Rimbang Baling and the highest (0.87 ± SE 0.33 per 100 km2) in the flat lowland forest of the Park. Repeated surveys in the Park documented densities of 0.63 ± SE 0.28 in 2005 to 0.87 ± SE 0.33 per 100 km2 in 2008. Compared to traditional capture–recapture the spatially explicit capture–recapture approach resulted in estimates 50% lower. Estimates of tiger density from this study were lower than most previous estimates in other parts of Sumatra. High levels of human activity in the area appear to limit tigers. The results of this study, which covered areas and habitat types not previously surveyed, are important for overall population estimates across the island, provide insight into the response of carnivores to habitat loss, and are relevant to the interventions needed to save the tiger.

To identify forests of high priority for conservation in tropical dry forests of New Caledonia, Fiji, the Marquesas and Hawaii, we examined patterns of woody plant species richness (total, native and endemic) and threatened species (IUCN categorization and density) at the stand level, using Gentry's transect method. There were associations between total, native and endemic plant species richness in all four Pacific dry forest regions but we found no significant association with the presence or density of species listed on the IUCN Red List. Dry forests in New Caledonia and Hawaii merit the highest conservation priority in the Pacific, based on level of endemism and number of threatened species. The study sites that merit high conservation priority are Metzdorf, Nekoro and Pindai, in New Caledonia, Kokee and Kaupulehu, in Hawaii, and Vatia, in Fiji. New Caledonia and Fiji have a small dry forest extent and protected area extent compared with other dry forests in biodiversity hotspots. Although we identified priority areas for dry forest conservation, more comparative plot data, presence/absence data in fragments and regional geographical data are needed to adequately manage and protect dry forests in the Pacific.

There is widespread concern for many understorey and ground-dwelling bird species in the Philippines that appear intolerant of forest alteration. We present density estimates for 18 key bird species in old growth forest, advanced and early secondary growth and active cultivation within the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park in Palawan. Six species were not recorded in cultivation and the abundance of these and several others increased along the successional gradient from cultivation to old growth forest. Eleven species, including five endemics and three of four threatened species, had highest density estimates in old growth forest. However, several species had high density estimates in the heavily disturbed habitats and every habitat type held highest densities of at least one of the bird species. The commonest habitat association across the bird community was a preference for areas containing large trees, indicating the importance of retention of such trees in allowing suitable ground and understorey microhabitats to persist. Old growth forests have the highest conservation value for Palawan’s endemic birds and, while some species thrive in the anthropogenic habitats that occur within the Park, the present extent of cultivation and associated successional stages within its boundaries should not be increased. We caution against extrapolation of the abundance figures from the Park to the whole island but we suggest that population sizes for the threatened species are likely to be much greater than previously thought. We urge authorities to strengthen management within the protected area network in Palawan to ensure survival of key species.