In several eastern Mediterranean countries orchids are collected from the wild for the production of salep, a beverage made of dried orchid tubers. The drivers of this collection and trade have changed over time. We investigated which genera and species are harvested for salep production, whether any cultivation takes place, the chain of commercialization, and the economic value of tuber collection. Fieldwork and interviews in north-western Greece included 25 collectors and street vendors, the owners of two companies, and one herbal shop. The results show that several orchid species are traded for the production of salep, and none are cultivated. Tubers collected in Greece, Albania and Turkey are sold in northern Greece for EUR 55–150 per kg on average. Recent catalysts such as the increasing demand for traditional, organic and alternative foodstuffs, and the 2009 economic downturn, have led to a revival of salep consumption, with an increasing number of salep harvesters from Greece and Albania scouring the mountains for harvestable tubers, using unsustainable harvesting practices.

This survey was part of a situational analysis of bushmeat hunting and trade in Sapo National Park in south-east Liberia. Increased private-sector investment in natural resource extraction and industrial-scale agribusiness outside the Park is anticipated to increase hunting pressure and lead to further declines in biodiversity unless informed, assertive actions are taken to protect it more effectively. Two commercial hunting camps on the Park's southern boundary were surveyed for 1 month each. Information on the catch of all professional hunters in these camps was documented. The results revealed a high diversity of species but significant and probably unsustainable bushmeat extraction rates. Eighty-two chimpanzees Pan troglodytes verus, including eight live infants, were recorded in the survey. Most of the bushmeat harvested was destined for Monrovia and other major towns. A concerted effort needs to be made to shut down these commercial camps but the potentially significant contribution that commercial trade makes to urban areas suggests that this can only be achieved if Liberia develops alternative sectors in domestic meat production to feed the growing urban population.

Studying seasonal hunting patterns can be critical for developing sound actions for conservation and public health. As availability of funds to implement conservation policy is limited, it is essential to focus efforts during the most critical times of year. During July 2011–June 2012 I recorded direct observations of hunting of forest mammals, and conducted daily 24-hour recall surveys (2 weeks per month over 11 months: August 2011–June 2012), and interviews of all households in a focal village on the Masoala Peninsula of Madagascar to investigate (1) what drives seasonal hunting patterns and (2) how seasonal variation in consumption of wildlife and domestic meat affects native species and people. There is marked seasonal variation in hunting of forest mammals and in the consumption of fish and domesticated livestock on the Masoala Peninsula. Hunters target bushpigs Potamochoerus larvatus and tenrec and lemur species during the austral winter (March–August), whereas more native and introduced carnivorans, fish and domesticated livestock are consumed during the austral summer (September–February). The results suggest that seasonal variation in hunting patterns is driven by the physical and behavioural characteristics of prey rather than seasonal scarcity of alternative meat. Seasonal hunting and meat consumption on the Masoala Peninsula may amplify the negative impact of hunting on native carnivorans and tenrecs (which are hunted when they are pregnant and lactating), and the positive impact of consumption of lemurs, bushpigs and tenrecs on human health. This study highlights an important aspect of hunting on the Masoala: the decision whether or not to hunt is made independently of decisions regarding when to hunt particular species.

Urban development is an increasing threat to the integrity of formerly remote protected areas, in some cases resulting in their downgrading, downsizing or degazetting. One-quarter of previously remote protected areas are now within 17 km of a city and thus face the threat of urbanization. Here we describe a case of avoided downgrading, downsizing and degazetting of a protected area in the Mondah forest of Gabon, north of Libreville. Since its creation in 1934 the Forêt Classée de la Mondah has been downsized regularly, losing 40% of its area over 80 years. During this time the forest surrounding the Forêt Classée was subject to usage for urban and peri-urban needs, including agriculture, sand extraction, collection of medicinal plants, ceremonies, and housing construction. In 2010 the area was threatened with further downsizing. The presence of narrowly endemic plant species in the area was suspected, and mapping and evaluation of these species was proposed in an effort to maintain the protected area boundaries. Botanical field work, including ex situ conservation measures and participant observation in nearby forest communities, was conducted; 24 endemic species, all threatened by urbanization, were evaluated using the criteria for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The borders of the protected area were maintained because of its role in maintaining irreplaceable habitat for threatened species. The area was renamed Raponda Walker Arboretum in 2012.

The conservation of species listed in the Bern Convention and European Directive 1992/43/EEC (so-called policy species) is mandatory for European Union (EU) countries. We assessed the conservation status of Italian policy species, based on the IUCN categories and criteria, to evaluate the effectiveness of existing protection measures at the national level. Among the 203 vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens evaluated, 41.9% are categorized as threatened, and one is already extinct, indicating that the protection measures for policy species are inadequate. Our results for the Italian policy species are consistent with those of an assessment at the EU level. Conservation priorities should be established at both the national and regional scales. An effective conservation strategy is needed, and in situ and ex situ actions focused on threatened species should be promoted.

The distribution of the Critically Endangered tree Manglietia longipedunculata, of which there are only 11 known wild individuals, is restricted to the Nankunshan Nature Reserve in South China. The species is threatened with extinction because of its small number of individuals and the impediments to its reproduction (a combination of protogyny, a short period of stigma receptivity, and a lack of efficient pollinators). To reduce the risk of extinction we conducted two conservation translocation trials: one to augment the sole extant population, and the other 202 km north of the current range. The latter trial was a conservation introduction in which the goals were to increase the population and to buffer against the effects of climate change. We used emerged and grafted seedlings as translocation materials. We compared the survival, growth, and eco-physiological properties of emerged and grafted seedlings at the two sites. The survival rate and growth were higher for grafted seedlings than for emerged seedlings at both sites. Eco-physiological data indicated that grafted seedlings at both sites were as efficient or more so in light and water usage than wild individuals, whereas emerged seedlings were less efficient. Grafted seedlings attained the flowering stage sooner than emerged seedlings. Our study suggests that grafting can facilitate the augmentation and establishment of new populations of M. longipedunculata and perhaps of new populations of other threatened species facing reproductive difficulties and climate change.

Magnolia sinica, a Critically Endangered tree endemic to Yunnan, China, is one of the 20 plant species with extremely small populations approved by the Yunnan government for urgent rescue action before 2015. Information on the geographical distribution and population size of this species had not previously been reported, hindering effective conservation. We therefore carried out a survey of the literature and of herbarium specimens, followed by a detailed field survey and morphological measurements and observations of surviving individuals. We located 52 individuals in the wild, in eight localities. Two distinguishing morphological characters (tepal colour and tepal number) were revised based on observations of all remaining wild individuals that produced flowers and on one 30-year-old flowering plant in Kunming Botanical Garden. The survival rate of individuals propagated from seed for ex situ conservation at the Garden was 100% over 5 years; of 100 individuals transplanted to each of two reinforcement sites, 20 and 18, respectively, were alive after 6 years. We propose two groups of measures to protect M. sinica: (1) in situ conservation, population monitoring, and public engagement, and (2) ex situ conservation with reinforcement or reintroduction.

Climate change is expected to have important impacts on biodiversity. However, cases showing explicit links between species decline and climate are scarce, mostly because of a lack of baseline data. Tropical ectotherms with narrow altitudinal ranges are particularly sensitive to climate change; for example the frog Pristimantis espedeus may be at risk, with only nine populations known to date in French Guiana, all on isolated massifs. Ecological niche modelling indicated that these populations could disappear by 2070. To facilitate testing of this prediction we conducted a study to design an efficient, cost-effective monitoring protocol, combining occupancy rate estimations using passive acoustic recorders, and abundance estimations using acoustic repeated counts and capture–mark–recapture. We found the passive recorders to be effective, with a detection probability of 0.8. Two recording sessions were sufficient to estimate occupancy rates reliably. A minimum of 57 surveyed sites were required to detect a decline of 15% in occupancy between two consecutive monitoring events. Acoustic repeated counts and capture–mark–recapture yielded similar density estimates (1.6 and 1.8 calling males per 100 m2, respectively). Based on these results we present a protocol based on passive acoustic recording and abundance monitoring to monitor P. espedeus populations.

Edge effects have been studied extensively in fragmented landscapes, often with conflicting findings. Edge effects may also be important in other situations, such as linear clearings (e.g. along roads, power lines or train tracks). We tested for responses of small mammals to a narrow (c. 10 m) linear clearing created by a railway in the largest area of Atlantic Forest in southern Brazil. Only two environmental variables, light intensity and train noise, were greatest at the edge and decreased with distance from the edge. Temperature differed (greater extremes and more variable) only at the edge itself. The few small mammal species that were only rarely captured at the edge resulted in an apparent edge-effect with respect to species richness. The abundance of small mammals, however, was independent of distance from the railway. There was no correlation between resource availability at the tracks and abundance of small mammals. Edge effects were minimal, which suggests that narrow railways (in contrast with roads) in unfragmented landscapes probably do not have a significant impact (if any) on wildlife, as found elsewhere and especially in tropical forests. The use of railways instead of roads is a potential strategy to minimize the effects of traversing important habitats for commercial reasons.

Brazil's biodiversity faces significant threats, including wildlife crime. Although wildlife is protected by law and there are enforcement agencies to administer penalties and impose fines, the effectiveness of this system is questionable. Tackling wildlife crime requires legislation aligned with well-structured mechanisms for surveillance and de facto punishment. We used data on notifications of violations and payment of fines associated with wildlife crime in the state of Pernambuco over 12 years as a proxy for efficiency in tackling wildlife crime in Brazil. We tracked 803 processes from 2000–2012, extracting data on the type of violation, the fine imposed, the length of process handling, and processing and payment status. The number of processes rose from 17 in 2004 to 167 in 2012, with 69% of cases occurring during 2008–2012. Only 37.6% of processes were concluded, with completion times of 286–4,558 days. Some processes had been open for 11.5 years. Fines totalling > USD 22 million were issued but only c. 1% of this amount was paid. Small fines are often pardoned or converted to a warning. Although enforcement has improved it is still inefficient, with errors in notification and data entry, a lengthy judicial process, and an inability to recover unpaid fines.

Ecuador harbours a diverse assemblage of tropical mammals, yet the natural history and local-scale distributions of many species remain poorly understood. We conducted the first systematic camera-trap survey of terrestrial mammalian carnivores at Wildsumaco Wildlife Sanctuary, a mid-elevation (1,250–1,450 m), montane rainforest site on the slopes of Sumaco Volcano, in the heart of the Tropical Andes biodiversity hotspot. We quantified trap success, latency to detection and temporal activity patterns for each species detected. We recorded nine carnivore species (four felids, two procyonids and three mustelids), including the first verified record of the jaguarundi Puma yagouaroundi in the region. These species comprise one-third of all terrestrial carnivore species known to occur in Ecuador and 82% of those thought to occur at mid-elevation. All except one of the carnivores we detected have reported elevational ranges ≤ 1,500 m; the one exception, the puma Puma concolor, occurs throughout mainland Ecuador at 0–4,500 m. No cloud forest or highland species (i.e. those with a reported lower elevational limit of ≥ 1,500 m) were detected. Trap success was highest, and latency to detection smallest, for the margay Leopardis wiedii, and temporal activity patterns for all species were consistent with those reported previously in the literature. Our results demonstrate that the mid-elevation montane rainforests of Sumaco Volcano support an exceptionally high diversity of co-existing mammalian carnivores, many of which appear to be near their upper elevational limits, and emphasize the conservation value of this area.

Saving species from extinction is a central tenet of conservation, yet success in this endeavour remains unpredictable and elusive, especially where wildlife trade is involved. Influential conservation policy actors operating internationally advocate strong regulatory and enforcement approaches to governance of wildlife trade. However, a broad body of evidence suggests that in some situations positive incentives for sustainable use may achieve better conservation outcomes. This analysis of efforts over 3 decades to avoid the extinction of the Bali starling Leucopsar rothschildi draws on network perspectives from environmental governance and geography, and shows how an international project adopting traditional enforcement approaches generated a ‘prestige of ownership’ dynamic among local elites. This placed trade in Bali starlings above the enforcement competencies of the relevant government authority, leading to the demise of the species. Subsequently, two separate Indonesian initiatives created spaces of regulatory flexibility and embraced traits of the starling's phenotype to construct identities for the species suited to the local context. This enrolled a wider range of stakeholders in the conservation of the species, including bird-keeping elites, and led to significant successes in restoring captive and free-flying populations. This case study highlights the potential of conservation networks that involve non-establishment personnel and, while recognizing the appeal of generic enforcement approaches to politicians, funders and the urban public, it adds to an increasing body of evidence that suggests top-down prescriptive conservation frameworks may undermine the ability of situated conservationists to develop interventions appropriate to their political and cultural realities.