REPORTS AND ACTION PLANS

Besides the various types of publications listed elsewhere on this site, CABS often publishes reports and action plans on conservation topics of special concern. Some of these are featured below:

Primates in Peril: The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates. Mittermeier, R., Valladares-Pádua, C., Rylands, A.,Eudey, A., Butynski, T., Ganzhorn, J., Kormos, R., Aguiar, J., Walker, S. IUCN, International Primalotogical Society, Conservation International, 2005.

This landmark report documents extinction risks of world's 25 most endangered primates. From the Atlantic Forest of Brazil to the monsoon slopes of Madagascar, from the mountains of southwest China to the islands of Mentawai, these primates are caught between fading hope and hard oblivion. The report identifies wholesale deforestation poaching, and the expanding sprawl of human settlements as the driving forces behind the disturbing trends in primate populations. It recommends seven particularly threatened ecoregions for priority conservation action.

Regional Action Plan for the Conservation of Chimpanzees and Gorillas in Western Equatorial Africa. Tutin, C., Stokes, E., Boesch, C., Morgan, D., Sanz, C., Reed, T., Blom, A., Walsh, P., Blake, S., and Kormos, R. Conservation International. 2005. Washington, DC.

Download in PDF format [English] [French]

This action plan presents options to preserve dwindling chimpanzee and gorilla populations in western equatorial Africa. More than 70 of the world’s leading experts contributed to the plan. It identifies poaching and disease epidemics as the most serious short-term threats to apes in this region, and further cautions that habitat loss may soon become as serious a threat. Experts agreed upon a list of priority areas for conservation and surveys and identified a need for improved census methods, information accessibility, large-scale survey and monitoring efforts, and further research on Ebola.

Commodities and Conservation: The Need for Greater Habitat Protection in the Tropics. Neisten, E.T., Rice, R.E., Ratay, S.M., and Paratore, K. Conservation International. 2004. Washington, DC.

Download in PDF format

This report argues that protected areas need increased investment to shield biodiversity from expanding cultivation of agricultural commodities in the tropics. We recognize that conservation strategies emphasizing sustainable cultivation techniques are valuable, especially as long-term strategies for curbing the impact of commodity production. However, our analysis shows that in the near term we can expect population growth, income growth, and development policy to continue driving commodity expansion into critical habitat areas for biodiversity in tropical developing countries. We call for more habitat to be placed under direct protection and describe a number of innovative strategies for accomplishing this goal.

Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan: West African Chimpanzees. Kormos, R. and Boesch, C. IUCN. 2003. Gland, Switzerland.

Download in PDF format [English] [French]

This action plan, based on the work of leading scientists and conservationists working with chimpanzees in West Africa, provides a detailed framework for addressing conservation needs of chimpanzees at the regional and national levels. The report presents the most up-to-date information on the status and threats to chimpanzees. In addition, priorities are identified for the conservation of both West African subspecies throughout their range.

Regional Action Plan for the Conservation of Chimpanzees in West Africa. Kormos, R. and Boesch, C. Conservation International. 2003. Washington, D.C.

Download in PDF format (available in English and French)

Wild chimpanzees are only found in tropical Africa, where their populations have declined by more than 66 percent in the last 30 years, from 600,000 to fewer than 200,000 individuals. While this decline by itself is alarming, it merits additional concern because, more than any other species, chimpanzees closely resemble humans genetically, behaviorally, and physically, and thus provide an important link to our evolutionary history. The action plan, which resulted from a recent workshop in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, details a strategy for protecting 80 percent of the surviving chimpanzees in West Africa at a cost of US$9 million.

Designing Sustainable Landscapes. CABS and Instituto de Estudios Sócio-Ambientais do Sul da Bahia. 2000. Washington, D.C.

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This is the first in a series of reports about the theory and application of the concept of biodiversity corridors, and includes detailed descriptions of Conservation International's corridor planning efforts in the Brazilian Atlantic forest region in South America.

Ants: Standard Methods for Measuring and Monitoring Biodiversity D. Agosti, J. D. Majer, L. E. Alonso, and T. R. Schultz. Smithsonian Institution Press. 2000. Washington, D.C.

Download the book or individual chapters from antbase.org

Written by thirty leading ant biologists, this comprehensive book describes procedures for surveying the diversity of ground-dwelling ants. It introduces a standardized protocol for collecting ant samples and conducting repeated sampling over time, which enables researchers to analyze global and long-term patterns. Contributors compare ant diversity to the diversity of other organisms and explain the value of ant studies in monitoring ecosystem change in diverse regions, including Madagascar, Malaysia, India and Brazil.

Covering aspects of ant ecology and taxonomy, species identification, specimen preparation, and sources of sampling equipment, this book provides the necessary foundation for readers from a wide range of backgrounds. It is indispensable, not only to ant researchers, but also to other entomologists, conservationists, students, land managers, and anyone who assess biodiversity or environmental impacts.