Scientific paper

Abstract: Protected areas are the cornerstone of in situ conservation and their effective management is critical for maintaining biodiversity in the long term. In East Africa (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda) there are 1,776 protected areas (including 186 “strict” protected areas with IUCN management categories I through IV) covering more than 27% of its terrestrial area. Here we document the extent to which East African protected areas encompass ecoregions and endemic terrestrial vertebrate taxa, and using new land conversion data derived from medium to high spatial resolution satellite images, we assess how they have been encroached upon by agriculture and other land use. We find that East African protected areas cover 86% of ecoregions well (>10% threshold of ecoregion representativeness set by the Convention on Biological Diversity's Aichi Target 11), some very well (>90% - Rwenzori-Virunga montane moorlands and East African montane moorlands). In contrast, Masai xeric grasslands and shrublands, Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets, and Southern Swahili coastal forests and woodlands are poorly represented. Protected areas cover at least 10% of the distribution of 256 of 303 East African endemic and near-endemic terrestrial vertebrate species (the latter defined here as having 90% or more of their range in East Africa). However, 37% of these species' ranges do not have at least 10% coverage by strict PAs and only 26% of endemic species have at least half of their range covered by PAs. Encouragingly, we find that only 6.8% of East African protected areas has been converted to agriculture or other human use since gazettement. Only 1.6% of strict protected areas have been converted providing very strong evidence that strict protection is the most enduring way of safeguarding habitat.

Citation: Riggio, J., A.P. Jacobson, R.J. Hijmans and T. Caro (2019). How effective are the protected areas of East Africa? Global Ecology and Conservation 17: e00573. DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00573

Document Type

Regional assessment

Scientific paper

Publication year

2019

Document Link

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989418304323

Document Theme

PAME (Protected Area Management Effectiveness)

Karyotypic Analysis of Five Rodents and a Marsupial from Belize, Central America

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 13:00:00 +0000

Karyotypic Analysis of Five Rodents and a Marsupial from Belize, Central America Anonymous Thu, 03/25/2021 - 09:00

Region

Country

Document

Document Type

Publication year

1987

Lessons learned from 18 years of implementing the Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT)

Anonymous — Fri, 11 Dec 2020 15:49:10 +0000

Lessons learned from 18 years of implementing the Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) Anonymous Fri, 12/11/2020 - 11:49

Citation: Stolton, S, Dudley, N, Belokurov, A, Deguignet, M, Burgess, ND, Hockings, M, Leverington, F, MacKinnon, K & Young, L 2019, 'Lessons learned from 18 years of implementing the management effectiveness tracking tool (Mett): a perspective from the mett developers and implementers', Parks, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 79-92. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.CH.2019.PARKS-25-2SS.en

Document

PARKS-25.2-Stolton-et-al-10.2305-IUCN.CH_.2019.PARKS-25-2SS.en_.pdf

Document Type

Manual / Methodology / Standard / Tool

Scientific paper

Publication year

2019

Document Theme

PAME (Protected Area Management Effectiveness)

Plant Records from Natural Forest Communities in the Bladen Nature Reserve, Maya Mountains

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 12:57:49 +0000

Plant Records from Natural Forest Communities in the Bladen Nature Reserve, Maya Mountains Anonymous Thu, 03/25/2021 - 08:57

Region

ACP Caribbean

Country

Belize

Protected Area

Bladen

Document

Plant_Records_from_Natural_Forest_Communities_in_t.pdf

Document Type

Site-level assessment

Scientific paper

Publication year

1995

Protected areas to deliver biodiversity need management effectiveness and equity

Anonymous — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 09:44:31 +0000

Protected areas to deliver biodiversity need management effectiveness and equity Anonymous Mon, 12/07/2020 - 05:44

Abstract: It is widely recognized in science, policy, and practice that protected areas (PAs) that are equitably and effectively managed are essential for halting biodiversity loss. However, our understanding of the relationships between management effectiveness and equity remains weak. Here, we investigate potential synergies and trade-offs between management and equity as well as how they can work together to reduce human pressure in PAs. We then examine the potential of existing global datasets on effectiveness, equity, and human pressure to help inform international policy processes. Our preliminary findings show a negative association between well-defined and sound managed PAs and how satisfied are local people about the decisions related to the management of the PA, reinforcing study of cases that found conflicts in top-down established and managed PAs. We find, however, no association between management effectiveness and social equity with an increasing human pressure. We find only a limited overlap in global databases on management effectiveness, social equity, and human pressure (n = 33). Thus, our results highlight the need to increase the number of PAs with appropriate data about management effectiveness, equity and human pressure to inform policy processes. Without such data, it will be difficult to suggest in honest new quantitative targets for the quality of PAs and Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures post-2020.

Document Type

Scientific paper

Publication year

2020

Document Link

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989419307413

Document Theme

PAME (Protected Area Management Effectiveness)

PAGE (Protected Area Governance and Equity)

Research priorities for conservation and natural resource management in Oceania's small‐island developing states

Anonymous — Tue, 27 Apr 2021 10:53:35 +0000

Research priorities for conservation and natural resource management in Oceania's small‐island developing states Anonymous Tue, 04/27/2021 - 06:53

Abstract: For conservation science to effectively inform management, research must focus on creating the scientific knowledge required to solve conservation problems. We identified research questions that, if answered, would increase the effectiveness of conservation and natural resource management practice and policy in Oceania's small‐island developing states. We asked conservation professionals from academia, governmental, and nongovernmental organizations across the region to propose such questions and then identify which were of high priority in an online survey. We compared the high‐priority questions with research questions identified globally and for other regions. Of 270 questions proposed by respondents, 38 were considered high priority, including: What are the highest priority areas for conservation in the face of increasing resource demand and climate change? How should marine protected areas be networked to account for connectivity and climate change? What are the most effective fisheries management policies that contribute to sustainable coral reef fisheries? High‐priority questions related to the particular challenges of undertaking conservation on small‐island developing states and the need for a research agenda that is responsive to the sociocultural context of Oceania. Research priorities for Oceania relative to elsewhere were broadly similar but differed in specific issues relevant to particular conservation contexts. These differences emphasize the importance of involving local practitioners in the identification of research priorities. Priorities were reasonably well aligned among sectoral groups. Only a few questions were widely considered answered, which may indicate a smaller‐than‐expected knowledge‐action gap. We believe these questions can be used to strengthen research collaborations between scientists and practitioners working to further conservation and natural resource management in this region.

Weeks, R. and Adams, V.M. (2018), Research priorities for conservation and natural resource management in Oceania's small‐island developing states. Conservation Biology, 32: 72-83. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12964

Document Type

Scientific paper

Publication year

2017

Document Link

https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.12964

Document Theme

PAME (Protected Area Management Effectiveness)

Size, age, and habitat determine effectiveness of Palau's Marine Protected Areas

Anonymous — Tue, 27 Apr 2021 10:54:26 +0000

Size, age, and habitat determine effectiveness of Palau's Marine Protected Areas Anonymous Tue, 04/27/2021 - 06:54

Abstract: Palau has a rich heritage of conservation that has evolved from the traditional moratoria on fishing, or “bul”, to more western Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), while still retaining elements of customary management and tenure. In 2003, the Palau Protected Areas Network (PAN) was created to conserve Palau’s unique biodiversity and culture, and is the country’s mechanism for achieving the goals of the Micronesia Challenge (MC), an initiative to conserve ≥30% of near-shore marine resources within the region by 2020. The PAN comprises a network of numerous MPAs within Palau that vary in age, size, level of management, and habitat, which provide an excellent opportunity to test hypotheses concerning MPA design and function using multiple discreet sampling units. Our sampling design provided a robust space for time comparison to evaluate the relative influence of potential drivers of MPA efficacy. Our results showed that no-take MPAs had, on average, nearly twice the biomass of resource fishes (i.e. those important commercially, culturally, or for subsistence) compared to nearby unprotected areas. Biomass of non-resource fishes showed no differences between no-take areas and areas open to fishing. The most striking difference between no-take MPAs and unprotected areas was the more than 5-fold greater biomass of piscivorous fishes in the MPAs compared to fished areas. The most important determinates of no-take MPA success in conserving resource fish biomass were MPA size and years of protection. Habitat and distance from shore had little effect on resource fish biomass. The extensive network of MPAs in Palau likely provides important conservation and tourism benefits to the Republic, and may also provide fisheries benefits by protecting spawning aggregation sites, and potentially through adult spillover.

Friedlander AM, Golbuu Y, Ballesteros E, Caselle JE, Gouezo M, Olsudong D, et al. (2017) Size, age, and habitat determine effectiveness of Palau's Marine Protected Areas. PLoS ONE 12(3): e0174787. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0174787

Document Type

Scientific paper

Publication year

2017

Document Link

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0174787

Document Theme

PAME (Protected Area Management Effectiveness)