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  Designing protected areas to conserve natural resources »

  Biologists view Protected Areas (PAs) as natural areas established and managed primarily for the conservation of nature. However, many early Pas were established for aesthetic or socio-economic reasons and received little scientific input to their design. More recently, scientists have identified gaps in PA networks and various contemporary PAs have been established to provide for habitats and species in need of protection.
  Scientists have also modelled minimum areas and population sizes that should be protected to prevent extinctions arising from demographic or chance causes. However, these theoretical ideals are difficult to put into practice, particularly as PAs increasingly face more immediate external threats. If scientists are to influence future PA design, and if PAs are to succeed in the long term, these concepts must be applied in practice. Therefore, sufficient protection must be integrated with human needs and aspirations in the design of future protected areas.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Physiographic control on the development of Spartina marshes »

  We made a complete survey of all the extant populations in Djibouti and to collect samples for genetic analysis with a view conserving the palm for the future.
  Our survey revealed that there were a total of 314 adults, 20 juveniles, 134 rosettes, 210 small rosettes (more than 6 leaves) and 465 seedlings (<3 leaves) living in the Bankouale area of Djibouti. These are distributed unequally amongst three valley systems. 65% of the adults, 85% of the juveniles, 75% of the rosettes, 76% of the small rosettes, and 93 % of the seedlings were found in the Bankouale valley.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Siberia - Asia's great wilderness »

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  A comparison between Tundra and wet grassland breeding waders with special reference to the Ruff (Philomachus pugnax) »

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  Some important birds and forests in Nepal »

  A table is provided of 122 bird species with restricted breeding distributions and for which Nepal may hold significant populations. Habitat threats and population changes are detailed for 33 species for which Nepal may be especially important. The vital importance of Nepal's forests to Nepal's avifauna is emphasised.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Status of the Baikal Teal in the Lower Indigirka Basin, Siberia »

  Small local hunting communities in Siberia are very distant from any governmental control. Hunted waterbird species, including globally and regionally threatened species, rely for their well-being on the self regulation of remote hunting communities. Interviewed hunters showed a profound knowledge of Baikal Teal, its population status, and the causes of their past decline. Whether the knowledge is shared by other communities in the region and beyond in Northern Siberia needs verification.
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  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Coral reefs and mangroves: implications from the tsunami one year on »

  The countries affected by the 2004 Asian tsunami contain the most diverse and extensive coral reefs and mangroves of the Indian Ocean, and some of the richest in the world. Not only are these ecosystems among the most threatened in the world, they also provide numerous essential ecosystem services.

  It is thus not surprising that reefs and mangroves received widespread attention after the tsunami, with three principal questions posed: Are the tsunami's impacts on reefs and mangroves a further threat to their future survival? Did reefs and mangroves play a role in shoreline protection and reduce structural damage and human mortality? How could reconstruction efforts include actions to maintain these ecosystems and reduce further threats to them?

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Assessing the status of poorly known species: Lessons from partridges and pheasants of Southeast Asia »

  There is an urgent need to evaluate the status of groups of species for conservation purposes. A species' status is indicated by both its distribution and abundance, and the rate at which these components are changing. This information is scarce for many tropical forest species. We produced four measures of status based on locality and habitat data for 25 partridges and pheasants of Southeast Asia.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Declining Ruff Philomachus pugnax populations: a response to global warming? »

  Ruff breeding populations have declined widely and in all habitats across temperate Eurasia. Of an estimated population of 2.2-2.8 million birds, 98% are now confined to habitats in the Arctic tundra. 

  The emerging picture is that the population has shifted northwards and eastwards and has retreated from the wet grassland habitats formerly occupied along the southern edges of its range. It is suggested that the causes are probably of a global nature and may be linked with climate change. It is unclear whether the total population has declined or only shifted north and east. More co-ordinated and systematic monitoring of breeding and wintering populations will be necessary before a full understanding of these changes can be reached.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Threat from deforestation to montane and lowland birds and mammals in insular South-east Asia »

  A reduction in forest area should result in a reduction of its number of species and, moreover, do so in a characteristic way according to the familiar species-area relationship. Brooks, Pimm & Collar (1997) applied this formula to the losses in forest area in the Philippines and Indonesia. Independently derived totals of the number of endemic bird species that are threatened with extinction broadly agree with these predicted losses. In some cases, however, predicted losses overestimate or underestimate the actual numbers of threatened species.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers