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Back to Conservation Programs
Most conservation field projects are initiated with barely enough funding to cover their action on the ground. Rarely are funds available to take a step back and evaluate the projects, in order to review the successes and difficulties encountered in carrying out the project. Such a process is now being recognized as a vital component of conservation management plans, and Lubee is pleased to support such a process for the monitoring program of the Critically Endangered Livingstone's flying fox ( Pteropus livinsgtonii ).
Livingstone's flying fox ( P. livingstonii ) is a Critically Endangered fruit bat endemic to two islands (Moheli and Anjouan) in the Union of the Comoros , in the Western Indian Ocean . Habitat loss is the main threat to this species. The 1992 IUCN Action Plan for Old World Fruit Bats recommended population surveys, and assessment and monitoring for this species, since surveys by visiting scientists prior to 1992 had suggested this fruit bat was on the verge of extinction, with population estimates of ~ 100 bats on Anjouan and only a few on Moheli. In 1994, the NGO Action Comores (International) established a population monitoring program with Comorians, with five specific objectives: to survey all known roosts simultaneously twice yearly in order to provide data for long-term population monitoring; to survey larger roosts monthly to clarify seasonal trends; to continue to search for additional roosts; to increase awareness of P. livingstonii in villages close to roosts; and to involve Comorians actively in the conservation of P. livingstonii .
Despite political and logistic problems in the Union of the Comores, this monitoring program has undoubtedly been successful. By 2002, this program had discovered 16 new roosts (for a total of 17 on Anjouan and five on Moheli), resulting in a preliminary minimum population estimate of 1,200 bats. A local NGO, Action Comores (antenne Anjouan), has been established to run the monitoring program on the ground and develop local conservation plans for P. livingstonii in the Union of the Comores. With the support of the Projet Conservation de la Biodiversit é et D é veloppment Durable aux Comores (an IUCN / Comorian government project funded by the Global Environment Facility and the United Nations Development Programme), Durrel Wildlife Conservation Trust, Bristol Zoo Gardens, and Action Comores (International), the local NGO has developed an Action Plan for this species in 2003, in which c ontinuation of the monitoring program is a major recommendation. However, the program needs an objective review of the way it is managed, so that improvements can be recommended to ensure long-term accuracy of data collection and analysis.
Thanks to a grant from Lubee, monitoring data collected at roosts P. livingstonii over the past 10 years is currently being analyzed using standard statistical programs, and a critical review of the monitoring program's quality and long-term sustainability is being produced by Action Comores International). A report will be disseminated to those actively involved in the conservation of P. livingstonii , both in the Union of the Comores and internationally. Findings will also be published as a scientific paper. Once such a review is produced, it will be possible to seek long term funding for this important monitoring program, and to test applicability of this monitoring model for other species in other regions worldwide.
You can find out more about Action Comores and conservation efforts for Livingstone’s flying fox and its habitat in the Union of the Comoros by visiting the Action Comores web site.
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