Reintroduction of rare and threatened species often fails to yield quantifiable conservation benefits because insufficient attention is focused on the species’ habitat requirements and biology. We demonstrate the value of such data in informing a recovery plan for Alectryon ramiflorus S.Reyn. (Sapindaceae), a tree species endemic to a region on the southern coast of Queensland, Australia. When the species was categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 1997 the total known population consisted of only 26 adult plants, in five disjunct populations in remnant patches of native vegetation. Analysis of vegetation type, soil chemistry and composition data comparing remnant patches with and without A. ramiflorus revealed that the species is not restricted to a specific soil type but prefers sites with relatively fertile soil and a more complex vegetation structure. The species is cryptically dioecious, displays asynchronous flowering between individuals, and requires insect-vectored pollination. The low rate of seedling production recorded within individual patches was attributed to the scarcity of trees of both genders, asynchronous flowering of individual trees and, in smaller patches, a sparse population of pollinating insect species. Successful reintroduction of A. ramiflorus will require consideration of these aspects of demographic success. The findings highlight the importance to species recovery plans of the knowledge of habitat requirements, interspecific relationships and critical dependencies, as well as species reproductive biology.

There is a lack of information on how the Endangered Bornean orang-utan Pongo pygmaeus morio moves through its environment. Here we report on a camera-trapping study carried out over 2.5 years to investigate the orang-utan's terrestrial behaviour in Wehea Forest, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. We set 41 camera trap stations in an area of secondary forest, 36 in recently logged forest immediately adjacent to Wehea Forest, and 20 in an area of primary forest in the heart of Wehea Forest. A combined sampling effort of 28,485 trap nights yielded 296 independent captures of orang-utans. Of the three study sites, orang-utans were most terrestrial in recently logged forest, which may be only partially explained by breaks in the canopy as a result of logging activity. However, orang-utans were also terrestrial in primary forest, where there was a closed canopy and ample opportunity for moving through the trees. Our results indicate that orang-utans may be more terrestrial than previously thought and demonstrate opportunistic behaviour when moving through their environment, including using newly constructed logging roads for locomotion, possibly indicating some degree of resilience to human disturbance. This finding is important because of the potential role of sustainably logged forests for orang-utan conservation.

The oil palm industry is blamed for the demise of iconic species such as the orang-utan Pongo pygmaeus in Borneo but production of, and demand for, this commodity continue to expand. Therefore, a better understanding of how the orang-utan is adapting to human-transformed environments is crucial for conserving the species. Results from a combination of repeated ground transects, aerial presence/absence surveys, and interviews of workers in mature plantations of the lower Kinabatangan River floodplain (eastern Sabah) provide an overall picture of the current status of orang-utans in an established agro-industrial oil palm landscape. Our results show that orang-utans disperse into mature plantations, use oil palm trees for nesting, and feed on mature fruits. Most oil palm workers report orang-utans of all age–sex classes within the estates but fail to report any negative effect of the animals on productivity of mature palms ≥5 years. Our surveys also show that orang-utan presence in the mature oil palm landscape is correlated with proximity to natural forest patches. These results suggest that forest patches, even when small, fragmented and degraded, are required to sustain the species in human-transformed landscapes. Homogenous oil palm plantations are incompatible with viable populations of orang-utans. The cessation of further forest conversion to agriculture and the enforcement of better management practices are needed to reduce the threat of oil palm development to orang-utan survival.

As peat-swamp forests in Borneo become progressively more fragmented, the species that inhabit them are increasingly threatened, notably the Endangered Bornean orang-utan Pongo pygmaeus. The area of a failed agricultural project known as the Mega Rice Project in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, is composed of fragments of peat-swamp forest that are reported to contain orang-utans, although no comprehensive survey has previously been conducted. In a portion of this area we identified remaining forest fragments, using satellite imagery, and surveyed line transects for orang-utan sleeping nests to determine the density, abundance and distribution of the species. The total area of peat-swamp forest in the study area is 76,755 ha, 59,948 ha of which comprises patches at least as large as the home range of a female orang-utan (250 ha). We estimate a mean population density of 2.48 ± SE 0.32 individuals km−2 and a population of 1,700 ± SE 220 or 1,507 ± SE 195 individuals, based on a 25 and 250 ha minimum patch size threshold, respectively. This is c. 40–45% of the original population, and the fragmented population is unlikely to be viable in terms of long-term demographic and genetic stability. To ensure persistence of this population of orang-utans, direct conservation action to connect forest fragments and prevent further loss of peat-swamp forest will be required, including re-establishing the hydrological regime, reforesting barren areas and fighting fires.

It is essential to understand whether conservation interventions are having the desired effect, particularly in light of increasing pressures on biodiversity and because of requirements by donors that project success be demonstrated. Whilst most evaluations look at effectiveness at a project or organizational level, local efforts need to be connected to an understanding of the effectiveness of conservation directed at a species as a whole, particularly as most metrics of conservation success are at the level of species. We present a framework for measuring the effectiveness of conservation attention at a species level over time, based on scoring eight factors essential for species conservation (engaging stakeholders, management programme, education and awareness, funding and resource mobilization, addressing threats, communication, capacity building and status knowledge), across input, output and outcome stages, in relation to the proportion of the species’ range where each factor attains its highest score. The framework was tested using expert elicitation for 35 mammal and amphibian species on the Zoological Society of London's list of Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered species. Broad patterns in the index produced by the framework could suggest potential mechanisms underlying change in species status. Assigning an uncertainty score to information demonstrates not only where gaps in knowledge exist, but discrepancies in knowledge between experts. This framework could be a useful tool to link local and global scales of impact on species conservation, and could provide a simple and visually appealing way of tracking conservation over time.

The whale shark Rhincodon typus is a popular focal species in the marine tourism industry. We analysed 689 encounters with at least 142 individual sharks during 2008–2010 to assess their behaviour in the presence of swimmers at Tofo Beach, Mozambique. Sharks varied in size (estimated 3.0–9.5 m total length) and the majority (74%) were males. The sharks displayed avoidance behaviours during 64.7% of encounters. Encounter duration decreased significantly, from 12 minutes 37 s with undisturbed sharks to 8 minutes 25 s when sharks expressed avoidance behaviours, indicating that interactions with tourists affected the sharks’ short-term behaviour. However, during the 2.5-year study period we found no trend in the mean encounter duration, the overall expression of avoidance behaviour or the likelihood of an individual shark exhibiting avoidance behaviours. Potential effects of tourism may be mitigated by the non-breeding status and transient behaviour of sharks at this aggregation site.

Until recently animals inhabiting mountain areas were relatively free from disturbance by people but they are now coming under increasing pressure. Tourism, especially that involving large numbers of people, is having an ever more detrimental effect on the natural resources of high mountains, even in protected areas. We analyse the effect of tourist pressure on the population of the Tatra chamois Rupicapra rupicapra tatrica, which inhabits the strictly protected high-altitude habitats of the Tatra mountains (Carpathians, Poland). The Kasprowy Wierch cable car system, in operation since 1936, was modernized in 2007; as a consequence 50% more people can now be carried into the chamois’ habitat. The effect of this sudden increase in tourist pressure has been to reduce the size of herds (3.9 vs 5.3 individuals) and to increase the distance between the animals and the cable car station (1,664.0 vs 693.0 m), the cable car infrastructure (1,415.0 vs 467.8 m) and adjacent ski-lifts and ski pistes (1,214.2 vs 494.3 m). The distance to the marked hiking trails has not changed, however. Following the modernization of the cable cars, larger herds of chamois have been seen at greater distances from the tourist infrastructure. Our results indicate the adverse impact of this mass tourism. Human activities in high-mountain ecosystems need to have due consideration for the requirements of wild species, and the number of visitors needs to be controlled.

Heptner's markhor Capra falconeri heptneri is an Endangered wild goat occurring in disjunct populations in southern Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Surveys to determine the total population in Tajikistan were conducted during February–April 2012. A total of 1,018 animals were observed. In most areas, which include state protected areas and family- and community-based conservancies, markhor populations are stable or increasing. Threats include illegal hunting, habitat degradation, competition with livestock and disease transmission. To motivate conservancies economically to protect markhor populations, trophy hunting should be permitted to accommodate the sustainable use of markhor, with revenues distributed in a transparent and equitably shared manner.

The Critically Endangered hirola Beatragus hunteri exists in two populations, a natural population on the Kenyan–Somali border and a translocated population in Tsavo East National Park, Kenya. The Tsavo population is becoming increasingly important for the survival of the hirola yet its status is unknown and little is understood about the factors that limit its growth. Here we report the size, distribution and demographic parameters of the Tsavo population of hirola and consider whether insufficient suitable habitat could be limiting its growth. The Tsavo population has not increased since 2000, when the last census was carried out, but neither has it significantly decreased. The importance of habitat as a limiting factor is dependent on the hirola's ability to utilize marginal habitat.

Rose's mountain toad Capensibufo rosei survives in a few isolated montane populations in the south-western Cape of South Africa. It comprises several cryptic species but it is uncertain whether the lineage on the Cape Peninsula is distinct. We tested the hypothesis that toads from the Peninsula form a single genetic lineage but that different breeding sites are divergent at a population level as a result of limited dispersal abilities. Directed surveys were carried out to locate breeding sites and samples obtained were analysed in a phylogenetic and population genetic framework, using two mitochondrial markers. We found toads breeding at only one of five known historical breeding sites, although one new breeding site was also recorded. No toads were observed at 15 other non-breeding localities where they were historically observed. Toads from the two active breeding sites formed a single lineage that was sufficiently distinct to be given species status. However, these were discrete at a population level, with no shared haplotypes, suggesting no gene flow between sites. One site was particularly low in genetic diversity, implying increased vulnerability to stochastic events and elevated risk of extinction. These results, coupled with the failure to locate historically known sites on the Cape Peninsula, make this newly recognized Peninsula endemic a conservation priority. Efforts should focus on the protection and expansion of the two known surviving populations and the patches of habitat upon which they rely.

The current status and distribution of the Vulnerable Reeves's pheasant Syrmaticus reevesii, endemic to central China, is poorly known. To obtain updated information on its status we selected 89 candidate sites in six provinces and one municipality in central China and conducted interviews and field surveys from April 2011 to April 2012. Interviews demonstrated the pheasant has disappeared from 46% of the surveyed sites. Our results also revealed a population decline at 46 sites, including protected areas, although population densities in protected areas were higher than those in non-protected areas. Eighty-three, 26 and 20% of the surveyed sites had evidence of poaching, habitat loss and use of poison, respectively, which were the three major threats to this species. To ensure the long-term survival of Reeves's pheasant in China, protection and management need to be enforced in both protected and non-protected areas. We recommend that this species should be upgraded to a national first-level protected species in China and recategorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.

Reintroduction success depends in part on the release strategy used. Benefits are attributed to particular release strategies but few studies have tested these assumptions. We examined the effect of delayed release (a form of so-called soft release) on the survival of a threatened passerine, the New Zealand hihi Notiomystis cincta, for up to 7 months after translocation. Birds were captured at the source site and then held in captivity for disease screening. They were then taken to the release site, where 30 were released immediately and 28 were held for a further 2–4 days in an on-site aviary. Twenty-four birds were fitted with radio-transmitters. A 1,300 ha area around the release site was searched fortnightly, and survival was analysed using a multi-state model that accounted for the effect of transmitters on detection probability. Our results indicated that delayed release had a negative effect on long-term survival, but no effect was apparent in the first 6 weeks. Survival probability from 6 weeks to 7 months post-release was 0.77 ± SE 0.20 for immediate-release birds and 0.04 ± SE 0.06 for delayed-release birds. Our results suggest that there is a misconception about the benefits of delayed-release strategies during translocation of wild animals. Studies that have demonstrated a benefit of delayed release in other bird species used captive-bred individuals, and we suggest that wild individuals perceive captivity differently. We recommend that biological context is considered before delayed release is used in translocations.

The population of the Critically Endangered Mariana crow Corvus kubaryi on the island of Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, has decreased dramatically in recent years. It is unclear to what extent negative practices by people, such as inappropriate land use or persecution of crows, have contributed to this decline. We conducted a public opinion survey to document ongoing practices towards the crows on Rota, to assess residents’ knowledge of and attitudes towards the birds, and to gauge potential responses to a government-instituted land incentive programme. Enumerators administered surveys in person during August 2011. Most of the 573 respondents were native Chamorro residents (75%) and more than half were landowners (62%). A majority of respondents (72%) considered environmental issues ‘very important’ and 76% knew of the Mariana crow's Critically Endangered status. Fewer respondents (55%) expressed concern about the bird going extinct. A number of respondents condoned shooting and chasing crows (17 and 52%, respectively), suggesting that residents may be harassing the birds. Chamorro landowners on the island were more likely to have negative attitudes towards the crows and to know people who persecute the crows than other island residents. Education was positively correlated with knowledge and concern about the crow and environmental issues, suggesting that new educational programmes on Rota may help improve residents’ attitudes towards the species. In addition, we recommend a revision of current land-use regulations and implementation of a monetary compensation programme for owners of crow nesting habitat to improve landowners’ attitudes and practices.

The pygmy hippopotamus Choeropsis liberiensis is an Endangered species found only in the Upper Guinea rainforests of West Africa. Using a two-phase approach, with initial semi-structured interviews followed by more extensive questionnaires, we examined local residents' awareness of and attitudes towards the pygmy hippopotamus along the Moa River near Tiwai Island Wildlife Sanctuary in Sierra Leone. The interviews and questionnaires addressed human–hippopotamus interactions, local knowledge and awareness of pygmy hippopotamus ecology and behaviour, and public attitudes towards hippopotamus conservation. Overall, 22% of questionnaire respondents acknowledged benefits related to hippopotamus conservation; factors affecting the perception of benefits included age, livestock ownership, distance from Tiwai Island and exposure to conservation programmes. The results of this study could be used to inform the conservation of the pygmy hippopotamus and highlight the critical role of local support in the management of threatened species in biodiversity hotspots.

Conservation of charismatic vertebrates in modern landscapes often includes habitat engineering, which is well supported by the public but lacks a consideration of wider conservation consequences. We analysed a pond management project for an introduced island population of captive-bred, Critically Endangered European mink Mustela lutreola. Ponds were excavated near watercourses in hydrologically impoverished forests to support the main prey of the mink (brown frogs Rana temporaria and Rana arvalis). A comparison of these ponds with other, natural, water bodies revealed that the (re)constructed ponds could reduce food shortages for the mink. Moreover, the ponds provided habitat for macroinvertebrates that were uncommon in the managed forests in the study area, including some species of conservation concern. The cost-effectiveness of the management of charismatic species can be increased by explicitly including wider conservation targets at both the planning and assessment stages.