With 10% of trees (> 8,000 species) threatened with extinction there is an urgent need for botanical gardens to protect threatened trees in dedicated conservation collections. Species conservation is mentioned in the mission statements of most major botanical gardens, yet the actual conservation value of existing ex situ tree collections is low. We conducted interviews with members of the botanical garden community and organized a symposium at the 5th Global Botanic Gardens Congress to identify challenges and collect recommendations to improve living ex situ tree collections. We summarize and evaluate this information to facilitate gardens becoming more effective agents for global tree conservation. Experts agree that gardens offer valuable strengths and assets for tree conservation. Some challenges exist, however, including a lack of strategic conservation focus, collection management limitations, gaps in fundamental biological information for trees, and a lack of global coordination. Solutions are offered to facilitate gardens and arboreta of all sizes to participate more effectively in tree conservation. Prioritizing genetically diverse tree collections, participating in conservation networks, developing tree-specific conservation models and guidelines, and strengthening tree science research efforts are a few examples. Most importantly, a more coordinated global effort is needed to fill knowledge gaps, share information, and build conservation capacity in biodiversity hotspots to prevent the loss of tree species.

We radio-tracked a pack of bush dogs Speothos venaticus (7–10 individuals) near Água Boa in Mato Grosso, Brazil, for 18 months to investigate their use of habitat in cultivated land. The pack's home range was 709 km2 (fixed-kernel 95%), which exceeds estimates of home range for the largest Neotropical carnivore, the jaguar Panthera onca. Of the 245 locations where the dogs were recorded 95% were within native vegetation (savannah and forest), even though these habitats comprised only 34% of the pack's home range. This indicates a preference for native vegetation, and this was reinforced by composition analysis of habitat use, which showed that the pack used savannah and forest more than expected and cultivated areas less than expected. Analysis of activity showed that the bush dogs were moving quickly in more than half of the locations in cultivated areas, foraging in most savannah locations and resting in most forest locations. Our results indicate that bush dogs can live in areas with a high proportion of cultivated land (66%), possibly because of the structural connectivity of the landscape (80% of the native habitat is within a single patch). However, their home range appears to be inflated compared to that of other carnivores, which may have a negative effect on the species in the long term.

The recovery goal for the jaguar Panthera onca in the USA should be to restore significant presence with some reproduction, consistent with historical records. Nevertheless, the prevailing conservation strategy for the jaguar does not include restoration in peripheral range and merely seeks long-term survival of the jaguar within its existing northern range, which is almost entirely in Mexico. Broader issues are whether recovery programmes should include peripheral populations, range expansion and species representation across ecoregions. Considering jaguar history, habitat, population requirements, wildlife management and other factors in the southwestern USA, efforts to re-establish the species would have a reasonable chance of success. Recovery of the jaguar in the USA would improve prospects for the adaptation and survival of the species within its northern range, given habitat loss, conflicts with humans and climate change.

Amazonas and San Martin are two of the most densely populated regions in rural Peru and have some of the highest deforestation rates in the country. They are also home to many threatened and endemic species and are considered a high priority for conservation. Under Peruvian law individuals and community groups can create private conservation areas and conservation concessions, and we evaluated the successes and challenges experienced in the creation and management of such areas, using direct observation, questionnaires and key-informant interviews. Our results show that far from being a problem for conservation many rural communities are actively promoting or participating in conservation initiatives on a local scale with landscape-level impacts. These initiatives include land protection, hunting control and reduced deforestation, thus providing effective solutions to threats. The main obstacles we identified in relation to such campesino (peasant farmer) conservation initiatives were the lack of access to support from governmental and non-governmental institutions and to economic resources to fund the extensive bureaucratic processes of registering protected areas. Many campesino communities bypass these restrictions through informal conservation initiatives.

Lonchophylla bokermanni is a nectar-feeding bat endemic to south-east Brazil that is currently categorized as Vulnerable in Brazil but as Data Deficient on the IUCN Red List. Originally described in the Cerrado savannah of Minas Gerais state in 1978, the species is known to occur in only two other nearby localities. In the last 2 decades individuals identified as L. bokermanni were recorded in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, increasing the known range of the species. A recent taxonomic review, however, has shown that Atlantic Forest individuals belong to a separate, new species, Lonchophylla peracchii. L. bokermanni, therefore, is known from only three localities, with an Extent of Occurrence of 1,506 km2. Because this EOO is < 5,000 km2, the species is known from <5 localities, and there is a presumed continued decline in its habitat extent and quality, it should be categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. We recommend that the state of the three known populations of L. bokermanni be evaluated, and that surveys for further populations are required, particularly in Serra do Cipó National Park.

Ecological restoration of trees is often constrained by limited knowledge of the biology, propagation and management requirements of individual species. Consequently, restoration initiatives rarely incorporate less well-known species or those that are difficult to source and grow. We describe challenges associated with the restoration of threatened trees in the Araucaria Forest of southern Brazil, and analyse the effectiveness of methods used to define target species, identify seed sources and generate information on the phenology of rare or threatened tree species. A review of secondary data identified 71 rare or threatened taxa as targets for seed collection. We then surveyed 68.7 km of trails in 26 forest remnants, identifying and mapping 1,027 seed-producing trees of 38 species. Surveys confirmed the scarcity of several tree species (including seven species with an abundance of <0.04 individuals per km), and nine species showed no signs of fruiting during 3 years of phenological monitoring. These findings, together with limited knowledge and application of optimal seed collection methods, are significant factors impeding the recovery of these species within their natural habitat. Wider application of the results of this case study could support restoration of the Araucaria Forest with seedlings from a wider diversity of species.

Human–carnivore conflict is one of the major challenges in the management of populations of large carnivores. Concerns include the increasing human population; habitat loss as a result of degradation and fragmentation of forest; and livestock predation as a result of a lack of natural prey, leading to retaliatory killings of wild carnivores. Conflicts may be further aggravated by occasional attacks that result in injury and loss of human life. The level of consumption of prey species by a predator is a benchmark to evaluate the scale of this conflict. We used a newly developed DNA-based diet analysis to study the prey profile of common leopards Panthera pardus in Ayubia National Park, Pakistan. The results suggest that the common leopard is a generalist predator, subsisting mainly on domestic animals. Based on the frequency of occurrence of prey items in 57 faecal samples, the diet of the leopard is dominated by domestic goat Capra hircus (64.9%), followed by domestic dog Canis lupus familiaris (17.5%) and cow Bos taurus (12.3%). Domestic animals (goat, dog, cow, water buffalo Bubalus bubalis, horse Equus caballus and sheep Ovis aries) occurred in 54 (95%) of the 57 samples. We recommend a two-step strategy to mitigate this conflict: (1) introducing incentives for increased acceptance of leopards among local communities in the vicinity of the protected area and (2) increasing the availability of wild prey. We hope that the results of this study will contribute to the survival of the leopard in Pakistan.

China is home to three subspecies of tiger Panthera tigris but there are no estimates of the size of any of the populations. We detected a population of the Endangered Amur tiger Panthera tigris altaica in Hunchun Nature Reserve in Jilin Province using both mitochondrial DNA and nuclear microsatellite loci. Four male and one female tigers were detected, indicating the potential for a small breeding group. However, genetic diversity was low overall, with six loci showing a heterozygote deficiency and a mean of 2.55 alleles per locus. This study is the first estimate of the wild Amur tiger population in China to use non-invasive techniques, and the presence of a female tiger indicates this is a potentially viable population. We provide baseline genetic diversity estimates to support monitoring of the population. The small number of tiger scats located indicates the importance of continuing the current conservation efforts for this tiger subspecies in Hunchun Nature Reserve. Such efforts include reducing poaching of tigers and their prey, and implementation of management plans to encourage the persistence and recovery of tigers in this area.

The presence of domestic species such as dogs Canis familiaris in protected areas can cause problems for native species as a result of competition, predation and disease transmission. To improve our ability to design effective control policies we investigated the factors affecting detection of dog tracks in a Mediterranean national park.

We investigated the presence of dogs across 69 2 × 2 km grid squares in Doñana National Park in south-west Spain and used logistic regression models to analyse the associated environmental and human constraints. We did not detect dogs in areas away from the edges of the national park close to human settlements (track census effort > 470 km) and the detection of dog tracks was correlated with human presence. We conclude that domestic dogs occasionally enter the Park from the surrounding area and are a direct threat to wildlife at the edges of the Park. Management actions to reduce the effects of domestic dogs in protected areas where feral dog populations are not established should focus on the spatial extent of local settlements, regulation and awareness-raising to encourage responsible dog-ownership, and control measures such as removing un-owned dogs from boundaries and areas close to human dwellings, and forbidding unleashed dogs in public facilities.

To stem the loss of biodiversity and ensure continued provision of essential ecosystem services world leaders adopted the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets in 2010, to be fulfilled by 2020. One key target (Target 11) prescribes an expansion of the global protected area system to at least 17% of land surface and 10% of oceans by 2020. Given that these targets are predominantly based on political feasibility rather than scientific evidence, it remains unclear whether fulfilment of Target 11 will suffice to safeguard biodiversity and ensure continued provision of essential ecosystem services. Despite many data gaps, in particular for ecosystem services, we can use existing global data to estimate the required protected area on land for biodiversity (a minimum of c. 17%) and biomass carbon storage (a minimum of c. 7–14% additional area to protect 75–90% of the unprotected carbon stock), which illustrates that the target of 17% of land will probably fall short in meeting these goals. As crossing thresholds or tipping points in ecosystems could trigger non-linear, abrupt change in delivery of ecosystem services, we need a science-driven understanding of how much protected, intact nature is needed to avoid unforeseen transgression of planetary boundaries.

Impoverished communities often turn to illegal extraction of resources from protected areas to alleviate economic pressures or to make monetary gains. Such practices can cause ecological damage and threaten animal populations. These communities also often face a high disease burden and typically do not have access to affordable health care. Here we argue that these two seemingly separate challenges may have a common solution. In particular, providing health care to communities adjacent to protected areas may be an efficient and effective way to reduce the disease burden while also improving local perceptions about protected areas, potentially reducing illegal extraction. We present a case study of a health centre on the edge of Kibale National Park, Uganda. The centre has provided care to c. 7,200 people since 2008 and its outreach programme extends to c. 4,500 schoolchildren each year. Contrasting the provision of health care to other means of improving community perceptions of protected areas suggests that health clinics have potential as a conservation tool in some situations and should be considered in future efforts to manage protected areas.

Wild tree resins generate billions of dollars in revenue annually but many species face extinction. The lansan tree Protium attenuatum has disappeared across most of its range as a result of overexploitation for its valuable oleoresin, which is used as incense. This study in Saint Lucia aimed to determine whether lansan resin could be harvested sustainably. Over 34 months, 298 trees were tapped using 10 experimental methods, and compared with 74 controls. Significantly more resin was produced by tapping the same trees repeatedly, tapping trees with a wider girth, cutting the same part of the trunk repeatedly, and, in particular, spraying diluted sulphuric acid on the cut. Applying 5 and 30% sulphuric acid boosted yields by 58 and 134%, respectively, without negative impacts on tree growth, condition or mortality. In contrast, traditional methods used by local tappers were destructive, causing greater decay and infection, slower growth rates and increased mortality. Results show tappers can obtain more resin and maintain healthy populations by tapping mature trees of ≥ 20 cm diameter at breast height, using only one shallow cut per tree (refreshed every 2 weeks) and applying weak sulphuric acid solution. A blind survey found consumers could not distinguish between incense produced with or without this stimulant. A national management plan has been devised whereby tappers will be licensed and trained in the optimal method and granted their own forest coupes to manage under Forestry Department supervision. The methods and findings may guide the sustainable use and conservation of other resin-producing trees.

Apes, like many frugivorous animals, are crucial allies for the reproduction of several fruiting tree species. Almost all apes, however, including bonobos Pan paniscus, are threatened with extinction. How will this affect tree conservation? How can plants that are adapted to seed dispersal by apes reproduce without their dispersal vectors? At LuiKotale, in an evergreen tropical forest of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the recruitment of 22 plant species in the absence of seed dispersal was investigated under the parental canopy, where a proportion of seeds fall without horizontal dissemination. Most bonobo-dispersed plant species (95% of 19 species) were unable to self-recruit under the canopy. As 40% of the tree species (65% of trees) at LuiKotale are dispersed by bonobos there is a risk of ecosystem decay and simplification (reduced biodiversity) if Pan paniscus disappears from its natural range. The extinction of other apes from their forests could have similar consequences. The conservation of tree species, therefore, must encompass conservation of pollinators, seed dispersal vectors and other species that provide ecological services to the trees and other fruiting plants.

There is little information on the changing role of bushmeat hunting in the agricultural areas of West Africa. We assessed the status and role of bushmeat hunting and rural consumption in three communities in Ghana, through household surveys (n = 250), and interviews with hunters (n = 69), eatery owners (n = 18) and bushmeat traders (n = 3). Hunting was embedded within dynamic livelihood strategies, with two broad categories of hunters identified: a large group who targeted pests on their own farms using traps, and a smaller group of professional hunters. The professional hunters included a group of young men who hunted with dogs, and another group of older firearm hunters who tended to be members of Hunters’ Associations. All professional hunters reported a decline in bushmeat availability and expressed concerns about the viability of hunting as a livelihood. The frequency of consumption of bushmeat increased with distance from the region's main urban centre, Kumasi, but bushmeat was not found to be a major component of the diet in any of the villages. Few men self-identified as hunters, although bushmeat hunting continued to play an important role in the rural economy, primarily for crop protection. Conservation efforts need to consider the full spectrum of hunting behaviours. Specific measures should target forest-based hunters, who are more likely to damage forest ecosystems than crop pest hunters but also show more concern for the sustainability of hunting, and commitment to hunting as an institution.

Conservation research has a poor record of translating science into action. Previous surveys have investigated the lack of information exchange between researchers and practitioners by focusing on the uptake of peer-reviewed literature by practitioners from developed countries. They largely ignore conservation practitioners and researchers from developing countries, for whom accessing scientific data may be more difficult. This survey investigates how practitioners and researchers from developing countries access the scientific information needed in their work, and the place of peer-reviewed literature in this process. Our results suggest that practitioners access and use peer-reviewed literature; however, both practitioners and researchers mainly obtain information from open-access journals and do not base their choice on a journal's Impact Factor. Furthermore, researchers and practitioners in developing countries appear to be looking for more direct collaboration to ensure research is relevant to their needs, as well as more open-access journals and new ways to disseminate information.

During 1997–2012 we conducted a nationwide camera-trapping survey and assessed the availability of prey and habitat for the clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa in Taiwan. We surveyed 1,249 camera-trap sites over 113,636 camera-trap days, from the seashore to an altitude of 3,796 m and covering various types of vegetation. No clouded leopards were photographed during 128,394 camera-trap days, including at 209 sites in other studies, confirming the presumed extinction of clouded leopards in Taiwan. Assessment of the prey base revealed altitudinal distribution patterns of prey species and prey biomass. Areas at lower altitudes and with less human encroachment and hunting supported a higher prey biomass and more of the typical prey species of clouded leopards. Habitat analysis revealed 8,523 km2 of suitable habitat but this was reduced to 6,734 km2 when adjacent areas of human encroachment were subtracted. In the absence of hunting and large mammalian carnivores the major prey of clouded leopards in Taiwan, such as Formosan macaques Macaca cyclopis, Reeves's muntjacs Muntiacus reevesi, Formosan serow Capricornis swinhoei and sambar Rusa unicolor, could become over-abundant. Thus, it is important to address the cascading effect of the disappearance of top-down predator control. Our assessment indicated that, with proper regulation of hunting, habitat restoration and corridor improvement, it may be possible to reintroduce the clouded leopard.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species uses geographical distribution as a key criterion in assessing the conservation status of species. Accurate knowledge of a species’ distribution is therefore essential to ensure the correct categorization is applied. Here we compare the geographical distribution of 35 species of chameleons endemic to East Africa, using data from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and data compiled by a taxonomic expert. Data screening showed 99.9% of GBIF records used outdated taxonomy and 20% had no locality coordinates. Conversely the expert dataset used 100% up-to-date taxonomy and only seven records (3%) had no coordinates. Both datasets were used to generate range maps for each species, which were then used in preliminary Red List categorization. There was disparity in the categories of 10 species, with eight being assigned a lower threat category based on GBIF data compared with expert data, and the other two assigned a higher category. Our results suggest that before conducting desktop assessments of the threatened status of species, aggregated museum locality data should be vetted against current taxonomy and localities should be verified. We conclude that available online databases are not an adequate substitute for taxonomic experts in assessing the threatened status of species and that Red List assessments may be compromised unless this extra step of verification is carried out.

Land-use change can have negative effects on threatened species by modifying their habitat and population dynamics. The habitat of the Endangered Patagonian cypress Fitzroya cupressoides (Mol.) Johnst. (Cupressaceae), a conifer endemic to the temperate forests of southern Chile and Argentina, has been transformed by land-use change and overexploitation. The impact of land-use change on the spatial pattern of F. cupressoides habitat from 1999 to 2011 was evaluated at the landscape level, using satellite images. Additionally, eight 20 × 25 m plots were established in four populations to assess their status. In each plot the density of F. cupressoides and the species richness of the associated plant communities were recorded and analysed, together with spatial patterns at the population and community levels. The loss of potential F. cupressoides habitat was 46% from 1999 to 2011 (38–100% for the four populations). The density of F. cupressoides was lowest in smaller habitat patches, where the number of plant species was higher and the matrix dominated by anthropogenic land-use. Land-use change was associated with a loss of potential habitat for F. cupressoides, and differences in the spatial patterns of habitat influenced the composition of remaining populations and communities. A landscape approach is recommended as a conservation planning strategy for F. cupressoides.

Human–wildlife conflict is increasingly prevalent, particularly in relation to carnivores in non-protected areas of Africa. Quantifying the attitudes of land owners towards carnivores and understanding the factors that influence these attitudes are instrumental in conservation planning and reducing persecution-related threats to carnivores. However, information about attitudes to carnivores in Africa, and South Africa in particular, is scarce. To obtain such data we interviewed 170 commercial game and livestock farmers in two ecologically important rural areas of northern South Africa. Responses to statements about carnivore management, stock protection and predation were generally positive. However, 62% of respondents believed carnivores to be financially damaging and 35% thought them overly abundant. Many respondents (41%) were unwilling to tolerate even low levels of predation and considered persecution of carnivores to be the cheapest form of stock protection (31%). Attitudes were significantly more positive among respondents who did not kill carnivores than among those who did. Generalized linear regression coupled with information-theoretic analysis showed that attitudes to carnivores were determined by a combination of cultural and land-use attributes more than by economic factors such as stock holdings or predation losses. The results elucidate potential targets for mitigation activities and facilitate the development of communication, education and extension activities specifically designed to appeal to intended recipients and address prevalent motives for persecuting carnivores.

We conducted a meta-analysis of local hunting practices affecting the carnivores of forested Africa and Madagascar to collate the information available on this subject and to assess underlying trends in offtake rates. We located 62 relevant articles in a detailed literature search; the data included taxa reported as hunted, the purpose of hunting and the hunting method. The families most reported as hunted were Herpestidae and Viverridae (excluding Civettictis civetta), with 32.7 and 19.2% of total records, with C. civetta comprising 13.5% of records and Nandina binotata 9.9%. Hunting for consumption was the most commonly reported purpose (61.7% of all records). Sale for consumption was associated with 60.5% of all consumption records, and sale of any kind was reported for 56.6% of all records. The number of carnivore carcasses or parts sold at urban markets rose by 8.2% from the 1990s to the 2000s. The commonest hunting methods were traps (31.0% of records) and guns (16.6%). For records reporting the use of guns, 89.4% also reported sale of some kind. We conclude that carnivores are hunted pervasively across the forested regions of mainland Africa and Madagascar, and offtake rates for both personal use and income are probably increasing. These findings have implications for efforts to protect dwindling forest ecosystems and to establish sustainable consumptive practices.