In this paper we describe the outcomes of a 10-year project that provided an alternative source of material for the international trade in bulbous plants from Turkey. In the mid 1980s the export of wild bulbs was extensive and was considered to be unsustainable. Building on the opportunities for propagation of snowdrops (Galanthus spp.), this project produced bulbs for trade, taking into account provision of local livelihoods and income generation, utilization of existing trade structures, regulation through national legislation, monitoring of overseas suppliers, and customer sensitization. Three villages and over 250 villagers were ultimately involved in bulb propagation. The project demonstrated that bulbs for an international market can be produced within a village environment to meet CITES criteria for artificial propagation. Through the application of rural development, local horticultural training, international legislation, fair-trade, and environmental consumer issues the project also illustrates the complexities of integrated approaches to trade issues. This paper presents in detail the methods used in developing this model for local plant propagation, and highlights the lessons learnt from the project.

In the early 1990s the Sardinian warbler began nesting in Cyprus, and now has two breeding populations, in the west and north of the island. Observations of the western population show that its range is still expanding and that the endemic Cyprus warbler has declined in the areas colonized by the Sardinian warbler. However, the Cyprus warbler is still present in most of these areas, and hence, although the Cyprus warbler is a species of European Conservation Concern, the current situation requires further study rather than alarm. The Sardinian warbler is the more numerous species at lower altitudes, whilst the Cyprus warbler is more common at higher altitudes, especially above 500 m. Within their areas of overlap, both Cyprus and Sardinian warbler populations occur throughout almost all habitats; natural, semi-natural and agroecosystems. We recommend that monitoring should continue, with more detailed ecological studies.

Bonelli's eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus is a threatened cliff-nesting raptor mainly distributed in the coastal regions of the Mediterranean. The European population has declined and the species is considered Vulnerable in Spain. Before effective conservation programmes can be proposed the causes of this decline need to be considered. In a monitoring programme of the population of Bonelli's eagle in Murcia carried out since 1983 we observed a marked decline, followed by a period of stability that began in 1990. Using demographic data (territorial bird survival, non-territorial bird survival, and fecundity) for 1990–1998 we applied a territorial occupancy model to evaluate management alternatives for the species. The model, which assumes demographic stability, estimates an equilibrium proportion of habitat occupancy as a function of life history parameters, dispersal behaviour and habitat suitability. In spite of some limitations the model identified the most important conservation measures required for an increase in the proportion of territories occupied: the improvement of the survival of both territorial and non-territorial birds, and an increase in the proportion of suitable habitat.

Senna spectabilis is a tree native to South and Central America. Thirty-five years ago it invaded the Mahale Mountains National Park in western Tanzania where it presently covers c. 225 ha. We quantified its occurrence relative to that of sympatric species of native trees, and compared girdling and felling as methods for its control in three 0.25 ha plots. Within invaded areas of forest this exotic species was both the most abundant and dominant of the 26 species of tree recorded. During 4 years of monitoring the experimental plots the abundance of S. spectabilis declined markedly in the plots where control methods were practised, but increased slightly in the unmanipulated plot. In contrast, the abundance of native tree species increased markedly in the plots where S. spectabilis had been removed or killed, with higher densities in the girdled rather than the felled plot. S. spectabilis appears to suppress the recruitment of native trees in the Park, and its removal can encourage regeneration of the degraded forest without the need for artificial seeding.

Since 1993 the Serengeti Regional Conservation Project (SRCP) in Tanzania has conducted a game cropping operation (the commercial utilization of wild animal populations in natural habitats) in areas immediately outside the Serengeti National Park in order to provide adjacent villages with incentives to abstain from illegal hunting. In this study we carry out a comparative economic analysis of the SRCP cropping operation and illegal hunting. The extent of illegal hunting was mapped by utilising questionnaires distributed to Village Game Scouts employed in five of the Project villages. Our research indicates that the cropping operation is not economically sustainable and makes only a minor economic contribution to the Project villages compared to illegal hunting. Furthermore, cropping quotas are small, utilization of quotas low, and the level of community involvement limited. Illegal hunting was extensive around both Project and other villages. We suggest that SRCP discard the inefficient cropping operation and instead concentrate on diversifying income opportunities for the Project villages.

We investigated management of wildlife, habitat and the hunting programme in Aksai County, Gansu Province, People's Republic of China, during 1997–2000. Argali Ovis ammon is the focal species both for conservation and hunting. The hunting programme is intended to produce incentives to conserve wildlife and habitat. Poaching, a serious concern throughout western China, has been reduced in recent years in Aksai. Wildlife population trends are unknown because standardized surveys were begun only in 2000. Threats to argali in Aksai include livestock grazing, placer gold mining, and development of a dam, reservoir and aqueduct. The number of hunters participating in the programme (c. 3 per year) could provide considerable funding (c. $60,000 per year), but the allocation of these funds within China has provided too little for conservation at the local level, thus undermining the intended incentive system. Because local wildlife protection officials have been denied both funding and authority to deal with threats to the wildlife, the programme's contribution to conservation has been minor. We recommend that hunters pay fees directly to county-level staff, thus increasing the proportion of funds retained at county-level, and that this added income is used to obtain wildlife grazing rights on important seasonal habitats for argali. These changes would promote local wildlife conservation without the need for additional external funding.

Wildlife (bushmeat or game) is the primary source of protein for most poor households in tropical forests, and its consumption is resulting in unsustainable hunting of large animals, even in isolated regions. As a result, loss of fauna is often a more immediate and significant threat to the conservation of biological diversity in tropical forests than is deforestation. Although the potential effects of the extirpation from tropical forests of large, seed predating and seed dispersing wild animals is poorly understood, it is likely that there will be irrevocable changes in the structure and function of these ecosystems. We carried out a survey of 510 households of Tsimane' Amerindians in the rainforest of Bolivia to investigate how the prices of game and meat from domesticated animals affect the consumption of game. The results indicated that the price of fish and meat from livestock is positively correlated with consumption of wildlife, suggesting that policy makers may be able to reduce the unsustainable hunting of wildlife for food by reducing the price of fish and the price of meat from domesticated animals relative to that of wildlife. Increasing the production of livestock without causing environmental degradation will require long-term public investment in agricultural research and extension, and substitution of fish for game meat in the absence of sustainable management regimes will result in over-exploitation of riverine and lacustrine fish stocks.

Cuba has the highest combined animal and plant diversity, and the highest degree of endemism, in the West Indies. In 1998 we undertook the first major biodiversity survey of the Sierra del Cristal National Park, in the Holguín province in eastern Cuba, to address the need for baseline data on the wildlife of the forest habitats of this biologically important mountain range. This area was chosen because it is known to be a major stronghold of the endemic Cuban solenodon Solenodon cubanus (Insectivora, Solenodontidae). The project initiated and supported field activities of two Cuban institutions involved in nature conservation. The study focused on indicator taxonomic groups. We recorded a total of 220 species of plants, 53 spiders, 28 molluscs, 10 amphibians, 19 reptiles, 51 birds, and three species of mammal. The highest number of species were recorded in montane forest. Thirty-five percent of the taxa recorded are endemic to the area or to Cuba. Information gathered during the study will form the basis for developing long-term management plans for habitats and resident species, in conjunction with the authorities responsible for environmental conservation.

The loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta is listed as threatened with extinction on the US Endangered Species Act. Those loggerhead turtles that nest on US beaches from North Carolina to north-east Florida are a genetically distinct subpopulation. This subpopulation is small, and may be declining. To obtain information about the migratory pathways of these turtles we tracked post-nesting movements of five females by satellite from their nesting beach at Wassaw Island, Georgia. Four turtles migrated north of the nesting beach, of which three moved to coastal waters of mid Atlantic states (total distances of 157–1,458 km). Efforts to reduce mortality of northern subpopulations of loggerhead turtles need to focus on identifying and reducing threats in north-east US waters.

The island of Poilão in the Bijagós Archipelago, Guinea-Bissau, is known to be an important nesting site for the green turtle Chelonia mydas, but until recently there were no quantitative estimates of the number of clutches deposited annually. In 2000 a survey was carried out to assess the magnitude of nesting, and an estimated 7,400 green turtle clutches were deposited. Four nesting hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata were also encountered. This study confirmed that Poilão is one of the most important nesting sites for green turtles in the Atlantic, and the largest known nesting colony on the west coast of Africa. Traditionally Poilão has been regarded as a sacred site by the Bijagós people, and this has contributed to the conservation of these turtles. However, the development of fisheries in this region is an emerging threat. To conserve this site a National Marine Park was designated in August 2000.