A WILDLIFE CONSERVATION SOCIETY PROGRESS REPORT
WCS FALL 2014
W
ildlife Conservation Society Progress Reports provide you, our generous supporters, with updates and insights on core conservation activities. Together, we are securing a future for wildlife and wild places. WCS saves wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature. WCS envisions a world where wildlife thrives in healthy lands and seas, valued by societies that embrace and benefit from the diversity and integrity of life on earth. Executive Editor: Mary Deyns Brandão Managing Editor: Christine Westphal Writer: Regina M. Lifrieri Art Direction: Drew Albinson
Staff Photographer: Julie Larsen Maher Editorial Support: Sarah Walker With deep appreciation to: Keith Aune, Caleb McClennen, and James Deutsch
Photos: Front and Back Covers, Inside Front Page, P. 1, P. 2, P. 3, © Julie Larsen Maher/WCS; P. 4 (top) © Amanda Hardy/WCS; P. 4 (bottom) © WCS; P. 5 (top) © Julio Maaz/WCS; P. 5 (bottom) © Caleb McClennen/WCS
WCS Progress Report ▪ 1
PROTECTING ELEPHANTS FROM POACHING: IVORY POLICY UPDATE Closing All Markets Far more elephants are now killed each year than are born. Since 2007, the total amount of ivory being illegally traded globally has more than doubled in size. This devastating trend is causing dramatic population declines and losses of elephants across large parts of their range. Dr. Elizabeth Bennett, Vice President for Species Conservation at the Wildlife Conservation Society, authored a highprofile essay for the August 2014 issue of Conservation Biology arguing that even a better-controlled legal ivory trade could not stop the decline in elephant numbers, since deep-rooted government corruption would continue to allow illegally obtained ivory to enter the market. As Bennett has stated, “To save elephants, all ivory markets must close and all ivory stockpiles must be destroyed.” Domestic Ivory Bans The federal ivory ban enacted by the Obama Administration is an excellent step in stopping trade into the U.S. and across state lines, but cannot control ivory trade within states. To close this loophole, on August 5, New Jersey became the first U.S. state to sign a bill banning ivory sales within the state. New York State followed on August 12. WCS is now exploring how best to ensure that the existing ban in California can become stronger and more effective, and our 96 Elephants campaign, in partnership with 170 other organizations, aims to secure U.S. legislation that will create moratoria on ivory sales across the nation. To date, nearly half a million people have signed our petition to support such moratoria. This robust support and the strength of the bans in New York and New Jersey give us hope that there is political will to end the ivory trade in this country for good, and that the U.S. can act as a model for other countries to follow, especially in East Asia where demand for ivory is greatest.
“To save elephants, all ivory markets must close and all ivory stockpiles must be destroyed.” —Dr. Elizabeth Bennett, WCS’s Vice President for Species Conservation
YOU CAN HELP US SAVE ELEPHANTS To sign the petition to support moratoria on ivory sales, go to: 96elephants.org
WCS Progress Report ▪ 2
NEW EXHIBIT FEATURES WORLD’S LARGEST LIZARDS: KOMODO DRAGONS In summer 2014, the Bronx Zoo debuted its new “Amazing Monitors” exhibit, offering visitors an up-close look at a variety of monitor species, and a chance to view the world’s largest lizard—the Komodo dragon. Three dragon siblings born at the L.A. Zoo and raised at the Bronx Zoo since 2011—two females and a male— inhabit the new space, which was inspired by the Indonesian island of Komodo. It uses specialized features to replicate the climate of the animals’ native habitat and provide optimal environmental conditions. The Komodos also have their own outdoor habitat for use when the weather is appropriate. These extraordinary reptiles are being exhibited as part of the American Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP), which aims to maintain maximum genetic diversity through carefully coordinated breeding plans. A new SSP will be prepared in 2015, and WCS staff hope to find a suitable mate to pair with our group as the dragons mature—so that perhaps the Bronx Zoo can welcome baby Komodos in the future.
BRONX ZOO WELCOMES SUPER-SIZED REPTILES: ALDABRA GIANT TORTOISES Following the Komodos, WCS welcomed a pair of Aldabra giant tortoises to a newly constructed exhibit at the Bronx Zoo’s iconic Zoo Center. Both male, one tortoise weighs approximately 400 pounds, while the other tips the scales at around 600 pounds. The exhibit replicates the natural ecosystems found within the reptiles’ native environment—the Aldabra Atoll in the Republic of Seychelles—and includes a sandy beach, lush vegetation, and a freshwater pool, which helps regulate the tortoises’ internal body temperature during warm-weather months. While their size alone is impressive, their lifespan is thought to be 200 years or more. Despite this longevity, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the species as Vulnerable with only an estimated 100,000 tortoises remaining in their natural habitat. WCS is working to protect and restore the world’s most endangered tortoise and turtle species through captive breeding programs at our New York zoos, international head-start programs working to raise young turtles with the goal of bolstering wild populations, carefully coordinated field conservation efforts, and partnerships with local governments and communities to save Aldabras and other species on the brink of extinction.
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VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: THE BRONX ZOO’S FRIENDS OF THE ZOO Volunteers help create memorable visitor experiences through their many diverse interactions with guests at WCS’s New York zoological parks. At the Bronx Zoo, the Friends of the Zoo (FOZ) docents reach and inspire future protectors of the wild by providing a warm welcome, assistance and direction to guests, extraordinary exhibit interpretation, and by leading wonderful guided tours. Based out of the Education Department, FOZ are critical to WCS’s efforts to convey to zoo-goers vital information about WCS’s mission, programs, global conservation endeavors, and in-depth knowledge of the many species housed at the Zoo. Before becoming official Bronx Zoo docents, prospective FOZ undergo six months of vigorous training through which they become experts at exhibit interpretation, learn to provide exemplary guest services, and obtain a solid understanding of the thousands of animals residing at the Zoo. FOZ spend a significant amount of time out and about in the park, and veteran FOZ are well-known for unique and entertaining anecdotes and fun animal facts that yield seemingly endless topics of discussion on our tours!
THE CENTRAL PARK ZOO PREPARES FOR GRIZZLIES Exciting changes are afoot at WCS’s Central Park Zoo, which will soon exhibit our rescued grizzly bears in a completely remodeled, naturalistic habitat. The renovations that prepared the Zoo to accommodate this species were made possible through a generous contribution from a WCS supporter, Sandra de Roulet. Betty and Veronica—the two bears that will initially call the new Central Park Zoo exhibit home—were rescued separately in Montana and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. In the wild, both had become too accustomed to humans and were considered a danger to people by local authorities. They have lived at the Bronx Zoo since 1995. In time, three orphaned bear cubs recently rescued in Montana will inhabit the new Manhattan space. WCS conservationists are working with local communities in the Adirondacks and the American West to prevent humanbear conflict by increasing awareness about keeping food away from bears, using bear-resistant technologies to safely secure trash (a bear favorite), developing protective requirements and laws to reduce bear attractants, and promoting land-use decisions that will minimize interactions between humans and bears. WCS’s approach to reducing conflict involves monitoring the size and locations of bear populations as well as promoting community-led, proactive approaches such as increased education and the use of non-lethal deterrents. The new grizzly bear exhibit at the Central Park Zoo is scheduled to open in late 2014.
WCS Progress Report ▪ 4
HISTORIC TREATY RECOGNIZES CULTURAL AND ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF BISON WCS has a long history leading efforts to restore free-ranging American buffalo (or bison) to North American landscapes. In the early 1900s, bison faced a dire fate when fewer than 1,100 individual animals were left across their natural habitat, down from the tens of millions that had existed just a century earlier. In 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt, along with William Hornaday of WCS (then the New York Zoological Society) and others, convened a group of diverse stakeholders to form the American Bison Society (ABS), which developed a new conservation ethic and played a critical role in saving bison from extinction. As a result of these efforts, in 1907, 15 Bronx-born bison were sent to the Wichita Reserve Bison Refuge in Oklahoma, the first big game refuge in the United States.
Chief Earl Old Person signs the treaty with other U.S. Tribes and Canadian First Nations, aiming to establish cooperation to help restore free roaming bison on tribal and co-managed lands in North America.
Thanks in large part to these cooperative initiatives, bison have since recovered to number in the hundreds of thousands across North America. However, while some dwell in state and national parks, wildlife refuges, and tribal lands, most reside on private land as livestock herds and are not legally designated as “wildlife.” This has resulted in some level of disconnect between bison and the native people who once relied upon these animals for their very survival.
In recognition of this disconnect and the remaining threats to this iconic species, such as genetic impurities due to frequent interbreeding with livestock, habitat fragmentation, and disease, a treaty was signed on September 23, 2014 by U.S. Tribes and Canadian First Nations. The first of such treaties in more than 150 years, it establishes intertribal alliances for cooperation in the restoration of bison on tribal or co-managed lands within the U.S. and Canada. WCS and ABS played a fundamental role in the facilitation of the “Northern Tribes Buffalo treaty,” working closely with the tribes to determine precisely which landscapes will ensure the most ecologically sustainable bison restoration possible in years to come. The benefits of restoring bison will be widespread as this keystone species shapes the landscape through its grazing activities, paving the way for other species that share the North American plains ecosystem, including prairie dogs and native plants. This historic agreement is one landmark event in the comeback of bison that will help conservationists fully restore this vital species to the prairie ecosystem, thereby preserving its integrity while enriching native cultures. WCS plans to continue this work through collaborative, transboundary initiatives with the objective of engaging partners to achieve the ecological restoration of bison across its total native range in North America. WCS serves as a steering member of the Vote Bison Coalition, which seeks to celebrate the historical, cultural, economic, and ecological contributions of bison by declaring it the National Mammal of the United States.
In 1907, 15 Bronx-born bison were shipped from the Bronx Zoo to their new home in the U.S.’s first big game refuge. This was WCS’s earliest attempt at reintroducing bison to their natural habitat on the American plains.
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PUTTING DRONES TO WORK FOR MARINE WILDLIFE The conservation of earth’s remaining wild places is essential, but it can be challenging. Effective marine ecosystem and sanctuary management requires a plethora of resources, including time, people, and boats. Through the development of a new pilot program, WCS is working to minimize budget needs and gain a cost-effective, high-tech edge over illegal fishers in Belize. In June 2014, WCS—in collaboration with the Government of Belize and other partners—began training operators from the Belize Fisheries Department to use the advanced “eyes in the sky” technology of two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to enforce fishing regulations in the biodiverse Glover’s Reef Marine Reserve and other critical marine habitats in the region.
The use of aerial drones through a pilot program led by WCS will help improve the enforcement of fishing regulations in Belize to protect critical ecosystems.
The UAVs, provided by the nonprofit organization ConservationDrones.org, are equipped with cameras and are capable of flying autonomously for over an hour, covering large expanses while taking high-resolution photographs and video footage. By employing the first-ever use of these conservation drones to monitor marine protected areas for overfishing, and by pinpointing the locations of vessels operating unlawfully in these areas (or in locations under seasonal restrictions), WCS is helping safeguard a variety of rare and endangered species and preserving areas that frequently serve as breeding grounds for wildlife. In addition, the drones can be used terrestrially to detect illegal activities in coastal areas inaccessible to regular patrols, including small creeks within mangrove forests where illegal conch catches are often stashed. Perhaps most importantly, this aerial surveillance monitoring technique is not limited to any one type of habitat, and the prospect of broad implementation represents an extraordinary opportunity for improving environmental law enforcement worldwide across a wide variety of landscapes and seascapes.
Thank you for helping us save wildlife and wild places around the globe.
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