Issue No 46 - Spring 2014 by worldlandtrust newsletter

WLTnews ISSUE No. 46

SPRING 2014

Inside this issue... • Borneo Rainforest Appeal: raising One Million pounds

• Caucasian Leopard – stunning footage

• More successful land protection • New project partners • Nick Baker explores Paraguay’s Gran Chaco

Saving Real Acres in Real Places www.worldlandtrust.org

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We’re nearly there: One Million pounds for Orang-utans and their rainforest neighbours

Special Appeal

£900,000 raised by end of February 2014 The mission: to raise One Million pounds to protect the Keruak Corridor in Malaysian Borneo. Thanks to everyone who contributed to our Big Match Fortnight in October 2013, and to generous donations since then, we are on track to raise a million pounds, in time for our 25th Anniversary celebration on 6 May. Chris Packham, a WLT patron, helped launch our Borneo Rainforest Appeal and is delighted with the success of this appeal.

World Land Trust Blyth House, Bridge Street Halesworth, Suffolk IP19 8AB, UK Tel: 01986 874422 Fax: 01986 874425 Email: info@worldlandtrust.org

The corridor lies along the north bank of the Kinabatangan River where all remaining forest is in need of urgent protection against the rapid spread of oil palm plantations. The good news is that the funds raised by WLT to date have enabled Hutan to begin purchasing land in the Keruak Corridor, and on top of this success Hutan’s government partners have also been offering their support. Sabah’s Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Environment, Datuk Seri Panglima Masidi Manjun has expressed his commitment to helping make the Keruak Corridor a reality. During Simon Lyster’s visit to Sabah, Masidi Manjun pledged to encourage Malaysian businesses, and other

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I’m very pleased that I have been able to play a role in WLT’s Borneo Rainforest Appeal. WLT is an organisation and a cause I wholeheartedly support,” says Chris. “Thank you to everyone who has shown they care by making a donation. It’s a wonderful achievement, but the future of Orang-utans still rests with us. Let’s do all we can to save more of what’s left of their precious forest.

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In August last year Dr Isabelle Lackman, director of Hutan, helped launch the Borneo Rainforest Appeal. This ambitious appeal set out to fund the purchase and protection of 26 contiguous parcels of forest land in the state of Sabah to form the Keruak Corridor.

stakeholders within the Lower Kinabatangan region, to support Hutan’s vision and help in creating this protected refuge.

Dr Simon Lyster, Vice Chairman of WLT visited the Keruak Corridor. Here he talks with Dr Isabelle Lackman, “Every bit of rainforest director of Hutan, WLT’s partner organisation in Borneo and discusses the importance of the corridor. that is chopped down is The Keruak Corridor really is an less space for Orang-utans. astonishing success story. With the money I fully support the WLT in its bid to save the forests raised we have not only secured vitally that are left, to ensure important pieces of forest that were under that species such as the great threat but by protecting this forest Orang-utan, Bornean corridor we have retained the linkage Pygmy Elephant and other between two larger protected areas meaning critically endangered that more than 10,000 acres (4,047 species are not lost forever. hectares) of forest will always be there for Congratulations on the wildlife of the area, says Simon. the success of Big Match Fortnight and thank you to everyone who made a donation.” We are well on the way to reaching our target and drawing a line under the protection of the Sir David Attenborough Keruak Corridor. But the fight to save pockets of forest in Sabah continues. To donate, visit Patron, WLT www.worldlandtrust.org or use the donation form insert

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The One Million pound appeal

Saving the Caucasian Leopard: Conservation efforts rewarded in the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge November 2013: a Caucasian Leopard is captured on camera trap WLT’s work with Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC) in Armenia centres around the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge (CWR), created with help from WLT supporters. This refuge is vital for the survival of the Caucasian Leopard in Armenia. Tantalising glimpses of parts of a leopard had been captured on camera-trap but it wasn’t until November last year when an image of the whole animal was finally recorded.

It began as any other working day, but as events on 10 November 2013 unfolded, it quickly became clear that this was anything but a routine day on the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge. Vicky Mkrtchyan, Environmental Projects Coordinator of FPWC reports: When Ruben Khachatryan, founder of FPWC, and Gor Hovhanissyan, a ranger supported by WLT’s Keepers of the Wild programme, started their patrol, it was a perfectly clear day, sunny but already cool; they were out to check the camera-traps located in the CWR on the south-western slopes of the Geghama mountains. It was

Special Appeal Caucasus Wildlife Refuge

clearly to be a lucky day as the first trap had captured an image of a beautiful lynx - an animal that has become very, very rare in Armenia. While they were checking one camera after another a group of 40 Bezoars ran into full view, among them a buck with majestic horns, of about 14 years of age. But the best was yet to come. While checking the footage of the last camera Ruben and Gor could hardly believe what they were looking at: the camera had recorded full body pictures of a male leopard in daylight on 8 November! This was a day to remember and a dream come true.

A male Caucasian Leopard is recorded in full view on the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge. The CWR currently protects 2,718 acres (1,100 hectares) of land on the southern border of the Khosrov Forest State Reserve.

November 2013: A Eurasian Lynx is recorded in the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge

Bezoar Goats out on Christmas Day We were delighted to receive in early January a video recorded on Christmas Day showing a large herd of Bezoar Goats streaming over a hillside in the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge.

Bezoar Goats have been persecuted by hunters and poachers throughout the Caucasus for decades and since the 1980s their populations have steadily declined. But in the CWR, Bezoar Goats are protected. The video speaks volumes about healthy herd numbers, clearly the result of successful conservation measures in the refuge. As Vicky Mkrtchyan,

commented when sending the footage: “I won't write anything else - just count them!” Please look at the film if you are able to and note the long horns on some of the male goats. Both a blessing and a curse, it is these horns that are so highly prized by trophy hunters.

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Help WLT save the Caucasian Leopard To donate, visit www.worldlandtrust.org or use the donation form insert.

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New land purchase success Primary cloud forest saved, protecting wildlife and watershed The bright green area indicates the Guatemala

Honduras

Working with Asociación Ecológica de San Marcos de Ocotepeque (AESMO) in Honduras, WLT has funded the purchase of 215 acres (87 hectares) of primary cloud forest within the nucleus of the Volcán Pacayita Reserve. This land also protects important water sources for several Lencas indigenous communities within the buffer zone of the reserve and in the Sensenti Valley. AESMO, a relatively new WLT project partner, was established in April 1990 in the municipality of San Marcos Ocotepeque, aiming to protect wilderness and watershed and carry out environmental awareness with farmers, schools and local communities. This parcel of land was considered a priority as it heralds an important step towards establishing the Pital-Celaque sub corridor within the larger Montecristo Corridor which includes other subcorridors in Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. The purchase also halts any further fragmentation of the forest, and contributes to the wider conservation efforts in the region. Thanks to Puro Fair Trade Coffee, a WLT corporate supporter for supporting this purchase.

Buy an Acre Montecristo Corridor

El Salvador

Project area Pacayita Volcano

The Resplendent Quetzal dominated the traditions of Indians of Central America for centuries. The name quetzal comes from the Aztec quetzalli, originally meaning tailfeather, and by transference “precious” or “beautiful”. Thus it is that the monetary currency in Guatemala is the quetzal. Found throughout Central America from southern Mexico to Panama, including Honduras, but numbers of the Resplendent Quetzal have declined due to loss of cloud forest and hunting (for its tail plumes).

Rare wildlife protected The reserve not only provides a haven for the stunning Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno), it also protects many other rare and endemic birds such as the Plain Chachalaca (Ortalis vetula) and Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus). Mammals include Oncilla, Puma (a rare population in western Honduras) and the Endangered Geoffroy’s Spider Monkey (photographed left) The venomous Pit Viper (Atropoides species) also occurs and it is likely that the rare Guatemalan Spikethumb Frog (Plectrohyla guatemalensis), may also be present. As biological surveys in the reserve take place it is likely that these forests contain many other vulnerable species, particularly amphibians.

215 acres SAVED in Honduras

Montecristo Corridor in Honduras, and shows the extent into Guatemala and El Salvador, in dark green. The area in orange on the right shows the Volcán Pacayita Reserve, where WLT land purchase has recently taken place.

Land purchases underway New land purchase is currently under way with project partners: ● Naturaleza y Cultura Ecuador in the Nangaritza Valley (Buy an Acre & Carbon Balanced funds), ● Fundación EcoMinga: extensions to the Rio Zuñac (Buy an Acre) and Cerro Candelaria Reserves (Action Fund).

Buy an Acre projects Save One Acre for £100 in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico. See donation form enclosed or donate online:

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New partner in Peru WLT helping create community reserve

WLT Action Fund

A reserve to protect cloud forest and páramo is being established with the Yanta community of Piura, Northern Peru. WLT is assisting its newest project partner, Naturaleza y Cultura Peru (NCPeru), to work with the community of Yanta to create a 24,000 acre community reserve. The reserve will protect rich The cloud forest of northern Peru protects many rare and endangered species, including páramo and cloud forest the Red-faced Parakeet (left), which is endemic to Peru and Ecuador but is threatened by between 1,600 and 3,500 habitat loss. metres above sea level. The 800 families guarantee continuous protection of Cloud forests and páramo comprising the community of Yanta, have habitats linking the Tabaconas Namballe The cloud forests and páramo in Yanta are agreed to establish the reserve but have sanctuary in Peru and the Colambo Yacuri among the best preserved in the entire requested NCPeru’s help in preparing National Park in Ecuador. This area has region and protect important water documents and steering the process to been recognised as a priority for supplies. Flagship species include the create a Private Conservation Area officially conservation by the National Parks endangered Spectacled Bear, Mountain recognised by the Peruvian government. Service of Peru. The reserve will protect Tapir, Bearded Guan, and Red-Faced forest on both the eastern and western Utimately the area will be managed by the Parakeet. There may even prove to be a slopes of the Andes, which includes the community. new species of night monkey (Aotus headwaters of the Quiroz River (Pacific Located in the centre of a proposed genus), and Red Howler Monkeys have basin) and the Huancabamba River national conservation corridor, recently been reported near this area at (Amazon basin). slightly lower elevations. safeguarding the Yanta area is vital to

Guyra Paraguay’s Kangüery visitor centre reopens after arson attack

In October 2012, the visitor centre was burned to the ground in an arson attack that shocked the international conservation community. Although no one was harmed, the rangers were badly shaken by what was generally believed to be an act of intimidation by illegal loggers. The visitor centre forms part of the Kangüery field station, which lies in the heart of the Atlantic rainforest of San Rafael. The field station provides facilities for visitors and researchers, and acts as the administrative hub for the Guyra Reta Reserve.

The reconstruction was made possible thanks to generous donations from international conservation organisations, including WLT. In total WLT sent nearly £7,000, a large proportion of which was donated by readers of The Times, who responded generously to an article written by Simon Barnes, journalist and WLT Council member.

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The new Kangüery visitor centre in Guyra Paraguay’s Guyra Reta Reserve has opened, after the original building was destroyed by fire.

We are grateful to WLT donors whose support and trust has helped us to continue conserving this important site and to support resident and neighbouring communities within the protected area, said Alberto Yanosky, Executive Director of Guyra Paraguay.

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A journey of discovery to the wildlands Former WLT editor, Bethan John, puts life on hold to visit 13 WLT partners in 10 countries

Buy an Acre & WLT Action Fund Keepers of the Wild

Bethan John, who worked as editor at WLT up to September 2012, spent 14 months volunteering with WLT partners across Central and South America.

What was it like? This is the question that invariably greets me when people discover that I’ve just spent over a year in the wilderness, with the birds and beasts of Latin America. As a writer, words really should be my speciality. Why then do I falter every time I’m faced with this question? The problem has loomed in front of me ever since I got back home to the UK. How do you begin to summarise 14 months of experiences, which has made the world look a little different? This is my best shot… Like clockwork, at 5.50am every day, the rainforest wakes up. At first, the bird song is a murmur, a whispering chatter of chirps and tweets, like the muted sounds of nuns at chapel. Beneath the soft haze of mosquito netting, I lie there among them: a silent intruder, listening. By 6am the forest is alive. Frenzied noise fills the air – unseen creatures squawk and whoop like drunken brawlers. A distant rumble becomes a crescendo, as the

primeval roars of howler monkeys vibrate across the treetops. A day in Latin America has begun.

Holding one of the most poisonous creatures on Earth Let’s imagine that today I’m in Chocó Rainforest of westernmost Colombia volunteering with WLT partner, ProAves. This biodiversity hotspot supports one of the highest concentrations of endemic birds, amphibians and orchids in the world. Only three years ago, the area that I’m standing in was a battle zone – between the guerrilla army, paramilitary and the government. It was a hotbed of coca cultivation to produce cocaine. The conflict left 50,000 local people living as internal refugees and resulted in 50 children starving to death within one month.

Peace at a price

In the palm of my hand is the tiny, two-inch Golden Poison Frog; an Endangered species that has enough poison drenched on its skin to kill 10 people.

Now, as the people here welcome relative peace, outside companies are descending on the region in search of timber and gold. Gold mining is polluting their rivers with toxic mercury and siltation; this has a catastrophic effect on fish populations that local people depend upon to feed their families and make a living. ProAves must face this problem as they try to protect the region for its people and wildlife.

Threats to the lost world Or maybe I’m in southern Ecuador, in the upper Amazon rainforest meeting the Shaur indigenous people, infamous in adventure literature because of Western fascination with their former practice of shrinking human heads. Sheer walls of jungle rise up on either side of our motorised canoe, as we chug down the Nangaritza River on the way back from the weekly indigenous market. High above, the rock-face abruptly flattens into a table top mountain and occasionally the thick forest cover gives way to cascading waterfalls. It feels like we’ve discovered a lost world. Today though, the Shaur people tell me that they’re mourning the erosion of their nature and culture as the expansion of the region’s only road brings greater deforestation and colonisation. This is just one problem that WLT’s partner, Naturaleza y Cultura Ecuador, must face as it implements innovative conservation initiatives across southern Ecuador.

The story repeats itself Take any one of the 13 different programmes, run by WLT’s partners that I visited throughout Central and South America, and there’s one underlying theme: environmental destruction is having a devastating impact on some of the poorest and most marginalised people on the planet. Solutions must be found.

Bethan John journeyed to 10 countries in Central and South America and volunteered with 13 WLT project partners: GESG (Mexico), Programme for Belize, FUNDAECO (Guatemala), Provita (Venezuela), ProAves (Colombia), Fundación Jocotoco, Fundación EcoMinga, Fundación Pro-Bosque and Naturaleza y Cultura Ecuador, Armonía (Bolivia), Guyra Paraguay, REGUA (Brazil) and Fundación Patagonia Natural (Argentina). Finding solutions is what WLT’s partners do. They’re taking practical steps to create social and economic systems that put the protection of the environment first, while empowering poor communities. The wild mountains of Sierra Gorda, Central Mexico, was my first stop on the adventure and initial insight into how WLT’s partners are creating sustainable communities. I’d always imagined protected areas were vast wildernesses, empty of people. Instead, like most protected areas, the one million acre Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve is home to 100,000 people, scattered across 685 isolated villages. Most people here are poor farmers, living on less than £4 a week, and are dependent on using the land for their livelihoods. Despite this, they’ve collectively said no to unregulated development and have instead joined a grassroots movement to protect their forests. This movement was set up by WLT’s partner, Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda (GESG), who is successfully creating economic alternatives for the community that work in harmony with the environment, such as ecotourism,

reforestation, soil restoration, ecological livestock management and other profitable microenterprises.

Payment for environmental services Local forest owners in Sierra Gorda now earn some US$1.1 million (£660,000) annually from protecting biodiversity, water and carbon. Indeed, conservation is now better business than cattle ranching or agriculture. A conservation economy is steadily growing in the Sierra Gorda. This is just one example of what can and is being achieved across Latin America.

What have I learned? The experience of volunteering with WLT’s partners has been my wake up call. Many people talk of saving the natural world for the next generation – for our children or grandchildren. Through my journey, I’ve realised that we have to protect it for the people living on this planet today – we have to save it now. That’s how devastating the destruction is, that’s how catastrophic an impact it has on the lives

Bethan in the wilderness of Sierra Gorda, Mexico “Watch out for the Bad Woman.” This is our warning as we set off into the forests of the Sierra Gorda. Following closely behind Roberto Pedraza of GESG I nervously scour the ground for the poisonous snakes he has warned us of, while avoiding the ‘Bad Woman’ – a broadleaf plant (Urera caracasana) given this unflattering nickname because with just one touch, it burns you badly. Bethan is writing a book about her experiences in Latin America. To find out more about her, visit: www.bethanjohn.co.uk and discover her project here: www.wildlandscreative.com You can also read her regular blogs on WLT website: www.worldlandtrust.org/news/tags/roving-reporter

Inspirational people: In 1987, a local woman named Martha ‘Pati’ Isabel Ruiz Corzo (left) decided she must act to save the Sierra Gorda bioregion in Mexico from unregulated development. Together with her husband and other local people she founded a grassroots conservation organisation, Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda. GESG is now a WLT partner and the Trust is assisting them in the purchase and protection of land within the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve, which is home to a wealth of wildlife. Military Macaws circle the reserve’s sinkhole canyons, flowering agave plants attract vibrant feasting hummingbirds, while six cat species roam the forests – including top predators, Jaguar and Puma. In the photograph Pati is receiving the National Geographic Society/Buffett Award for Leadership in Latin American Conservation. of poor communities. If we care about these people, living today, we don’t have the luxury of time. What haunts me is an inescapable notion that we don’t care about the protection of nature – not for the wildlife, for our children, or for the world’s poorest people. Otherwise the destruction would stop, surely? When you know about the level of devastation and its impact, it’s easy to slip into a sense of hopelessness and despair. To give up. To decide that our behaviour is simply too entrenched and the momentum behind the drivers of nature’s destruction simply too great. Luckily, I met the inspirational people who are taking action to create social, economic and environmental change within their communities. They’re ordinary people – like you and me – who have often stood alone, with little support or funding, in the face of corruption. They’ve shown me, not only what can it be done, but that change is happening right now.

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Good news for Andean Condors in Ecuador New reserve protects crucial habitat

The Olinguito: a South American mammal that defied discovery

Andean Condors in flight at the Antisanilla Reserve, Ecuador A stronghold of Andean Condors is now safe, following the purchase of Hacienda Antisanilla, a property covering 7,000 acres (2,833 hectares) on the western slopes of the Antisana Volcano in central Ecuador. Hacienda Antisanilla has been managed by Fundación Jocotoco (FJ), one of four WLT project partners in Ecuador, since September 2013. On 23 January 2014 the purchase documents were finally signed turning the property into the Antisanilla Biological Reserve. Situated on the western edge of the national reserve of Greater Antisana, FJ’s acquisition of what was once private agricultural land unites 6,170 acres (2,500 hectares) with a previous purchase to form a total area of 12,000 acres (5,000 hectares). This acts as a buffer Rocío Merino, Executive Director of FJ says:

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The most important nesting and roosting area of Andean Condors in Ecuador and the northern part of South America is now protected. These sites have been declared an Andean Condor Sanctuary by the Quito Municipality, and the reserve is going to preserve this important natural heritage.

zone to the national reserve creating a unique and protected corridor for the endangered Andean Condor.

Protecting the habitat of 30 Andean Condors As many as 30 Andean Condors nest and roost on the cliffs at Antisanilla. This is more than 50 per cent of the total number of condors in Ecuador, and the most significant population north of central Peru. The rugged canyons, cliffs and grassy páramo uplands are perfect for the condors, which nest at elevations of up to 16,000 feet (5,000 metres), usually on inaccessible rock ledges. They can cover more than 120 miles (200 km) in a day in search of food. The purchase was made possible thanks to the concerted efforts of a range of organisations and individuals. Within Ecuador, the acquisition was supported by The Peregrine Fund-Ecuador, the government and other public and private sector bodies. International support came from Blue Moon, Paul Allen and Butler Foundations, American Bird Conservancy, Global Wildlife Conservation, The Peregrine Fund-US and Rainforest Trust (formerly WLT-US). WLT has supported Fundación Jocotoco since 2000 with funds for land purchase, tree planting and habitat restoration, and through the Keepers of the Wild programme.

The Olinguito, belonging to the family that includes racoons, is the first new species of carnivore to be named in the Western hemisphere for 35 years, and took nearly a decade to identify. Francisco (Pancho) Sornoza, Director of Conservation with Fundación Jocotoco, has his own Olinguito tale to tell. He was taking an early morning walk on the morning of 29 May 1999, monitoring a small group of critically threatened Yellow-eared Parrots. He heard a gunshot and discovered on investigation that an unusual animal had been killed because it was raiding corn crops. He recalls, “I had never seen this animal before. It had very soft, reddish fur like a teddy bear with a pretty face and big eyes. It had a long, white-tipped tail that wasn’t prehensile. I persuaded the hunter to give me the specimen to study, arguing that it did not make sense to leave a dead animal lying in the forest.” Zoologist Kristofer M Helgen at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History led the effort to identify the Olinguito, and its discovery was officially announced on 13 August, 2013. The Olinguito is now known to occur in the cloud forests of Colombia and Ecuador. It measures around 14 inches (35 cm) in length and is mostly nocturnal, feeding mainly on fruit and nectar.

The Olinguito specimen collected by Francisco Sornoza, of Fundación Jocotoco.

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WLT Expedition to Paraguay’s Gran Chaco Deforestation must be halted WLT Action Fund

Nick Baker (above) discusses the staggering statistics on deforestation in the Chaco with Peter Hansen, a Guyra Paraguay board member, and Iain Barr of the University of East Anglia (UEA) (behind). Nick loves armadillos and was delighted to encounter this Nine-banded Armadillo. He was also enraptured by the diversity of insects. In January 2014 Nick Baker, television presenter and WLT ambassador, joined a WLT field trip to Paraguay. While there he appealed to the people of Paraguay to protect the Gran Chaco from further deforestation. Nick was speaking at a public lecture in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay, at the end of the six day field trip to the Gran Chaco, organised by Guyra Paraguay (GP). Quoting data supplied by GP, Nick warned that Paraguay is now the country with the highest rate of deforestation in the world, which represents a serious threat to the rich biodiversity of the Chaco. The Gran Chaco, one of the largest

forest reserves in the Americas, spans parts of Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil as well as Paraguay. Nick, who loves weird and wonderful wildlife, said that the Chaco was a paradise for him. They found snakes, frogs, tortoises and fresh puma footprints. Nick’s talk, entitled Experiencing the Wild Chaco, attracted huge crowds to the Theatre of the Americas on 6 February 2014. John Burton reported that at the end of the talk “Nick was mobbed like a rock star - he is very well known in South America as his programmes are extremely popular

January/February 2014 Field trip to Gran Chaco Participants (l-r): Tetsu Espósito and Nick Baker (standing), Rodrigo Zarate, Andrea Ferrera, Nela Velilla, Park ranger Silvino Ganzalex, Huguito Cabral, Iain Barr (University of East Anglia) and John Burton (CEO, WLT)

on the Discovery Channel.” John also said, “The visit to the Chaco was enormously inspiring. I have rarely travelled with such an enthusiastic and well informed group. Hugoito is a phenomenal herpetologist, while Nela is not only an expert on Jaguars, but can identify all manner of scats and footprints. Tetsu and Andrea photographed everything and Rodrigo was an excellent leader. Nick Baker is an incredibly well informed field naturalist. The team returned determined to do everything they could to save what’s left of the Chaco. Already a scientific expedition to gather baseline data is being planned by UEA in 2015, led by Iain and Nick.” WLT has supported conservation efforts in Paraguay since 2004, and has helped create reserves protecting Atlantic rainforest, Pantanal and Chaco. Because of the rapid rate of deforestation, funding to save the Dry Chaco is urgently needed. In 2013 alone, more than a million acres of forest (502,308 hectares) were lost. You can support conservation in the Chaco by donating to WLT’s Action Fund and specifying Paraguay.

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WLT launches Carbon Balanced project in Vietnam This new carbon project may protect the habitat of the Saola Building on successful carbon offsetting projects in Ecuador, WLT is developing a new Carbon Balanced project in Vietnam working with project partner, Vietnam Nature Conservation Centre (Viet-Nature). For nearly a decade the Trust’s Carbon Balanced programme has given individuals and companies the opportunity to counteract their unavoidable contribution to global warming. The programme has proved highly effective in conservation terms: 3,700 acres of forest in eight key sites in Ecuador have been protected, and the carbon they store has been locked away permanently. The project with Viet-Nature works alongside the Quang Binh Provincial Forest Department to improve protection of Khe Nuoc Trong. This area of natural habitat in north-central Vietnam is an outstanding example of Annamite Lowland Forest but has suffered greatly from illegal logging. It is estimated that recovery of the damaged natural forest under better protection will store some 50,000 metric tons of CO2 per year for the next 30 years. WLT aims for independent certification of

the project, which is a prime opportunity for voluntary offsetting by WLT supporters.

Practical action to address climate change WLT’s response to global warming – now widely agreed to be the greatest challenge facing society – is pragmatic. “We all know something needs doing. Governments are taking too long about it and individuals need a way to do something credible in the meantime to reduce their own contribution to the problem of global warming,” says Roger Wilson, WLT’s Senior Conservationist on Special Projects Development. WLT’s Carbon Balanced programme is tried, trusted and transparent. The programme enables individuals and companies to offset their CO2 emissions while conserving some of the world’s most endangered species and habitats. If you have any questions please contact Roger Wilson: rwilson@worldlandtrust.org www.worldlandtrust.org/ecoservices/offsetting WLT_PB_Keepers_0114_project

Brief Ecuador 19/03/2014 12:28 Page 2

Project Brief: Keepers of the Wild Helping WLT programme partners protect reserves and their wildlife

Keepers of the Wild This Mountain Tapir was encountered by two rangers on Fundación Jocotoco’s Tapichalaca Reserve in Ecuador. The photograph was taken by Ramiro Mendoza and shows Cliserio Roa.

Saving wildlife and building bridges with the community

How are reserves protected? The most obvious form of protection comes from having rangers in the field. Showing a presence on the reserves acts as a real deterrent to would-be poachers of wildlife, plants and trees. Rangers also ensure that forest trails are kept open and boundaries are clearly marked so that others know too. They make regular patrols and have to respond to many hazards such as forest fires and dealing

Through the Keepers of the Wild programme WLT was able to support 22 reserve rangers working with overseas project partners in 2013. It is the rangers that shoulder the responsibility of reserve and wildlife protection.

Ranger Manuk works with FPWC in Armenia, he protects habitat for the endangered Caucasian Leopard and Bezoar Goat.

Adilei Carvalho da Cunha, a ranger at REGUA in Brazil, releasing a sloth that had been rescued outside the reserve.

with storm damage. They also need adequate clothing and binoculars. Through sponsorship WLT has been able to provide some rangers with digital cameras to record wildlife and any signs of problems. While their jobs can sometimes be dangerous, on a local scale, the rangers help tackle the damaging environmental and social issues that face some of the poorest people in the world.

All in a day’s work: Luis Recalde, Head Ranger with Fundación EcoMinga in Ecuador frequently has to cross freezing cold rivers.

Three recently discovered and rare mammals inhabit the forests of Khe Nuoc Trong: the endangered large-antlered Muntjac, Annamite Muntjac and Annamite Striped Rabbit. There have also been unconfirmed sightings of the critically endangered Saola, photographed above, one of the world’s rarest mammals. The forests are also a prime habitat for Edward’s Pheasant, a bird that has not been seen in the wild for over a decade. Photo credits: Cover: Jamil Sinyor/Hutan; Page 2: (top) BBC (Chris Packham), (below) Felicity Oram/Hutan; Page 3; FPWC except for Caucasian image bottom right: Misad/Dreamstime.com; Page 4: (quetzal) Tom Mangelsen/naturepl.com, (Geoffroys Spider Monkey) Anton Ivanov/Shutterstock.com; Page 5: Guyra Paraguay; Page 6: Bethan John; Page 7: (above) Roberto Pedrazo Ruiz, (below) Bethan John, Page 8: (condor and Olinguito specimen) Pancho Sornoza, (top right), Wikipedia free images; Page 8: (Nick Baker) Andrea Ferreira/Guyra Paraguay, (group) Tetsu Espósito/Guyra Paraguay; Page 11: (top) Katharine and David Lowrie, (below) Amy Scott; back page: (left) Halim Yalçın Diker, (right) Linda Kerley.

Cover image Black-and-red Broadbills (Cymbirhynchus macrorhynchos) are strikingly beautiful birds widespread throughout southeast Asia. Despite their wide distribution numbers are declining due to loss of their mangrove and rainforest habitats. This photograph was taken in the Kinabatangan region of Sabah - the focus of the Trust’s Borneo Rainforest Appeal.

Keepers of the Wild WLT assists project partners by providing funds to employ Keepers of the Wild (reserve rangers). It costs approximately £5,000 to employ a ranger for one year. To donate to Keepers of the Wild visit www.worldlandtrust.org or use the donation form insert.

Inspirational people

Buy an Acre

How far are you prepared to go to save wildlife? The answer for one British couple, Katharine and David Lowrie, is precisely the length of South America… in running shoes. When Bethan John (see centre spread) arrived in the offices of Armonía, WLT partner in Bolivia, everyone was talking about Katharine and David Lowrie. Not surprising as this couple had shown their love of Bolivia and its wildlife by embarking on a yearlong fundraising adventure that would see them run the entire length of South America - from Chile to Venezuela, via Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil. That’s 6,504 miles and equivalent to 250 marathons. Katharine and David were raising money for three conservation charities, including

Armonía and BirdLife Katharine and David Lowrie ran 25 miles – eve ry day, for ov er a year. International. While in Bolivia they took some much needed time out to visit Barba Azul, a WLT funded of Jaguars and Scarlet Macaws. We wanted reserve in Bolivia's Beni savanna. to raise money for a conservation Beth asked them why they are so organisation that was based in the country, passionate about Armonía and its which we could see was making a tangible conservation work in Bolivia. difference by actually buying and conserving “Bolivia is an incredible country of land, employing and training local people in extraordinary diversity; from its spiralling conservation, involved in education snow-capped mountains and flamingo filled programmes and raising awareness amongst altiplano, descending through the Spectacled its population of the importance of Bolivia’s Bear’s cloud forests into the steaming astounding natural world. Armonía is doing all of this,” said Katharine. rainforests and flooded savannas to the land

Is baby Beatrice WLT’s youngest supporter? Mum Amy is passing on her passion for the wild world

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I wanted to send you this picture of me and my baby girl Beatrice reading WLT News aged four months - she likes

I thoroughly agree with Sir David Attenborough's quote on your website about supporting WLT being the best way to support the wild world. As someone who is selfemployed (and currently on maternity leave) I don't have a regular income and while I am a passionate animal lover I do need to think carefully about the number of charities I support. I had been making donations to WLT on and off for several years but in January 2013 I decided to become a WLT Friend, signing

up to a monthly direct debit donation.This way I feel I am helping the planet as a whole, all the diverse wildlife in the rainforests and wetlands and the people in the communities who are employed as rangers. Keep up the great work! I hope one day you can save all the rainforests!! And for my part, I will continue to pass on my passion to my daughter and others.

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looking at the pictures of the animals. I think maybe she could be your youngest supporter?

Warm wishes, Amy Scott WLT Friend # 01010499 Thank you Amy, your email arrived just as I began work on this issue of WLT News. It has been an inspiration during the production. This is such a heart-warming story and truly inspirational to all of us at WLT. Editor

Become a WLT Friend and pledge £5 or more each month. Funds go to the WLT Action Fund for WLT’s most urgent project needs. You can complete a Direct Debit form online: www.worldlandtrust.org/supporting/friends.htm Or contact the WLT office if you would like us to send you a Friends leaflet Tel: 01986 874 422 Email: donations@worldlandtrust.org

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Winner of the 2013 Camera-trap competition BBC Wildlife magazine in association with World Land Trust and WLT’s corporate supporter Enterprise Plants Roach’s Mouse-tailed Dormouse wins

The winning image in the 2013 Cameratrap Competition Overall & Category Winner (New Discoveries) awarded the £3,000 research grant. Captured by Halim Yalçın Diker, these were the first photos of Roach’s Mouse-tailed Dormouse taken in the wild. Judge Mark Carwardine, a WLT Council member says: “A tricky shot of a small, fast-moving and very rare subject that captures a perfect moment.”

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Printed on Revive 100 Recycled paper, available from PaperlinX. Printed by Kingfisher Press Ltd, wide format, digital and Litho Carbon Balanced Printer based in Suffolk. www.kingfisher-press.com

Save One Acre for £100 in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico. See donation form enclosed or donate online:

WLT News is printed on Carbon Balanced Paper. By using Carbon BO N AR Balanced Paper through World Land Trust publications, in 2013 we have saved 960kg of Carbon and preserved 71 sqm of critically threatened tropical forest. Carbon Balanced Paper is one of the most sustainable forms of communication and will reduce your carbon footprint and promote CSR. www.carbonbalancedpaper.com PA

Buy an Acre projects

Last word

The winners of the Animal Behaviour and Animal Portraits categories – each claiming a £1,000 prize – went to a photo of a scent-marking Snow Leopard, taken by Juan Li in Qinghai, China, and a spectacular portrait of an Amur tiger captured by Linda Kerley for a ZSL project in Russia’s Far East. Jamie Hall won the British Wildlife category, for study of a fox. His prize was a top-ofthe-range Páramo Halcon jacket worth £330.

Wild Travel magazine has become an official media partner of WLT during the Trust's 25th Anniversary year and will be regularly featuring stories from our conservation projects.

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Other winners

We are currently discussing a new camera-trap competition in partnership with The Times. We hope to include video and mobile phone images in this competition and will be announcing further details shortly. Please check our website for details: www.worldlandtrust.org

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Our project, Yer Yediuyuru Yok Olmasın, undertaken for the Wildlife Research Association, researches the species’ ecology with the aim of protecting against extinction. The habitats of Roach’s Mouse-tailed Dormouse (Myomimus roachi) are on private lands which consist of old walnut, wild-pear and oak trees. We are hoping to buy these lands from the owners using the funds that we have won through the competition. We will then carry out habitat

New competition for 2014

Halim Yalçın Diker reports:

restoration, by planting more wild fruit trees and bushes on which the species can feed and nest in. We also want to carry out a small captive breeding programme to build the numbers, which are critically low. Myomimus roachi reproduces only once a year giving birth to a maximum of two young; during hibernation they are vulnerable from lack of nutrition. If we are able to source more funds for the project we would be able to undertake a reintroduction programme into a safe habitat. But meanwhile we will protect the new generation and monitor their reproductive activities in further phases of the project. During our project we also photographed, Wild Cat (Felis sylvestris), Marten and the Forest Dormouse (Dryomys nitedula) in the same trap-station as well.

This species was historically found in Turkey and south-eastern Bulgaria but, as oak and walnut trees were cut down to make way for agriculture and forestry activities, its habitat is now restricted to just a few small spinneys in Edirne, north-west Turkey

Winner: Animal Portraits This Amur Tiger was captured on camera-trap by Linda Kerley for a Zoological Society of London’s (ZSL) project in Russia’s Far East. There are thought to be no more than 40 individuals surviving in the wild.