Rapid Action Fund

by speciesonthebrink

Rapid surveys to establish toxic drug presence and current impacts to Myanmar’s vulture populations

Rapid Action Fund ,

The challenge Vulture populations have been decimated around Southeast and South Asia through the use of veterinary drugs to treat livestock. While banned in neighbouring vulture range states, the use of diclofenac and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) by local farmers and government veterinary clinics in Myanmar to treat livestock is a severe threat to the remaining vulture populations in Myanmar. The belief that the use of vulture bones as a cure for multiple ailments is an additional threat to…

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Urgent surveys to determine population status, key threats, and conservation action for three fishes endemic to Lake Poso, Sulawesi, Indonesia

Rapid Action Fund

The challenge Lake Poso in Sulawesi is one of the world’s oldest lakes, a Key Biodiversity Area and an Alliance for Zero Extinction site. It supports a high degree of endemism of many freshwater species, including 10 endemic fish species, 3 of which are Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct): Duck-billed Buntingi, Rosen’s Buntingi and Poso Bungu. The drastic declines of these three species are largely considered to be due to predation by alien fishes in the 1970s which have since become…

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Urgent conservation action for the Critically Endangered Clarias sulcatus, an island endemic species in Redang Island, Peninsular Malaysia

Rapid Action Fund

The challenge Freshwater fishes are one of the most highly threatened species groups but are also often neglected in receiving conservation attention. Clarias sulcatus is a hyperendemic island catfish found only in fast-flowing streams on Redang Island, off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Described only in 1999, little is known about the species, but they are facing immense pressure from land development and abstraction of freshwater to support the rapidly growing tourism on the island.   The species is…

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Investigating the alarming and growing threat of illegal trade in Annamite Crested Argus

Rapid Action Fund

The challenge The Annamite Crested Argus occurs throughout the Annamite mountains in central and southern Vietnam and eastern Lao PDR. Previously described as common, high levels of hunting and snaring have been reported in its range resulting in extirpation in some sites and conservationists believe that rapid reduction in the wild population has occurred.   The species has mainly been hunted for meat, but recent reports have found a concerning number of animals circulating in the pet trade. In 2021 Monitor…

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Flood-proofing an important hatchery for the Palawan Forest Turtle (Siebenrockiella leytensis)

Rapid Action Fund

  The challenge The Palawan Forest Turtle is endemic to the Palawan island-group in the Philippines and can be found in streams in undisturbed forest. Surveys indicated an alarming 70% decline in the adult population over the past decade. Primarily threatened by collection for international trade, habitat loss and degradation are also contributing threats. The turtle is also consumed locally and utilised in traditional medicines.   Katala Foundation established a conservation breeding and reintroduction programme for the Palawan Forest Turtle in…

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Maximising a Philippine Eagle’s chances for survival through release and monitoring in the Bislig KBA

Rapid Action Fund

  The challenge The Philippine Eagle is endemic to the Philippines and is one of the largest birds of prey. Its small and highly threatened population has been at the brink of extinction for the past few decades. Habitat loss due to deforestation from timber extraction and shifting cultivation remain the primary long-term threat to the species. Hunting for food and as bycatch in mammal traps are also some of the recorded threats, while pesticide accumulation may be a potential…

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The Tawsi Project: Urgent action for the conservation of the Sulu Hornbill and other threatened birds on the isolated Tawi-Tawi Island

Rapid Action Fund

The challenge Tawi-Tawi Island is part of the southwestern Sulu archipelago in the Philippines and is home to 17 threatened bird species. Of these, four are Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Due to rapid habitat loss, these birds, which were once prevalent throughout the island, are now found only in isolated forest patches on Tawi-Tawi.    PhilBio set up the Tawi-Tawi Advocates for Wildlife Support Initiative (TAWSI) Programme to protect and recover populations of Sulu Hornbill,…

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Gathering the evidence needed to conserve critical habitat for Viet Nam’s most threatened amphibians

Rapid Action Fund

  The challenge Mount Fansipan is a critical habitat for the Botsford’s Leaf Litter frog Leptobrachella botsfordi and Sterling’s Toothed Toad Oreolalax sterlingae, Viet Nam’s only Critically Endangered amphibians (Update: Since March 2021, Sterling’s Toothed Toad has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List). Both species were described in 2013 from a stream on the mountain, and while Sterling’s Toothed Toad is also found in a nearby district, Botsford’s Leaf Litter frog is endemic to this particular area. …

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Strengthening mitigation measures to protect the Sulawesi crested black macaques

Rapid Action Fund ,

  The challenge The Sulawesi Crested Black Macaque occurs on northeastern Sulawesi, Indonesia and the adjacent islands of Pulau Manadotua and Pulau Talise. It is threatened by habitat loss and from hunting, both for bush meat and for live animal trade. The species can be found in several protected areas, but Tangkoko Nature Reserve is the most likely viable natural population remaining. The global COVID-19 pandemic has reduced funding for the reserve and led to an increase in agricultural expansion…

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Survey for Delacour’s Langurs

Rapid Action Fund

  The challenge Delacour’s Langur has small and fragmented populations, with the only viable population being in the Van Long Nature Reserve. Contiguous to the nature reserve is approximately 1,000 hectares of unprotected land where a few groups of the langur can be found. This land is unprotected and intended to be used for tourism development and limestone quarrying. If the unprotected land was protected, it would represent a 50% increase of protected langur habitat from the Van Long Nature…

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