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“The aim of this initiative is to help to secure the future of five primate species in the wild by 2020”
Cao Vit Gibbon Conservation Programme (FFI): Cao Vit Gibbon (Nomascus nasutus) Continuing on from last year, the Cao Vit Gibbon Conservation Programme (CVGCP) has now entered a phase of closer collaboration with authorities in China, which they are calling the ‘Transboundary Cao Vit Gibbon Conservation Programme’. With only 110 individuals recorded in the wild, the need to protect this critically endangered species from extinction should be high on everyone’s agenda. FFI are doing an amazing job in getting local villages involved in sustainable practices that help the conservation of this species, in addition to removing their goats and stopping firewood gathering from the protected area. The partnership with one of China’s leading gibbon experts has supported detailed research and observations on what was previously a little-known species. Small Grants Programme In addition to the Five Primates programme, Twycross Zoo has a ‘Small Grants’ programme, offering up to £3,000 for individual projects. 2010 saw the donation of funds to three projects – The Kumbira Forest expedition was led by Michael Mills of BirdLife International, the funding initiative being coordinated by Cotswold Wildlife Park. Kumbira is part of the Gabela Important Bird Area of Angola, and this expedition is thus a very important part of a biological fact-finding mission in an area that has been plagued by conflict until only recently. Three weeks were spent in the field conducting bird and vegetation structure surveys to establish ecological parameters for several threatened endemic bird species of this region. The Snow Leopard Trust project in Mongolia has been provided with money to cover a GPS-satellite collar for one of their snow leopards (Panthera uncia), a vital part of the research on this endangered big cat and close relative of the tiger. This collar will provide information as to the individual’s movements for the next year, which the researchers use to create home range maps for each of the ten study cats, providing a detailed picture of the overlap in their ranges. In addition, the Trust regularly reports back to Twycross Zoo with respect to other elements of their conservation programme in Mongolia, the latest piece of news being their
successful campaign for local communities to protect vital habitat in South Gobi from mining interests. The third successful application for the small grants programme was one submitted by the German Primate Centre (Deutsches Primatenzatrum) in conjunction with their research within the Siberut Conservation Group in the Mentawai Islands, just off Sumatra. We are funding the development of a conservation-based biological database for the critically endangered pig-tailed snub-nosed monkey (Simias concolor). If successful, this database will be used for other species of primate on these islands, each of which is endemic and under threat. The CWF has also continued to support the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre (UWEC) for its subscription to the African Alliance of Zoos and Aquaria (PAAZAB), including some additional support to allow a UWEC member to attend the World Association of Zoos and Aquaria (WAZA) conference, where they presented a paper on the bushmeat crisis in Uganda. Other Funds In addition to the above and various memberships, Twycross Zoo has provided funds through EAZA for l’Association Européenne pour l’Étude et la Conservation des Lémuriens (AEECL) in connection with keeping crowned lemurs in our collection, and has provided money directly to le Conservatoire pour la Protection des Primates for the conservation of South American titis via Proyecto Mono Tocón. The goal of the project is the conservation of the endangered San Martín Titi (Callicebus oenanthe, known locally as el mono tocón). This monkey is one of the three endemic primate species in Perú, and can only be found in the Department of San Martín, north-eastern Perú. Kevin J. Caley BSc (JHons) PhD Research and Conservation Executive
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