WCS Progress Report: 2015 Volume One

A WILDLIFE CONSERVATION SOCIETY PROGRESS REPORT

WCS

2015, Volume One

Wildlife 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.

Closing Ivory Markets

A wcs study found that between 2002 and 2013, 65 percent of the world’s African forest elephants were killed for their ivory. Sadly, we are losing at least 35,000 African elephants each year—96 elephants each day. wcs is leading the charge to counter this slaughter. For decades we have worked on the ground to stop poaching, protect habitat, and help elephant populations recover. But the recent and rapid acceleration in demand for ivory requires coordinated global action. Under a Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to Action, wcs has joined forces with 15 other non-governmental organizations to stop the killing, stop the trafficking, and stop the demand.

Key to our success is a shift in global ivory policy in favor of elephants. Elephants cannot speak for themselves; we must be their voice. We must work to influence legislation so that these magnificent creatures are no longer exploited, but protected.

Chinese Ivory Ban Announced

In February 2015, the Government of China announced a one-year ban on ivory imports into the country. The ban is a step in the right direction toward combating China’s enduring ivory demand.

While the short-term ban is undoubtedly an improvement in China’s ivory policy, commercial trade of elephant ivory by all nations has been

prohibited by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species since 1989. Additionally, unless the ban is extended past one year and expanded to include the sale of ivory within China (as opposed to just imports), it will not stem the country’s demand enough to end Africa’s poaching crisis.

As wcs President and ceo Dr. Cristián Samper has noted, “This action shows leadership by the world’s largest ivory consumer nation and we hope to see additional and stronger action by officials in China on limiting the ongoing demand of ivory in their nation.”

Dr. Samper serves on President Obama’s Advisory Council on Wildlife Trafficking.

U.S. Ivory Bans Expanding

Although the Obama Administration has enacted a federal ivory ban to stop imports into the U.S. and trade across state lines, further legislation is needed to close still-legal ivory markets within state borders.

In 2014, New Jersey and New York were the first U.S. states to sign strict bills banning the sale of ivory within their states. Now California, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maryland, Oklahoma, Vermont, and Virginia are considering similar bans. wcs experts have testified in support of the bans in California and Hawaii, and our 96 Elephants campaign promotes public advocacy across all 50 states to ban U.S. ivory sales for good.

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New York Ivory Crush Planned

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (usfws) and wcs plan to crush approximately two tons of confiscated ivory on June 9 in New York City’s Times Square. usfws has seized the illegally-obtained ivory in this stockpile as a result of law enforcement investigations over a period of several years. The country’s last crush occurred in 2013 when usfws pulverized nearly six tons of elephant ivory stored at the National Wildlife Property Repository in Denver, Colorado.

By destroying our ivory stockpiles, we send a clear message that the United States will not tolerate ivory trafficking and its destructive impact on global elephant populations.

Craigslist Advocacy

A joint report released by wcs and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (ifaw) has concluded that the ivory trade is alive and well on Craigslist.org.

Using data collected March –,  from  Craigslist subsites, the report found posts advertising the sale of ivory, elephant skin, and similar items. Within just  days, investigators tracked  postings offering  items with a combined list price of nearly $. million. In response, Craigslist has updated its policy to include a clear statement prohibiting the sale of “ivory and endangered, imperiled and/or protected species and any parts thereof.”

After ifaw released a similar report on eBay.com in , eBay announced it would no longer allow the sale of ivory on its platform and continues to work with ifaw to improve enforcement. In , wcs and 96 Elephants led a successful campaign that resulted in pbs’s Antiques Roadshow agreeing to stop appraising ivory tusks on the air, and to educate viewers about the ivory trade. We are hopeful Craigslist will now take similar action to actively enforce its updated policy and eliminate all ivory sales.

Ivory’s Diminishing Demand

Throughout China, where the world’s largest ivory market continues to imperil elephants, wcs’s Ivory Demand Reduction Program is working to eliminate ivory’s prestige factor through a variety of policy, media, and public engagement initiatives.

In November 2014, wcs partnered with Shanghai Media Group, one of China’s leading media conglomerates, to jointly promote the 3D documentary “African Safari.” The film, an immersive 3

virtual trek across Africa, guides audiences through the continent’s wildest regions while also asking viewers to reflect on the damage caused by human demand for wildlife products. wcs provided key conservation messages for the film. As part of the promotion, wcs published  articles on elephant conservation which were then shared by nearly 80 websites, including influential Chinese sites such as Xinhua, Netease, People, Tencent, Sohu, iFeng, and China.com. The film, shown in 6,000 cinemas throughout 50 cities in China, was a great success. wcs has now formed a partnership with Artron—an influential auction house that guides asset investment in China—and is working with them to diminish the appeal of ivory. Together, we are promoting the message that modern ivory is worthless and should not be perceived as a good investment.

In April 2015, Artron released an investor report highlighting this warning, and wcs China launched

“Together, we are promoting the message that modern ivory is worthless and should not be perceived as a good investment.” a coordinated social media campaign to amplify the message. These and wcs’s other anti-demand activities are vital to reversing the decline of African elephants.

The 96 Elephants Campaign: By the Numbers total partner organizations: zoo and aquarium partners: u.s. presence:

195

124

45 states

elephant advocates engaged: advocacy actions* taken:

465,000+

850,000+

Figures as of February 2015 * Actions include writing letters to elected officials, signing petitions, and posting on social media.

As seen on page 2, in 2013, USFWS crushed nearly six tons of elephant ivory in Denver, Colorado, including full tusks, jewelry, and trinkets (left). Crushing ivory renders it useless and sends the message that the U.S. will not tolerate ivory trafficking. In 2015, USFWS and WCS plan to crush two more tons of ivory in New York City.

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At the NY Zoos and Aquarium Children’s Zoo Revamped

In summer 2015, wcs’s Bronx Zoo is welcoming longtime friends and a new generation of visitors to the renovated and re-imagined Children’s Zoo. Since its creation in 1941, our iconic Children’s Zoo has provided children of all ages with up-close animal encounters, promoting a lifetime love of wildlife and nature. The new Children’s Zoo features refreshed learning experiences, new animals to meet and feed, innovative play activities, and whimsical new graphics featuring illustrations by Brooklyn-based artist Brendan Wenzel.

Two Gorilla Births

For the second consecutive year, wcs’s Bronx Zoo welcomed two newborn western lowland gorillas.

Born in January 2015 to first-time mothers Layla and Kumi, these babies join the two born last spring which were the first gorillas born at the Zoo since 2006. Ernie, a 32-year-old, 450-pound silverback, is the father of all  babies. The Bronx Zoo’s Congo Gorilla Forest is now home to  gorillas—the largest group of gorillas in North America.

The Bronx Zoo has a successful history of breeding gorillas as part of the Species Survival Plan, a program which aims to manage sustainable populations of threatened and endangered species within institutions accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Western lowland gorillas 5

are designated as Critically Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. wcs works throughout Africa to protect gorillas from threats like illegal hunting, infectious disease, and habitat loss.

A Baboon Baby First

The Bronx Zoo has welcomed a baby gelada baboon—the first born in the U.S. in more than 13 years. The young male was born in fall 2014 to mother Fayola and father Gore. Weighing only about one pound at birth, he will grow to about 65 pounds as an adult male. The youngster can now be seen frolicking with his family across the Baboon Reserve in the African Plains exhibit.

The Bronx Zoo first exhibited geladas in 1902 and is the only U.S. zoo currently housing the species. The Baboon Reserve, which the geladas have called home since 1990, is among the largest primate exhibits in the U.S. It features rock formations and grassy slopes where the primates graze and romp alongside Nubian ibexes, rock hyraxes, and African waterfowl. This naturalistic outdoor exhibit is representative of the species’ native Ethiopian highlands habitat, where geladas are under threat from habitat loss and hunting for their manes. Through research conducted at the Bronx Zoo Baboon Reserve, wcs scientists have learned that the changes in appearance of a pregnant female’s red chest are directly related to hormone

levels. This information has helped us better monitor females both at the zoo and in the wild so that we can improve breeding success.

From Queens to Puerto Rico: The Crested Toad

wcs’s Queens Zoo has successfully bred approximately 2,400 Puerto Rican crested toads and facilitated their release into their native environment in October 2014. The greatest threats affecting the Puerto Rican crested toad include habitat loss and the introduction of the invasive giant toad. The wild population fluctuates between 1,000 to 3,000 adult toads, all of which are found in Guánica National Forest on the southern coast of Puerto Rico.

Our crested toad breeding program is part of a collaborative effort with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to save this Critically Endangered species from extinction. To promote breeding, curators used enclosures that mimic the environmental conditions and seasonal conditions of the toads’ natural habitat and played recorded mating calls to help stimulate courtship.

Biologists released the toads to six different sites across north and south Puerto Rico, all of which are located within well-managed areas where the toads have room to disperse. Conservationists are closely monitoring the toads’ success at each site and are actively working to keep threats at bay.

Chinese Turtles Hatch in Prospect Park

In late 2014, three Chinese big-headed turtles hatched at wcs’s Prospect Park Zoo. This is the second time these endangered turtles have reproduced at the Prospect Park Zoo, which is the only facility in North America to successfully breed this species.

By breeding Chinese big-headed turtles and other endangered species, wcs is helping them avoid extinction by building assurance colonies that maintain genetically viable populations until wild populations are more stable.

Chinese big-headed turtles are one of approximately 330 species of freshwater turtles and tortoises, half of which are threatened with extinction due to illegal trade and habitat loss. wcs alleviates threats to endangered turtles around the world by working closely with governments, including those within the big-headed turtle’s native range across China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Central Park’s “Prince” Penguin Debuts

New York City now has its own royal baby. A king penguin chick born at wcs’s Central Park Zoo is the first of its species ever to hatch in the Big Apple. The chick was born within the Zoo’s Polar Circle exhibit, which carefully replicates natural seasonal conditions including sunrise and sunset, letting the penguins know when it is breeding season and triggering instinctual mating behaviors.

Although the king penguin and the three other penguin species at the Central Park Zoo are not endangered, they still face threats like climate change, overfishing, and the degradation of their native coastal ecosystems. wcs scientists are researching how climate change affects global penguin populations, and are working in the field to address the marine conservation problems plaguing penguins and other wildlife.

120 Ways NY is Wild

To celebrate 120 years of saving wildlife across the globe, wcs is inviting New York City on a social photo safari to discover and share 120 ways ny is wild.

Through September 7, participants can sign up at NYisWild.com and explore the hidden gems that make New York one of the wildest places on earth.

Snap a photo of one of the 120 ways—100 of which can be found at the wcs zoos and aquarium— then share it on Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #NYisWild. The more you share, the better your chances to win a grand prize trip to Belize, where wcs is conducting cutting-edge marine research and working to protect wildlife like sea turtles, sharks, and corals.

Sharks Coming to Brooklyn The New York Aquarium is now growing its shark collection in preparation for the completion of Ocean Wonders: Sharks!, the Aquarium’s new exhibit building. So far this year the Aquarium has acquired  new sharks:  sand tiger sharks and  brown sharks.

These sharks are currently in the Aquarium’s renovated holding pools. The sharks are becoming acclimated in these holding pools where they will be on exhibit until the grand opening of Ocean Wonders.

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Teaming Up to Protect Whales in the NY Bight Starting in summer , scientists will deploy new whale detection equipment in the New York Bight to identify and protect endangered whales and their marine habitats in the metropolitan area. wcs has partnered with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on a joint venture to protect whales using new real-time monitoring technology.

The newly developed technology includes a digital acoustic monitoring buoy and wave glider (an autonomous underwater vehicle), allowing scientists to listen for and report whale calls to on-shore computer systems. The data collected will establish important baselines for whales, informing scientists and resource managers from New York State where they can find whales in order to study and to better protect them. Eventually, wcs plans to integrate this 7

information at the New York Aquarium’s exhibits and share it through digital engagement.

While there is considerable excitement about whales being observed seasonally in local waters, much remains unknown about their behavior in the New York Bight, an area of water that spans from Cape May, nj, to Montauk, ny. Whales found in this area are potentially affected by ongoing and increasing human activities—some harmful, such as ship strikes and underwater noise from shipping and prospective energy development. Implementing new monitoring systems will advance our understanding of whale abundance, habitat use, and interactions with the diverse human activities occurring in New York waters.

Caring for Confiscated Illegal Wildlife

As part of their strategy to combat global wildlife trafficking, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (usfws) regularly seizes the illegal wildlife and wildlife products they intercept. Because of wcs’s close relationship with usfws, we are occasionally asked to care for animals they confiscate. A recent instance involved 144 pancake tortoises and 4 Aubry’s flapshell turtles. wcs’s herpetology and zoological health experts cared for these turtles at the Bronx Zoo’s Wildlife Health Center. We treated the turtles in need of veterinary care on-site, and placed the turtles with a clean bill of health at fellow institutions accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

The flapshell turtles and some pancake tortoises remain at the Bronx Zoo for our educational efforts. wcs works to save turtles and tortoises around the world through breeding programs at our zoos, reintroduction programs abroad, and collaboration with governments and communities to save species on the brink of extinction.

Aardvark Receives Successful Surgery

In January 2015, wcs veterinarian Dr. John Sykes performed a rare dental surgery on a female aardvark.

The aardvark had a chronic nasal discharge and did not respond to regular medical treatment. Health staff brought her from the Bronx Zoo to the Animal Specialty Center in Yonkers, ny, a veterinary clinic that wcs has partnered with on many cases, including a 2013 ct scan of Holli the gorilla. At the clinic, the aardvark’s ct scan demonstrated bony changes in the skull, an abnormal tooth, and a tooth root abscess, indicating surgery was needed.

Back at the Bronx Zoo’s Wildlife Health Center, Dr. Sykes performed a tooth extraction and skull biopsy on the aardvark. She responded well to the surgery and has returned to the Department of Mammalogy, where she continues to improve and staff are monitoring her progress.

Zoo-goers can see aardvarks on exhibit at the Bronx Zoo’s Carter Giraffe Building. While aardvarks are not endangered, their native habitat is highly vulnerable to climate change and other threats. wcs field staff is working on the ground throughout sub-Saharan Africa to protect the aardvark’s native range.

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A Conversation with Dr. Pat Thomas

Antelope House. Now it’s in the footprint where the Carter Giraffe Building is located. At that time, there were giraffes, Grevy’s zebra, and some hartebeest.

Toward the end of the program, a keeper position opened up, and at the time there was very little turnover in the keeper ranks. So one of the veteran keepers said, “Kid, if you want a job here, you’d better apply for it.” I was always trying to get out of school early, so I had stockpiled a lot of credits. I wasn’t able to graduate early, but my last semester, my classes were just two days a week. So I got that job as a keeper in the Mammal Department in , later became a Supervisor, then a Curator, and eventually took my current position.

Did you always have an interest in wildlife?

PT: I have always loved animals. When I was 11 years old, I read an article in National Geographic

For 36 years, Dr. Patrick R. Thomas has worked at WCS’s Bronx Zoo. He currently serves as Vice President and General Curator, WCS and Associate Director, Bronx Zoo. Dr. Thomas is also an adjunct professor at Columbia University, Fordham University, and Manhattan College.

Here he shares his unique insight into the world of zoobased conservation, his personal influences, favorite zoo memories, and what he thinks makes the Bronx Zoo one of the world’s best.

What do you do at WCS? DR. PAT THOMAS: I’m responsible for over-

seeing the animal collections for all of our zoos [Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, and Prospect Park Zoo] and then linking them to an integrated collection plan. While we don’t want the same collection in each zoo, we do want to be able to work together for certain species for which we have specific expertise, or that really need our help.

How did you get started at WCS? PT: When I was an undergrad at Ramapo College [in ], our school offered credits for life experience, so I wound up getting credits as a volunteer in the Bronx Zoo’s Mammal Department helping take care of animals. The first day I volunteered, I worked in what was then called the

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by George Schaller [preeminent field biologist and former wcs Chief Scientist] on African lions, and I thought, “I want to do what he does.” So it was quite a thrill to wind up coming here to work at the same organization as George Schaller. And I can very clearly remember the first time he ever called me.

I was like, “George Schaller is calling me?”

Is there anyone else in particular who has influenced you?

PT: Dr. William Conway [former wcs President and Director of the Bronx Zoo] was another huge influence. The idea that I could work with animals as a career—that probably was from him. I saw firsthand his vision for zoos, and he was really far ahead of his time with respect to exhibit design and the visitor experience.

Conway’s vision was to put animals in appropriate social groups and highly naturalistic habitats, because he understood the average visitor wouldn’t ever get to see an Amur tiger or a western lowland gorilla in the

“A zoo’s primary mission should be conservation.” wild, so at least we can give them a sense of what that would be like. Conway was also way ahead of his time regarding zoos’ need to save wildlife. He knew that a zoo’s primary mission should be conservation. And it’s not just good enough to say, “That’s our mission.”

You have to walk the walk. And we do. I think now we’re seeing other zoos in the aza community catching on, and putting more of their operating

dollars toward field conservation—but no one’s doing it the way we’re doing it. We’re ahead of the game in that regard.

How have you seen WCS improve since 1979?

PT: When we opened Congo [Gorilla Forest], we made a decision that we would never invest in a large-scale exhibit unless we had a corresponding field program, so that we would be able to not only educate visitors about animals and animal behavior, but show them what wcs is doing to conserve that same species in nature. So starting with Congo, then Tiger Mountain, Madagascar!, all of our bigger exhibits—there is a very significant focus on global issues and what we are doing in the field for those species.

How do you think we can continue to improve to better achieve our mission?

I certainly think we’re on the right track. It would be great to further integrate our zoos and aquarium with our field programs. We certainly do more integration now than we did, say,  years ago. But that’s still an avenue that’s open to us.

I think zoo biologists have certain areas of expertise that field biologists can benefit from—the sorts of things that we do all the time, like managing small populations of animals. If there is an isolated population of a given species in the wild, zoo biologists know how to keep them genetically and demographically viable, and those are tools that field biologists typically wouldn’t have. So, I think there are still more opportunities to explore among curators and the folks in the field.

What is your favorite WCS memory?

PT: My favorite personal moment occurred when I

was a young keeper. I used to work over at Wild Asia a lot, and the first thing a keeper does in the morning is go and check all of his or her animals to make sure they’re okay. As a group, my favorite animals are large carnivores, especially big cats. So I was going around checking the animals, and I can still remember the first time one of our tigers approached and chuffled at me, which is their greeting call. Having this cat, this beautiful tiger come up and greet you first thing in the morning, I thought, “What could be a better job than this?”

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Education Programs Inspire Change WCS serves more than 100,000 schoolchildren every year through more than 2,000 different educational programs at all five of our city parks, and infuses these programs with the most current science from WCS conservation fieldwork.

Project TRUE Kicks Off

Thanks to a recent five-year, $2.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation, in summer 2014 wcs and Fordham University kicked off Project true—Teens Researching Urban Ecology. Project true aims to grow the number of high school students pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (stem) majors by connecting them with college mentors already pursuing stem careers.

Tapping into the resources of wcs’s zoos and the scientific research expertise of Fordham University’s biology department, the students gain experience conducting hands-on urban ecology research with the support of a tiered mentoring program.

In a highly competitive process, 50 applicants from high schools in underrepresented urban communities are accepted each year to participate in Project true. wcs educators and Fordham PhD candidates mentor the undergraduate Field Research Leaders, who in turn mentor the high school students.

“The students gain experience conducting hands-on urban ecology research with the support of a tiered mentoring program.”

Collectively, the group designs and conducts original research projects that explore the dynamics of New York City’s ecosystem. Past research projects have focused on urban biodiversity including the ecology of urban birds and urban arthropods, and how sand dunes changed after Hurricane Sandy.

1st Annual WCS Teen Conservation Conference

In March 2015, 75 teens from 5 different wcs Education programs gathered at the Bronx Zoo for the first annual wcs Teen Conservation Conference.

The conference kicked off with two guest speakers: Dr. Dorceta Taylor from the University of Michigan discussed diversity in the environmental field, and Majora Carter, founder of Sustainable South Bronx, 11

discussed urban environmental problems and how our students can help solve them. Then, wcs staff from seven different departments led small lunchtime career talks with select students. Later, wcs experts led interactive breakout sessions including: an urban ecology walk to the nearby Bronx River to explore

“The conference inspired the students to continue on their journeys as the next generation of biologists, environmental scientists, veterinarians, and future stewards of our planet.” wcs’s eel mop research program; making enrichment items for the Bronx Zoo’s Mouse House inhabitants; a tour of wcs’s Wildlife Health Center; and a tour of the Bird Commissary at the World of Birds.

The conference, funded by the National Science Foundation i-test grant in support of wcs’s Bridging the Gap program, inspired the students to continue on their journeys as the next generation of biologists, environmental scientists, veterinarians, and future stewards of our planet.

Discovery Guides Expanding

In summer 2015, wcs will expand the Discovery Guide program to host more than 220 teen volunteers at all  of our city parks. Participants spend their summers at various exhibits within the zoos and aquarium, helping teach visitors about the animals they encounter. Through this unique program, the Discovery Guides learn live interpretation techniques, and provide zoo visitors with information on animal behavior, what wcs is doing to save species in the wild, and actions the public can take to help. The Bronx Zoo hosted the first cohort of Discovery Guides in 2014.

To watch Dr. Karanth (left) give a TEDx Talk about her unique perspective on wildlife conservation, visit: tedxgateway.com/speaker/krithi-karanth Below, a WCS veterinarian performs a checkup on a baby gorilla, circa 1966.

WCS’s Krithi Karanth Named Young Global Leader Dr. Krithi K. Karanth, wcs Associate Conservation Scientist, was selected by the World Economic Forum as a 2015 Young Global Leader (ygl). The Forum helps ygls build collaborations and provides a support system for them to improve global challenges through innovative solutions. Joining the ranks of former ygls such as Mark Zuckerberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Anderson Cooper, Dr. Karanth has earned the prestigious title through her enduring commitment toward making the world a better place, and her outstanding record of achievement established over nearly two decades of conservation work in India.

“Dr. Karanth has earned the prestigious title through her enduring commitment toward making the world a better place.”

In such densely populated countries as India, conservation scientists face daunting challenges in balancing the needs of both wildlife and people.

Working with research and conservation colleagues from the wcs India Program, Dr. Karanth has so far implemented over 25 projects, engaged over 500 citizen science volunteers, and published over 60 scientific and popular articles. She holds a Master’s degree from Yale University and a Doctorate from Duke University.

“Being selected as part of the ygl program is an incredible honor and provides me with a unique opportunity to engage with a broader network of entrepreneurs, business leaders, politicians, and change-makers in society,” says Dr. Karanth. “I hope to develop a stronger constituency for wildlife conservation in India and globally.”

Leave a Legacy On April 26, 2015, wcs turned 120 years old. To commemorate this anniversary, we are launching our firstever legacy match campaign. We invite you to be part of this unique legacy match, made possible by a group of wcs supporters wholly committed to securing the future of the magnificent wildlife we cherish. When you confirm your bequest, wcs will receive an immediate cash match equivalent to 10 percent of your future gift’s value, up to $10,000. ■ For more information, please visit wcs.org/planned-giving, or contact Nora Benoliel at nbenoliel@wcs.org or 718.741.1628

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Protecting the Jaguar’s Historic Range Jaguars once roamed the American southwest, with distribution records as far north as the southern edge of the Grand Canyon and as far east as Texas. Today, the jaguar has been eradicated from  percent of its historic range. Although jaguars still roam in the wild near the United States, human development and ecological factors have pushed the northernmost breeding population south of the border to Sonora, Mexico. wcs’s long-term vision is jaguar populations thriving in vast landscapes that collectively represent all types of jaguar habitat. Between  and , wcs’s Eric Sanderson and Kim Fisher worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (usfws) Jaguar Recovery Team to develop a historic database and 13

maps for the Northwestern Recovery Unit (nru), which spans from western-central Mexico into the southwestern United States. Subsequently, experts from wcs and other institutions generated jaguar surveying and monitoring recommendations for the nru that have range-wide relevance. In addition, wcs worked with the usfws to prepare jaguar roadcrossing recommendations for the nru that also have utility across all jaguar range. It is our hope that these tools will help us and our partners track the efficacy of our jaguar conservation measures, safeguard jaguar numbers, and ensure that the species can continue to play its role as the top predator across a significant part of its historic range.

“Extinct” Turtles Return to Myanmar The second-most endangered turtle species in the world, thought to be extinct until 2002, is now on the road to recovery thanks to the joint efforts of wcs and the Turtle Survival Alliance (tsa). In early 2015, 60 captive-bred Myanmar roofed turtles were released into their native habitat around the village of Linpha in the Htamanthi Wildlife Sanctuary in northern Myanmar. These turtles could catalyze the restoration of their species as a functional member of this ecosystem.

A symbol of wisdom for the region’s Khamti Shan ethnic group, the roofed turtle is an iconic part of Myanmar’s culture and traditions. But the species is persistently threatened by habitat loss and illegal

Thank you for helping us save wildlife and wild places around the globe.

Learn more at wcs.org @TheWCS +WildlifeConservationSociety @TheWCS

wildlife trade. In 2007, wcs and tsa began the ambitious program to breed the species in captivity with the goal of eventually reintroducing them to the wild. Now, eight years later, over 350 villagers, government representatives, and religious leaders gathered to release the first 60 turtles on Myanmar’s wild riverbanks.

These turtles are not the first chelonians to be reintroduced in Myanmar. In 2014, wcs and tsa partnered to release 50 Burmese star tortoises into their native habitat. With our plans to expand assurance colonies, continue reintroductions, and monitor their success, we hope these species will thrive in Myanmar for generations to come.

With deep appreciation to:

Executive Editor: Mary Deyns Brandão

Paul Calle, Jon Dohlin, Aili Kang, Megan Malaska, John Polisar, Howard Rosenbaum, Kathi Schaeffer, Pat Thomas, Madeline Thompson, Karen Tingley, and Wu Xiao

Managing Editor: Sarah Walker Writer: Christine Westphal Art Direction: Drew Albinson Staff Photographer: Julie Larsen Maher Editorial Support: Libby Del Greco

Photos: Front and Back Covers, Inside Front Page, p. 2, p. 4 (top), p. 5, p. 9, p. 10,

p. 13 Julie Larsen Maher © WCS; p. 4 (bottom) © Philip Ellard/Shutterstock; p. 7 © Julie Larsen Maher; p. 8 © Ondreicka/Dreamstime; p. 12 (left) © Shekar Dattrati; p.12 (right) © WCS; p. 14 © Steve and Kalyar Platt/WCS-TSA

/TheWCS

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