- Research into emblematic species
WCS
is committed to science-based conservation and research activities that
focus on the presence and threats to the emblematic Silky Sifaka and
Indri lemurs, the drivers of bushmeat hunting by local communities in
Makira Natural Park, the status of endemic carnivore species,
optimization of connectivity between marine protected areas, and threats
and conservation strategies for sharks, rays, and dugongs.
- Réseau de la Biodiversité de Madagascar (REBIOMA)
Rebioma (http://www.rebioma.net)
–Madagascar Biodiversity Network— is a web-based tool developed by WCS
that aims to promote the use of biodiversity data in conservation and
spatial planning, including in climate change analyses.
The
Rebioma project was established in 2000 and it places a strong emphasis
on science-based conservation action and on training Malagasy
conservation biologists and professionals. It is an initiative that
centralizes biodiversity data in Madagascar and allows a wide range of
users to freely access and analyze that data to inform conservation
decision-making and spatial planning. Prior to the creation of Rebioma,
no common biodiversity database existed in Madagascar despite the
exceptional and unique biodiversity that is found in the country.
Rebioma
was set up in order to provide open access to trusted and reliable
data. Working with the specially created Taxonomy Review Board (TRB),
which reviews every database record, Rebioma has assembled marine and
terrestrial taxonomic lists, and built the online infrastructure needed
to discover, use, and publish high quality biodiversity data.
Over
the last ten years, Rebioma has gained recognition as a leader in major
national and regional biodiversity planning and conservation projects.
Its major technical achievements include its support in the
identification of more than 4 million hectares of terrestrial protected
areas in Madagascar through science-based analyses to contribute to the
fulfilment of Madagascar’s 2003 “Durban Vision”. As part of the
President of Madagascar’s commitment to triple the country’s marine
protected areas in 2014 “The Sydney Promise”, Rebioma is now leading the
planning of a marine protected area network with the identification of
more than 2 million hectares of future marine protected areas.
- Spatial Monitoring And Reporting Tool (SMART)
In 2013 through a USAID-funded program, WCS initiated training on the use of the Spatial Monitoring And Reporting Tool (SMART)
throughout Madagascar, with a focus on nine high-risk terrestrial
protected areas: Makira and Andasibe Mantadia parks, the reserve of
Tsaratanana, and the six parks that comprise the Rainforests of
Atsinanana World Heritage Site, namely Masoala, Marojejy-Anjanaharibe
Sud, Zahamena, Ranomafana, Andringitra, and Andohahela National Parks.
Following this successful piloting of SMART, it has been adopted by
Madagascar National Parks and the Ministry of Environment, Ecology and
Forests as the national Law Enforcement Monitoring (LEM) tool for
Madagascar.
SMART is a key part of successful law enforcement and
threats monitoring (LEM) system. It has the ability to improve the
effectiveness of wildlife law enforcement patrols and site-based
conservation activities. Spatial and temporal information on human
activities and law enforcement effort, generated from SMART, enables law
enforcement strategy decisions and planning to be based upon up-to-date
data, allowing managers to respond in a targeted manner to changes and
new threats as they arise. SMART is much more than a data collection
tool: it is a suite of best practices to help protected area and
wildlife managers to promote good natural resource governance.
Quick facts on SMART in Madagascar