The Greater Sunda region of South-east Asia supports a rich diversity of economically and ecologically important species. However, human pressures are reshaping contemporary biogeography across the region. Megafaunal distributional patterns have been particularly affected because of deforestation, poaching and human–wildlife conflict. Crocodilians are at the centre of these conflicts in Indonesia and yet remain poorly studied across much of the archipelago. We conducted population surveys of salt-water crocodiles Crocodylus porosus and false gharials Tomistoma schlegelii in Sumatra, and examined whether crocodile abundance and distribution are correlated with variations in human disturbance, fishing pressure, and habitat type. We then used these data to model remaining suitable habitat for T. schlegelii across South-east Asia. We found that abundance of T. schlegelii and C. porosus was correlated with distance from human settlements, and fish-trapping pressure. We recorded the presence of T. schlegelii in a river system in which it was previously unknown, thus expanding the known range of the species. We also found that the predicted remaining suitable habitat for T. schlegelii in Indonesia is largely limited to areas of low human activity. From these empirical and modelling approaches we propose several key conservation priorities: (1) eliminate the use of fish traps in remaining patches of T. schlegelii habitat, (2) prioritize crocodile population surveys in remaining suitable habitat, particularly in remote areas, (3) consider T. schlegelii to be potentially Endangered locally in Sumatra, and (4) expand existing reserves around the Lower Kampar River and Berbak National Park/Sembilang National Park areas of Sumatra.

Delegated protected area management (transferring management responsibilities from a public to a private partner) has been promoted to give impetus to ailing protected areas in West and Central Africa. Since their inception in 2005, the number of partnerships has increased to 20 protected areas covering c. 250,000 km2, an area similar to that of the UK. A review of the lessons learnt from these first 15 years shows that delegated management has improved day-to-day management of these protected areas. There remain, however, challenges with funding and with the capacity of national managerial staff, and also concerns regarding human rights. Based on an analysis of these challenges, I develop five recommendations to guide more mature delegated management: governments should (1) ensure an enabling legal–procedural environment; and (2) prepare delegated management contracts systematically; (3) private partners should render themselves dispensable through capacity building of national managerial staff and by initiating sustainable financing mechanisms; (4) governments and private partners alike should respect human rights and build coalitions with communities; (5) governments, private partners and funders should strive to delegate non-core management tasks, such as tourist guiding and reception, community development and research, to specialized locally-based individuals and organizations. Although these recommendations have a specific West–Central African perspective, they have relevance for the increasing number of delegated management initiatives elsewhere in Africa and beyond.

The breeding population of Audouin's gull, a Red Data Book species, is endemic to the Mediterranean. Its population was estimated at 4000 pairs in 1985, but its restricted distribution and vulnerability to disturbance and competition necessitate active conservation measures. The gull's most important breeding colony is on Rey Island in the Chafarinas group, and in 1983 a three-year study was started to discover the factors limiting the size of the colony and to formulate a management plan.

Many of Madagascar's endemic chameleon species have restricted ranges and require relatively intact forest for survival but information on their response to habitat degradation is generally lacking, especially in western deciduous forests. We assessed the abundance and density of endemic chameleons from nocturnal surveys of roosting animals in Parc National Tsingy de Bemaraha in western Madagascar. We found 444 Brookesia brygooi, 192 B. perarmata, 98 B. exarmata, 22 Furcifer nicosiai and two F. cf. petteri. The highest pooled density was for B. brygooi (53.2 ha-1), followed by B. perarmata (29.2 ha-1) and B. exarmata (18.7 ha-1). B. brygooi was ubiquitous, with the highest density and abundance in the disturbed Ankazomanga forest outside the Park, where the similarly sized B. perarmata was absent. B. perarmata, a species endemic to the Park, was abundant in three of the five survey sites, especially where there was a well-developed leaf litter and understorey. B. exarmata, a species endemic to the Bemaraha plateau, was associated with an open understorey and small protrusions of limestone karst. Spatial variation in the density of B. perarmata is an important consideration when interpreting monitoring data and this species is a conservation priority because of its restricted distribution and apparent sensitivity to forest degradation.

Estimating the population parameters, performance and factors that influence reproduction from long-term, individual-based monitoring data is the gold standard for effective wildlife management and conservation. Yet this information is often difficult and costly to collect or inaccessible to managers. We synthesized a 20-year set of individual-based monitoring data from a subset of black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis subpopulations across a range of environmental conditions in Namibia. Our findings demonstrate that despite the relatively arid landscape in Namibia, the black rhinoceros metapopulation is performing well, measured by age at first reproduction, inter-birth interval, population growth and survivorship. Information-theoretic modelling revealed that a univariate model including normalized differential vegetative index had a greater influence upon age at first reproduction than population density. The inter-birth interval model set identified cumulative rainfall during the 15 months prior to the birth month as the top model, although the mean normalized differential vegetative index during the inter-birth interval was comparable. There was little evidence for density-dependence effects on reproduction. These findings suggest that although browse quality could have a greater impact on parameters spanning multiple years, shorter-term parameters could be more influenced by rainfall. Our analysis also revealed a synchronous pattern of conceptions occurring in the rainy season. Our study provides a set of population parameter estimates for Namibian black rhinoceros subpopulations and preliminary insights on factors driving their reproduction. These expand our collective knowledge of global black rhinoceros population dynamics and improve our confidence and capability to adaptively manage the black rhinoceros metapopulation of Namibia.

The forests flanking the Panama Canal were protected in its early days for military reasons. Today the forest is seen to be essential to protect water supplies both for people and for the operation of the canal, and Panama has wisely created a national park. The Parque Nacional Soberania preserves 22,000 hectares of Neotropical forest and its wildlife. The author, who has been working in the area for the past 15 years, points out some of the park's advantages and difficulties.

The sand lizard in Britain is well on the way to extinction, thanks to the destruction of its favoured habitats – sand dunes and dry heath. The author, who has been engaged in full-time research on the surviving populations, has started breeding sand lizards in captivity, using animals taken from sites that are being destroyed, and hopes to reintroduce them in protected areas.

The Ford Foundation has made a grant of £70,000 for research into the elephant problem in the Tsavo National Park in Kenya, which has become acute. In recent years the number of elephants has increased rapidly to some 15,000, and the widespread destruction of trees in the park is generally attributed to them. Are they destroying the habitat? If so, what should be done? One suggestion is to cull up to 5,000 of them. In this article, based on an interview with “Africana” and reprinted by kind permission, Dr Harthoorn of the University College, Nairobi, suggests that some of the tree destruction could be the result of excessive burning, and that until the effects of keeping fire out of the Tsavo have been studied, massive killings of elephants should not be attempted.

Much of Madagascar's wildlife is threatened and remains poorly known despite a long history of research and conservation, both by the country's governments and by foreign scientists and conservationists. The fast growing human population and fragmentation of the country's forests mean that there is an urgent need for research. Lee Durrell is Chairman of the International Advisory Group of Scientists set up in February 1983 to vet research projects in Madagascar proposed by foreign workers. In December 1984, at a London meeting held jointly by the FFPS and the British Ornithological Union, she presented a paper on recent research by foreigners; the following is an updated extract.

The Liberian mongoose Liberiictis kuhni, the only member of its genus, was described as a new species from skulls in 1958. The first two complete specimens were obtained as recently as 1974. Although several more animals have been captured since then, all in Liberia, the species's status and ecology remain poorly known. In 1988 the FFPS contributed £500 towards a field study of the mongoose in Liberia and while this expedition succeeded in finding only one animal that had been killed by a hunter, a subsequent attempt in 1989 was more successful.