Tourism best hope for critically endangered lemurs
Madagascar's lemurs - the world's most threatened primate - could be saved from extinction by eco-tourism, conservationists say.
The big-eyed fluffy creatures are unique to the island but their numbers have declined dramatically in recent years.
Now researchers have unveiled a survival plan that combines tourism with increased conservation efforts.
Writing in Science, the team says the project will cost £4.6m ($7.6m),
There are over 100 species of lemur known to science, the
majority of which are at dangerously low levels, largely due to habitat
loss from illegal logging.
Madagascar is the only known home of these species as its
unique location, split off from the African mainland, has allowed the
primates to evolve in near isolation.
Political turmoil has enveloped Madagascar following a coup in
2009. As a result of the instability, illegal logging has increased on
the island, a source of valuable rosewood and ebony trees.
Due to a lack of environmental policing, the habitat of the
lemurs has been under constant threat and the primates are now one of
the most endangered groups of vertebrates on the planet.
Over 90% of these species are at risk and are on the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature's (IUCN)'s red list
of threatened species.
This includes over 20 species regarded as critically endangered, which is the highest level of threat.
- Explore the unique wildlife of Madagascar
- Watch a lemur leaping in slow motion
The team propose that cashing in on Madagascar's unique lemur "brand" would help the animals and poor rural communities.
Dr Christoph Schwitzer from the Bristol Zoological Society
has been working in Madagascar for more than a decade. He said that
tourists had still been flocking to the island, despite the political
instability.
"There's always a trade-off between the destruction caused by
too many tourists and the money they bring to the country that can be
used for wildlife conservation," he told the BBC's Science in Action programme.
"This balance for Madagascar is still very positive for conservation and it's a long way until it may tip over."
Conservationists point to eco-tourism in Rwanda and Uganda
where visitors are willing to pay a premium to observe endangered
mountain gorillas in their natural habitat.
There are already successful examples of this in Madagascar
such as the Maromizaha forest which is home to at least 13 lemur
species.
“We have the people, we have the place, we have the ideas, we are just just lacking funding”
Dr Christoph Schwitzer Bristol Zoological Society
Local villagers have been taught
English and French and several now work as guides. A multi-purpose
interpretive centre has also been built there.
While just eight visitors came to the forest in 2008, by 2011 this had increased to 208.
"Obviously these people spend money in local communities and
contribute to the upkeep, maintenance and management of protected
areas," added Dr Schwitzer.
Other aspects of a new three-year emergency action plan
include increasing the number of long-term research field stations and
building up conservation programmes.
These could help reduce another threat to lemurs, the illegal hunting of the primates for bushmeat.
Dr Schwitzer and colleagues have been in charge of a field
station for the past decade and they found that this station deterred
illegal activity on protected areas nearby.
This would also help stop illegal logging for tropical
hardwood which destroys the lemurs' natural habitats - a key issue
threatening their survival.
Despite the challenges, Dr Schwitzer said he was hopeful they
could "scrape together the funding". He pointed out that the money was
small in terms of international aid and could bring a significant return
in preserving a unique habitat.
"We haven't lost a single species of lemur - indeed not a
single species of primate, during the last two centuries since our
records began.
"We have the people, we have the place, we have the ideas, we are just just lacking funding," he added.