Back from the brink: species already saved from extinction
With so many demands on conservationists and their resources, is it realistic to put so much effort and funding into this work?
We think the answer to that is an emphatic YES!
In recent years, BirdLife International, its partners and other conservation organisations, have saved a number of species from extinction that had been reduced to fewer than 100, and in some cases fewer than ten individuals.
 Steve N G Howell
Back from the brink: Chatham Island Taiko
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| In 1994 there were: | and now...? |
| 4 known breeding pairs of Chatham Island Taiko Pterodroma magentae | In 2006, a record 11 Chatham Island Taiko chicks fledged. |
| 4 breeding-age female Norfolk Island Parakeet Cyanoramphus cookii | Numbers now 200-300 and rapidly increasing. |
| 5 pairs of Mauritius Parakeet Psittacula eques (3 of which had tried to breed without success) | By 2006, Mauritius Parakeet had increased to more than 290 birds in the wild |
None of these outstanding conservation successes could have been achieved without the work of knowledgeable and dedicated people –the people BirdLife has now dubbed the Species Guardians. But this work in turn would not have been possible without the financial support of some equally committed people: Species Champions.
This approach works. We have pulled species back from the brink of extinction. We can do it again...
CASE
STUDY: Seychelles - saving species from extinction
 Cath Mullen/BirdLife
Conservation works: Seychelles Magpie-robin
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In the year 2000, the Seychelles had four species listed as Critically Endangered. By 2007, three species had been downlisted to Endangered:
Seychelles Magpie-robin Copsychus sechellarum
2004: Critically Endangered »»» 2005: Endangered
Seychelles White-eye Zosterops modestus
2004: Critically Endangered »»» 2005: Endangered
Seychelles Scops-owl Otus insularis
2000: Critically Endangered »»» 2004: Endangered
The latter two revisions were a consequence of Nature Seychelles’ thorough research, while the successful improvement of the Seychelles Magpie-robin’s status was the result of Nature Seychelles’ island ecosystems restoration programmes and other targeted actions, based on thorough research, local knowledge and the experience of other members of the BirdLife Partnership.
The future of these species is more secure because of Nature Seychelles programmes of education and awareness raising (including wildlife clubs in schools), promotion of ecotourism and sustainable development, and collaboration with the private sector and private landlords. BirdLife Species Guardians will carry out similar programmes of work for other Critically Endangered species.
The conservation programmes begun by the RSPB and BirdLife secretariat were handed over to Nature Seychelles (BirdLife in the Seychelles) and other local stakeholders. Nature Seychelles now advises and shares its expertise with other members of the BirdLife Africa Partnership, and with other small island developing states. BirdLife Species Guardians can become self-sustaining, and given time and support, can become important players in the global fight against extinction.
Nature Seychelles is confident that a project funded by the UK government’s Darwin initiative, and supported by local people, will enable the last remaining Critically Endangered species on the islands, Seychelles Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone corvine, to begin to recover its numbers.