The Interior Departments U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will award more than $861,000 in international conservation grants that will assist more than 15 species of animals in 18 countries, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne announced today.
Matching funds and in-kind contributions of more than $2.5 million from international and in-country partners will raise the total devoted to the efforts to more than $3.3 million.
"For a wide variety of species, ranging from black rhinos to leatherback turtles, we are working in partnership with other countries to ensure the conservation of imperiled animals," Kempthorne said. "The grants will empower these countries to reduce the threats to their wildlife and its habitat and ensure that cherished species do not become extinct."
The grants will help support a wide range of projects and activities including better law enforcement and training, wildlife management courses, anti-poaching programs, research, species reintroduction and relocation, threat assessments, population and habitat surveys and seminars and regional wildlife conferences.
Species that will benefit include African elephants and rhinoceros, chimpanzees and Cross River gorillas, 5 species of sea turtles, and the quetzal, puma, jaguar, Bahamian parrot, manned wolf and bats.
Countries receiving the grants include Sudan, Nigeria, Cameroon, Namibia, Kenya, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia and Gabon in Africa; Vietnam and Indonesia in Asia; Panama, Nicaragua, Brazil, Argentina and Costa Rica in South America and the West Indies and Bahamas in the Caribbean.
A few examples of the diverse projects include:
Relocating 34 black rhinoceros from an overstocked private reserve in Kenya to another reserve to increase the population growth rate while broadening the animals gene pool.
Monitoring and nest protection to conserve the major leatherback turtle nesting population in South Bioko, Equatorial Guinea, and to establish new monitoring and nest protection programs for leatherback and green turtles in the Rio Campo Natural Reserve on the Equatorial Guinea mainland.
Helping complete and distribute a training film for enforcement officers designed to curb elephant poaching and the illegal trade in ivory in Africa.
Developing an incentive program to persuade ranchers in Costa Rica to help preserve wild cats, including jaguar, and puma and their prey.
Surveys and related work to help conserve the Cross River gorillas of Cameroon and Nigeria.
