Strategic Planning for Species Conservation: A Handbook - IUCN

Strategic Planning for Species Conservation
species, first applied to jaguars in 1999 and subsequently used for other species
(Sanderson et al. 2002). RWPS draws significantly from past priority setting efforts for
species (e.g., for the tiger, Wikramanayake et al. 1998, and various IUCN Action Plans) and
for regions (e.g., ecoregions, Olsen and Dinerstein 1998; site portfolios, TNC 1997). RWPS
exercises have been conducted for jaguars (Sanderson et al. 2002; Medellin et al. 2002),
American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus; Thorbjarnson et al. 2006), Mongolian gazelle
(Procapra gutturosa; Zahler et al. in prep.), lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris; Taber et al.
2008), white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari; Taber et al. 2008), African lion (IUCN CSG
2006a, 2006b), and snow leopards (McCarthy et al. in prep.) Modified versions of the
approach have been applied to North American bison (Sanderson et al. 2008) and tigers
(Dinerstein et al. 2007).
The RWPS process is based on the premise that saving a species requires:
• consideration of the species across its historical range;
• recognition that populations exist in different ecological settings, which are
assumed to capture genetic, ecological, and behavioural distinctiveness; and
• identifying those existing populations and/or opportunities for sites for restoring
populations where the potential for long-term conservation is greatest based
on population factors and threats.
These considerations overlap significantly with the recommendations made in Chapter 6
(Vision and Goals).
The actual process of RWPS consists of two steps. First, a geographically-based,
systematic evaluation of the status and distribution of the species across its historical range
is conducted (with similarities to the Status Review component described here, see Chapter
5). Second, a prioritization method is used to identify populations needing management
and/or areas offering restoration opportunities based on their ecological importance (with
parallels to Goal setting, see Chapter 6). “Ecological importance” is typically judged based
on population status and level of threat within each of the ecological settings where the
species occurs. The experts at each workshop define this “importance” value in terms of
weighted combinations of standardized measures of population viability and threats, in the
context of long-term conservation efforts. Conservation organizations, national agencies,
and local conservation groups can then take these results into account as they plan their
conservation investments.
RWPS leans strongly on GIS-based analysis, both in its conceptualization and presentation.
Map layers representing historic range, expert knowledge, current distribution, and “Species
Conservation Units” are used in a logical framework which allows planners to distinguish
unknown areas from areas where the species has been extirpated. In recent years, RWPS
has also occasioned the development of Visions for a species, most notably the bison
(Sanderson et al. 2008). Recently attempts have been made to translate the range-wide
results into the political arenas where conservation decisions are made, for example for the
African lion (IUCN Cat Specialist Group 2006a, 2006b) and snow leopard (McCarthy et al.
in prep.).
10.2.3 Red Listing and Assessments
Through its Species Survival Commission (SSC) and Species Programme, IUCN has been
assessing, for more than four decades, the conservation status of species, subspecies,
varieties, and even selected subpopulations on a global scale in order to highlight species
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