US$3.3M For 23 Conservation Projects

MANILA, Philippines - International wildlife experts have allocated $3.3 million to 23 species conservation projects that include a project to re-introduce the Philippine Cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia).

Gorillas, cockatoos, and frogs are some of the many threatened species getting a helping hand from SOS (Save Our Species), a global conservation fund initiated by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), World Bank, and Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Based on IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species, one in three amphibians, one in eight birds, and one in four mammals are at risk of extinction in the wild.

IUCN said that 19 different organizations will use these funds to conserve threatened animal and plant species and their habitats.

''The dire situation facing the world's biodiversity calls for urgent action. SOS is seeking to bring knowledge, expertise, and funding together to address the plight of threatened species,'' IUCN Director-General Julia Marton-Lefèvre said.

''Through these exciting projects, we hope to show that, if properly implemented, conservation works,'' she added.

SOS supports a variety of mammal projects, such as conservation programs targeting the critically endangered Cross River Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli) and Black Rhino (Diceros bicornis) in Africa, in addition to the endangered Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) in Pakistan.

SOS also supports bird and amphibian projects, protecting the critically endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus) in Asia; a project to re-introduce the Philippine Cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia); and an initiative preserving the Golden Mantella Frog (Mantella aurantiaca) in Madagascar.

''Ignoring species conservation means ignoring a world in which species are disappearing at a rate 100 to 1,000 times higher than normal. The loss of wild plant and animal species is a real threat to human well-being, sustainable development, and poverty reduction. In these times of economic turmoil, it would be wise not to further damage nature - our ultimate safety net,'' Deputy Director of IUCN's Global Species Programme and SOS Director Jean-Christophe Vié said.