By Emma Sinnett, 17th April 2025
The latest issue of Oryx is the second to highlight our collaboration with the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC). The IUCN SSC–Oryx Partnership was established to encourage SSC members to publish their conservation research, and this issue features five articles on work carried out by authors from various SSC groups. Topics range from the use of seahorses in Malaysia to conservation management of the Critically Endangered northern muriqui in Brazil.
The lead article by Kough et al. examines queen conch (pictured on the cover) aquaculture, providing a perspective on its opportunities and limitations. In the editorial, Jon Paul Rodríguez reflects on his time as SSC Chair, as he prepares to conclude on his second and final term.
The issue also includes a Briefly section with a spotlight on the IUCN Red List, and a host of Conservation News items! Find out more about the issue’s content, including our Editor’s picks, below.
Al Hikmani & Al Hikmani reveal new records of the Arabian leopard in the Nejd region of Oman, extending the species’ range 40km northwards and confirming it is not only resident but also breeding in the area. Photo: Hadi Al Hikmani.
Editor’s picks
- Northward expansion of the Critically Endangered Arabian leopard in Dhofar, Oman – Al Hikmani & Al Hikmani
- Muriqui House: conservation management to support the recovery of the northern muriqui Brachyteles hypoxanthus in Ibitipoca, Minas Gerais, Brazil – de Melo et al.
- First Red List of Ecosystems assessment of a tropical glacier ecosystem to diagnose the pathways towards imminent collapse – Ferrer-Paris et al. (read the blog)
- Assessment of the global population size of the Mongolian gazelle Procapra gutturosa –Buuveibaatar et al.
Ferrer-Paris et al. completed the first Red List of Ecosystems assessment of a tropical glacier ecosystem, in the Cordillera de Mérida in Sierra Nevada National Park, Venezuela. Photo: Stefano Pozzebon.
Species survival
- Queen conch aquaculture remains a conservation symbol and is not yet a fisheries solution – Kough et al.
- Northward expansion of the Critically Endangered Arabian leopard in Dhofar, Oman – Al Hikmani & Al Hikmani
- Muriqui House: conservation management to support the recovery of the northern muriqui Brachyteles hypoxanthus in Ibitipoca, Minas Gerais, Brazil – de Melo et al.
- Cultural and socio-demographic drivers shape seahorse uses in Malaysia: implications for conservation – Ng et al.
- Is the population of the Critically Endangered white-bellied heron declining in Namdapha Tiger Reserve, India? – Menzies et al.
de Melo et al. describe encouraging results from a mixed in situ and ex situ management project developed to restore a population of Critically Endangered northern muriqui in Brazil, which included constructing an open-air enclosure known as Muriqui House. Photos: Fred Crema (inset) and Fabiano R. de Melo.
Behind the cover
Conservation aquaculture—the cultivation of aquatic organisms to manage or replenish natural populations—is especially compelling for species in decline. However, although attempts to culture the widely-overexploited queen conch Aliger gigas (pictured) have been ongoing for more than 40 years, hatchery-releases have low survival. Queen conch aquaculture is useful for scientific inquiry, community engagement and education, but not for stock enhancement or population restoration without more practical and cost-efficient options. Protecting breeding aggregations should be prioritized for the ecological viability of the species, as well as for the economic value for the people and industries that rely upon it. Find out more in Kough et al. (Photograph © Shane Gross/NaturePL)
A queen conch Aliger gigas, photographed by Shane Gross.
Editorial
Challenges and opportunities for the largest volunteer conservation science network – Jon Paul Rodríguez
As he prepares to conclude his role as Chair, Jon Paul Rodríguez reflects on the past 8 years of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, examining the major lessons learnt and the future opportunities and challenges, specifically the nature of the network, volunteerism and the evolving roles of SSC members.
‘Leading the SSC has been deeply rewarding professionally and personally, and I am sure that the next Chair will feel the same way. I look forward to seeing the network continue to evolve and innovate in species conservation.’
Other content
- A framework for understanding the contributions of local residents to protected area law enforcement – Sharkey et al.
- A cryptic elapid snake persists in the wake of catastrophic wildfires – Hodgson et al.
- Lack of crucial information exacerbates barriers to mitigating human–elephant conflicts in rural Kenya – Von Hagen et al. (read the blog)
- First photographic record of the snow leopard Panthera uncia in Kishtwar High Altitude National Park, Jammu and Kashmir, India – Sanyal et al.
- High carnivore richness despite human pressure and prey depletion in the south-west of the Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area – Verschueren et al. (read the blog)
- Human interference with wildlife surveys: a case study from camera-trapping road underpasses in Costa Rica – Flatt et al.
- Dimensions of human–tiger conflict and solutions for coexistence in the forests of the Khata Corridor, Bardiya, Nepal – Sharma et al.
A large male African elephant captured by an infrared camera prepares to enter a farmer’s fields in rural Kenya. Von Hagen et al. found that most of the local farmers they surveyed had never received information on ways to prevent crop foraging or how to live safely near elephants, exacerbating barriers to mitigating human—elephant conflicts in Kenya. Photo: Lynn Von Hagen.
Conservation news
- Restricted access zone declared in Greece to protect monk seals (perhaps) – Notarbartolo di Sciara & Gonzalvo
- Laukahi Network completes ex situ gap analysis of Hawaiian plants – Shay et al.
- IUCN Species Survival Commission Sponge Specialist Group – Xavier et al.
- Pied Tamarin Wildlife Refuge: first federal protected area for the Critically Endangered Saguinus bicolor – Lagroteria et al.
- Asian Langurs (Presbytis) Conservation Action Plan 2024–2034 and Colobine Monkey Day – Ang & Roos
- World comes together in first-ever World Species Congress – Joyce & Clifford
- Launching of the Locally led East Asian Flyway Acoustics Program – Abd Mutalib et al.
- New habitats for birds: rapid population growth and new breeding species in Poland – Marchowski et al.
- Conserving the Bengal florican in Nepal: a collaborative education and awareness campaign – Pal et al.
- The moth Helicoverpa armigera is a leading cause of the decline of the Endangered golden Himalayan spike Phlomoides superba – Srivastava & Sharma
- New subpopulations of three threatened plant species endemic to the karstic areas of the Potiguar Basin, Brazil – Felicity et al.
- Wildlife under siege in the Mexican Maya Forest – Reyna-Hurtado
- Ecology of the National Key Protected Wild Plants in the Xinjiang Region, China – Jiancheng
- Finding Staphylea shweliensis, a long-lost Critically Endangered plant species of China – Araújo et al.
- Tibetan brown bear recorded in Changthang, Ladakh, India – Kumar et al.
Camera-trap images of a Tibetan brown bear Ursus arctos pruinosus in Changthang region, Ladakh Union Territory, India, expanding knowledge of this subspecies’ range. Photo: Joshi et al.
