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John Fellowes and Michael Lau
(With thanks to Bosco Chan and Billy Hau)
Members taking part in the field survey to Sanyue, Guangdong in 2001
Ten years ago Hong Kong's Kadoorie Farm &
Botanic Garden (KFBG) launched its new biodiversity
conservation programme in Mainland China. It was not
KFBG's first involvement in the Mainland, with plant
conservation exchanges by the late Gloria Barretto since
the 1970s. From February 1998 though, we had a team
dedicated to minimising biodiversity loss particularly
in the southern provinces of Guangxi, Guangdong and
Hainan. This South China Biodiversity Team (or "China
Team"), initially overseen by KFBG's Flora Conservation
Department head Dr Lawrence Chau, comprised
ecologists/zoologists Dr Michael Lau, Dr John Fellowes,
Dr Billy Hau (shared with Flora Dept., where he founded
the native tree nursery), Graham Reels (shared with Fauna
Conservation Dept.) and Lee Kwok Shing, joined soon
by administrative officer Ruthie Lau and Gloria Siu (also
shared with Flora). A big job for a few people - where
to start?
Learning curve
Our first need was to educate ourselves, and others, about
the status of the biota and of conservation efforts in the
region. We embarked on a series of rapid biodiversity
assessments of natural forest areas, mainly nature reserves,
focusing especially on the faunal groups with large data
gaps which could be filled quite efficiently. Besides its
wealth of Hong Kong field experience the core team
already had positive experience in the Mainland including
brief pilot surveys in 1995-1997.1,2,3 The KFBG-funded
1997 surveys, conducted with the help of partners at
South China Agricultural University, South China
Institute of Botany and Guangdong and Guangxi Forestry
Departments, had opened our eyes to the rich biota in the
region's reserves, but also to the poor state of knowledge
about them, and the imminent threats some of them were
facing. Now, working with colleagues in various research
and forestry institutions, we visited over 50 forest areas over
five years.
Bretschneidera sinensis (Class I Nationally protected species)
A new record to Hainan discovered in Yinggeling in 2003
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The surveys were followed by a not-so-rapid reporting
process - many surveyed taxa including plants, fishes and
insects required a time-consuming identification effort, and
recording and interpreting the information for the benefit
of management authorities consumed much of the team's
time in the early years. Meanwhile other responsibilities
vied for attention, including KFBG's new Hong Kong
Ecological Advisory Programme, initially coordinated
by the China Team, but for which specialist staff were
later recruited.
In 2001 the core Team changed, as Billy Hau moved to
The University of Hong Kong to follow his teaching
vocation and John Fellowes and Michael Lau became
part-time. Meanwhile Dr Bosco Chan, involved in
the programme from its beginning but committed to
completing his PhD, became available and joined the
team, along with botanist Dr Ng Sai Chit. They inherited
a reporting backlog, whilst adding to it by undertaking
further surveys. At length though, the field reports flowed,
in English4,5 and then Chinese.6
Channelling information
Gradually then,7,8 we and our colleagues built a
clearer picture of the distribution and status of the
region's birds,9,10,11,12 amphibians and reptiles,13,14,15
dragonflies16,17,18,19,20 and ants,21,22 and added substantial
new information to the existing picture on mammals,23,24,25
plants26,27,28,29,30 and fishes31,32,33 along with numerous
taxonomic contributions including the discovery of many
new species34,35,36,37,38,39,40 (these references being only
a sample). The core team's surveys were supplemented
by those of supported partners.41,42 The huge body of
data generated was not very accessible, and often rather
sensitive, such that some editing was required before the
survey reports could become available online.43 Much of
the acquired information has been channelled into global,
national and local status assessments,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51 and
shared with conservation authorities. It has helped draw
international support to conservation in the region,52,53,54,55
and supported the upgrading to national status of several
outstanding nature reserves, including Shiwandashan
and Cenwanglaoshan in Guangxi, and Wuzhishan and
Diaoluoshan in Hainan. Meanwhile we have contributed
to national consultations on conservation, notably through
the Biodiversity Working Group and its successors under
the China Council for International Cooperation in
Environment and Development.56,57,58,59,60
We have also concentrated on understanding threats.61,62,63,64 One key contribution has been wild
animal market monitoring from 2000 to 2006, building
on earlier work.65,3 This resulted in unique data on trends
in the devastating regional wildlife trade and helped focus
international attention on the crisis faced by Asian turtles and other wildlife.61,66 Besides leading to changes in global
status of some species, such as turtles,67 and outputs directed
at improving policy68,69,70,71,72,73 including protection under
the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)74,75,76, more
people and groups are now engaged in tackling the South
China wildlife trade.77 One brief market survey in 1998
led to the rediscovery of the White-eared Night Heron,
then feared on the verge of extinction;78 further work by
partners and ourselves found the species more widespread
than thought, but it remains Endangered.79,80,81,82
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