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Science-Driven Management of Protected Areas: A Philippine Case Study

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Abstract

The lack of scientific baseline information hinders appropriate design and management of protected areas. To illustrate the value of science to management, we consider five scenarios for the 202.0 km² Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Philippines: (1) closure to human activities, (2) and (3) two levels of increase in unplanned human activities, (4) creation of a forest corridor and (5) additional allocation of land for permanent or shifting agriculture. We then use habitat-specific bird density estimates to simulate the net effect of each scenario on 18 focal bird populations. Closure has significant benefits—populations of five species are predicted to increase by >50 % and nine by >25 %, but two secondary forest flycatchers, including the endemic and ‘Vulnerable’ Palawan flycatcher, decline dramatically, while the creation of a 4.0 km² forest corridor yields average increases across species of 2 ± 4 % (SD). In contrast, heavier unplanned park usage produces declines in all but a few species, while the negative effects of an extra 2.0 km² of shifting cultivation are 3–5 times higher than for a similar area of permanent agriculture and affect species whose densities are highest in primary habitats. Relatively small changes within the park, especially those associated with agricultural expansion, has serious predicted implications for local bird populations. Our models do not take into account the full complexities of bird ecology at a site, but they do provide park managers with an evidence base from which to make better decisions relating to biodiversity conservation obligations which their parks are intended to meet.

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Acknowledgments

This paper is an output of the World Pheasant Association–Manchester Metropolitan University (WPA–MMU) project aimed at building conservation capacity of students, key community figures and NGO conservationists in Palawan, funded by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), Rufford Small Grants for Nature Conservation (RSG), North of England Zoological Society at Chester Zoo, and Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund. We thank Dr David Lee and Team Bagtik for assisting in field surveys; the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB); and staff of PPSRNP, Palawan Council for Sustainable Development Staff and Department of Environment and Natural Resources R4, for technical, administrative and logistical support during the study and community consultations. We also thank R. Wilkinson, J. Mendoza and J. Bactol for their various help; and D. de Alban and C. Supsup for assisting in GIS interpretation/analysis.

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Author notes

  1. Philip J. K. McGowan

    Present address: School of Biology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fauna and Flora International, Cambridge, UK

    Neil Aldrin D. Mallari

  2. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK

    Nigel J. Collar

  3. World Pheasant Association, Newcastle, UK

    Philip J. K. McGowan

  4. Department of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Applied Ecology Group, Manchester Metropolitan University, Chester Street, Manchester, M1 5GD, UK

    Stuart J. Marsden

Authors
  1. Neil Aldrin D. Mallari
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  4. Stuart J. Marsden
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Correspondence to Stuart J. Marsden.

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Mallari, N.A.D., Collar, N.J., McGowan, P.J.K. et al. Science-Driven Management of Protected Areas: A Philippine Case Study. Environmental Management 51, 1236–1246 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-013-0053-5

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