This sounds somewhat similar to a program in Peru that deals with dendrobatid frogs. Jan Post (senior ecologist at the World Bank) helped secure funding and won an award for this innovative project. Basically the program (headed by Rainer Schulte) trains locals to introduce artificial frog breeding sites (access to which seems to be one of the limiting factors in the population) and then help raise the emerging froglets. These (and only these) froglets are then marketed to the dendrobatid hobbyists in Japan, Europe and North America. The farmers were cutting down the trees for money previous to this program. Now it is in there best interest to keep the forest intact, since they derive a much higher income from frog farming.
Is this how the M.A.T.E. program functions?
How can a gecko hobbyist help?
What is the museum name and where is your museum located?
Yuri H Silver Spring, MD
Danny Mendez wrote:
Neil, I'm currently involved with a gentleman by the name of Olivier Behra who heads up an organization called M.A.T.E. (Man and the environment)in Madgascar which seeks to create mutually beneficial and sustainable harvesting from the forests of Madagascar in order to preserve them in thier natural, undisturbed state. The basically believe that if they can convince the locals to not destroy the forest but instead sustainably harvest it more land accross th country can be preserved instead of suffering massive deforestation.
I'm currently working with Mr Behra via my museum to bring attention to certain Malagasy species, namely Uroplatus & Mantella sp. and how sustainable harvesting can ultimately ease the pressure of human encroachment into the Madagascar forests. Right now MATE is hosting a series of scientists from all over the world in order to census the fauna of certain newly acquired preserves in order to better understand how to protect the species living in the forests. The organization has purchased several thousand square miles of forest land and hopes to preserve all species contained within.
Neil, if you'd like you can email me offlist and I can give you more info on the organization and what they are currently working on. In coopertation with my museum we are planning on launching a large Madagascar exhbit in the next couple of years focusing on habitat preservation using Uroplatus and Mantella as "spokesherps".
-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Neil A. Meister Sent: Tuesday, June 10, 2003 11:22 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [gecko]Madagascar conservation charities?
Hi All,
Does anyone know of any conservation charities working directly in Madagascar? I'm looking for something to donate to that will have a direct benefit to the wildlife and people there as way of saying "thanks" for all of the wonderful gex I get to work with.
Neil -- Neil Meister
Promotions Secretary Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com
President Nova Scotia Herpetoculture Society http://users.eastlink.ca/~nshs _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko
_______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko
_______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko
