International Connectivity Archives - Center for Large Landscape Conservation

Eurasian Lynx are one of several endangered species in this region. (Courtesy: Team Bars)

Advancing Transboundary Connectivity Conservation for Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan

Along the remote border of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, the Kugitang Mountains are home to a unique mix of species and ecosystems, from Eurasian lynx and markhor—the world’s largest wild goat—to fragile cave systems and alpine grasslands. Since 2020, the Center for Large Landscape Conservation has led a collaborative effort to strengthen protected area management, monitoring, and connectivity in this region, with support from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund. The project unfolded in two phases: first focusing on Koytendag State Nature Reserve (SNR) in Turkmenistan, then expanding across the border to Surkhan SNR in Uzbekistan.

Collaborative Planning for Ecological Connectivity in Québec

Across deciduous and evergreen forests, lakes, streams and wetlands, working farms and timber lands, Québec, Canada is enormously rich in ecological diversity. However, pressures from people—residential and commercial development, climate change, and pollution—increasingly threaten the biodiversity that depends on intact habitats. Black bears and eastern wolves need wide swaths of land in their home ranges to find food and mates, wood turtles rely on unfragmented corridors to safely reach water sources, and migratory birds need stepping stones of habitat for their seasonal movements.

Orcas At The Kenai Fjords National Park In Alaska. Credit Nps Jim Pfeiffenberger

Blue Corridors: Habitat Connectivity for Marine Species

Oceans cover roughly 71% of Earth’s surface, yet much still remains to be discovered about their vast depths. As scientists learn more about the ocean’s diverse and complex ecosystems, they are shattering preconceived notions and showcasing the interconnectedness of land and sea. Terrestrial wildlife needs habitat connectivity for survival, often relying on ecological corridors between parks and other protected areas. Thanks to research in recent years, it is becoming increasingly clear that habitat connectivity is just as important in the marine environment.

Reserve rangers and collaborators from the Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan environmental ministries and the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences discuss data entry using the SMART system - CLLC/Gabe Oppler

Transboundary Conservation: Building Partnerships for Shared Landscapes

When lynx, elephants, markhors, bears or elk move in search of water or food, they don’t stop to show their passports at the border or pause to consider which areas are protected; wildlife goes where it needs to survive. In this special feature article for the 2024 Annual Report, interviews with Center staff illuminate the challenges and opportunities associated with several of our current efforts to reconnect landscapes that straddle international borders.

A view of the Cali River from the public “Green Zone” and the Iglesia La Ermita Church constructed from 1930-1948 in the background - CLLC/Aaron Laur

Highlights from the 2024 UN Biodiversity Conference

The recent UN Biodiversity Conference was held under the theme “Peace with Nature.” This 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD/CoP-16) attracted an unprecedented 23,000+ delegates attending official negotiations and side events inside the security perimeter of the “Blue Zone,” while the public “Green Zone” drew approximately 40,000 visitors each day. The Center for Large Landscape Conservation was honored to send four staff members to participate at the conference in Cali, Colombia to continue advancing efforts for connectivity conservation around the world.

Zebra and giraffe in northern Tanzania - Adobe Stock

Connecting an Iconic Landscape in the Transboundary Region of Kenya and Tanzania

Thirty years ago, the Disney movie the Lion King was released, telling the story of Simba, a young lion prince, who, after the murder of his father Mufasa, flees his kingdom only to learn the true meaning of responsibility and bravery. Other memorable characters are the warthog Pumbaa, the red-billed hornbill Zazu, the mandrill Rafiki, and the meerkat Timon—all species that play a role in the richly biodiverse ecosystems of east Africa. Partly because of this movie, and zoo visits, children and adults around the world are familiar with the wildlife of the iconic landscapes of east Africa.

Euromab2024 Deutsche Unesco Kommission Stefanie Wetzel

Reflections on EuroMAB: Stimulating Connectivity Conservation in Biosphere Regions Worldwide

Many of us are familiar with Biosphere 2, the research facility created in Arizona to demonstrate the viability of closed ecological systems to support and maintain human life in outer space. However, biosphere regions are model landscapes for sustainable development through collaboration and engagement. They are places designated for their unique beauty and biodiversity, and also recognized for their value to the communities of people living there, making them ideal models for large landscape conservation. The Center for Large Landscape Conservation’s Senior Conservation Scientist Dr. Annika Keeley recently had the opportunity to attend and present at EuroMAB—an international gathering of biosphere region leaders—to discuss the critical role connectivity conservation plays in these extraordinary places.

First-Ever Northeastern North America / Turtle Island Landscape Connectivity Summit

Stretching from the rolling Appalachian Mountains to the rugged Atlantic coastline, the landscapes of Northeastern North America feature bustling population centers, recreational havens and productive farms and timberlands as well as vast forests, abundant freshwater and impressive biodiversity. These are some of the most socio-ecologically complex landscapes in the world, increasingly recognized as critical for ecological integrity and climate adaptation at the continental and even global scale.

Young male lion in Kafue National Park - Adobe Stock

A Road Runs Through It

At the heart of the Greater Kafue Ecosystem in Western Zambia is the 22,000-square-kilometer Kafue National Park. This is Zambia’s oldest and largest park, at twice the size of Yellowstone National Park in the USA. Kafue is home to a wide range of iconic wildlife, including elephants, lions, leopards, cheetahs, wild dogs, and Africa’s most diverse antelope community. This protected area faces many significant threats, but most concerning is the M9—a high-speed highway that bisects or borders 143 kilometers of the park and adjacent Mumbwa Game Management Area. The M9 is notorious for wildlife-vehicle collisions, including the death of 11 endangered African wild dogs to vehicle collisions in 2022. But the Center for Large Landscape Conservation is working to change this with a newly launched project.

Grand Island, Nebraska, Platte River Migratory Water Fowl And Sandhill Cranes Adobestock 205318856

Leave the Light Off: Helping Out Migratory Birds

A cloud of slate gray stirring above the riverbed. The synchronous flapping of wings, eager and ready for the journey to the north. During this time of year, an estimated 3.5 billion birds take flight toward the northern U.S. and Canada as the spring migration is underway. During the long journey, they will have to contend with a pernicious source of pollution emanating from towns and cities: artificial light. Birds rely on light as an indicator of daily and seasonal change, and human light “pollution” can have serious negative effects on migrating birds, jeopardizing their ability to move safely through the night sky.

International Connectivity