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Solomon Islands 5th (Fifth) National Report on the Implementation of the Convention on the Biological Diversity

The biodiversity of the Solomon Islands, in general, is in good health. Low human population density, uninhabited islands, difficulties to access and use natural resources, and customary and legal protection, in various ways, can help explain this. Threats to the country’s biodiversity are mainly localized and vary across islands, biomes, ecosystems, corridors and taxonomy. In recent years habitat destruction and overexploitation of wildlife has had enormous pressure on all types of biomes.

Priority sites for conservation in the Cook Islands: key biodiversity areas and important bird areas.

The Key Biodiversity Areas and Important Bird Areas (KBA's
& IBA's) approach is a simple, effective means of
implementing the protected areas elements of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD). KBAs and IBAs are places of
international importance for the conservation of biological diversity through protected areas and other governance mechanisms.Available onlineCall Number: [EL]Physical Description: 38 p

Effects of whale-based tourism in Vava’u, Kingdom of Tonga: Behavioural responses of humpback whales to vessel and swimming tourism activities

Vava’u, Kingdom of Tonga, is a well-established whale-watching destination in the South Pacific. Between July and October, the waters around the archipelago represent one of the most important breeding grounds for Oceania humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). The Tongan government allows tourist swimming activities with whales and tour operators strongly promote the practice of swimming-with-whales, focusing primarily on mother-calf pairs.

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About four years ago, Colin Simpfendorfer was diving on reefs in Indonesia’s picture-perfect Raja Ampat region when he noticed the distinct absence of something. “It’s a beautiful place to dive. We would have expected to see grey reef sharks and white tips,” says the veteran scientist.