The graphic shows the protected areas of Albania, the proposed areas for protection and areas with endangered species. Albania is well known for its high diversity of ecosystems and habitats. Within its territory there are maritime ecosystems, coastal zones, lakes, rivers, evergreen and broadleaf bushes, broadleaf forests, pine forests, alpine and sub-alpine pastures and meadows, and high mountain ecosystems. It is rich in forest and pasture reso...

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna is a working group under the Arctic Council, for the countries of Russia, Denmark, USA, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland and indigenous peoples. Monitoring, assessment, protected areas and conservation strategies are all tasks under this working group. The area that the working group primarily addresses is presented in this map.

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna is a working group under the Arctic Council, for the countries of Russia, Denmark, USA, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland and indigenous peoples. Monitoring, assessment, protected areas and conservation strategies are all tasks under this working group. The area that the working group primarily addresses is presented in this map.

Gorilla tourism in Uganda is primarily taking place in the Mgabinga Gorilla National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, and represents one of the main destinations for wildlife tourism in the country. Estimations of the national and community level economic impacts in Uganda, based on a full capacity of 8760 tourists per year and expenditures of USD 874 were calculated to present the direct impacts, the indirect (secondary support activi...

Wilderness areas in the Arctic, representing vast expanses of tundra and taiga that sees very little human disturbance and stress have been determined by an analysis prepared by the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre in 2001. Overlaid with protected areas, this graphic highlights the areas that are currently not under International protection, and thus should be made a priority for conservation.

Ecoregions represent large areas with geographically characteristic fauna, flora and climate - both marine and terrestrial. This graphic presents the ecoregion definitions identified by the World Wildlife Fund and associated experts, and specifically those ecoregions that have been designated as priority areas (Global 200 database) for conservation. This means that these ecoregions represent unique biodiversity characteristics, and also that ther...

The Arctic covers around 33.5 million km2 and holds the largest continuous expanses of unfragmented wilderness in the world, outside of Antarctica. Indeed, seven of the ten largest wilderness areas in the world outside Antarctica are found in the high north. (UNEP/WWF 2001: 25 Largest Wilderness Areas in the Arctic). But in contrast with Antarctica, the Arctic is not uninhabited. Human cultures are and have been a part of these vast and rich ecos...

Certain areas have been identified as priority ecoregions for conservation (WWF Global 200) due to their unique biodiversity characteristics. Significant parts of these regions are without any protection, as identified by the IUCN classifications. Protection is currently best in Arctic Russia.

The Barents Sea ecoregion - the part of the World Ocean north of the Nordic countries and Northwest Russia, has a unique environment with major sea bird colonies, rich benthic and plankton fauna and many major sea mammal species. To identify priority areas for conservation, thirty experts delineated sea areas based on ecological criteria in a WWF study. One of the main threats to the region is the development associated with the expansion of foss...

Proposal from the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) for permanent petroleum-free zones in the Barents Sea. Areas covered with ice for parts of the year are also included in the proposed zones. The map has been drawn up by WWF Norway and is based on vulnerability analyses from Det Norske Veritas (April 2005) and mapping of fish resources from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research (March 2005).

The Arctic is a unique region in the world, with very little human activity and vast expanses of tundra and taiga that presents ecological values. This graphics presents the areas that currently are protected for conservation, as recognized by the IUCN in the World Protected Areas Database at UNEP-WCMC, 2005. Some areas, like the Dehcho territory in Canada have been placed under interim protection. The data for Russia has been updated from nation...

The Barents Sea ecoregion - the part of the World Ocean north of the Nordic countries and Northwest Russia, has a unique environment with major sea bird colonies, rich benthic and plankton fauna and many major sea mammal species. Within this ecoregion, this graphic illustrates the existing coverage of protected areas. One of the main threats to the region is the development associated with the expansion of fossil fuel extraction activities. Russi...

This map shows protected areas, priority conservation areas and wildlife corridors identified in 'Eco-regional Conservation Plan for the Caucasus'. Priority conservation areas were agreed where there is important concentration of plants, mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fishes. Delineation of corridors were agreed where large mammals, birds, fish, and other animals need corridors for migration, dispersal and to maintain their population. ...

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna is a working group under the Arctic Council, for the countries of Russia, Denmark, USA, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland and indigenous peoples. Monitoring, assessment, protected areas and conservation strategies are all tasks under this working group. The area that the working group primarily addresses is presented in this map.

The trade in wild species can contribute significantly to rural incomes, and the effect upon local economies can be substantial. The high value of wildlife products and derivatives can also provide positive economic incentives to provide an alternative to other land use options for the local people - to protect wild species and their habitats, and to maintain the resource for sustainable and profitable use in the medium and long term. Consequent...

Marine turtles have been used for eggs, meat, shell, oil, leather or other products for 7000 years. Modern times have introduced another way for society to profit from these species - to generate economic income as a tourism attraction. Sound turtle management relies on local communities, which – as economic incentive - should receive a fair share of the revenues. In many cases, the bulk of the revenues from the local level end up elsewhere, eve...

The Mabira forest reserve, on the shores of Lake Victoria hosts valuable wildlife, serves as a timber resource, provides ecosystem services for the water balance and the rainforests represents a tourist destination. Following a proposed plan for clearing a third of the reserve for agricultural use, the values of the forest were calculated by local researchers. This economic evaluation of the forest shows that from a short-term perspective, growin...

Bird species that migrate to the Arctic coasts and wetlands arrive from nearly every corner of the planet. During the summer, the sun never or nearly never sets, resulting in a short but intensive breeding season when millions of migratory birds arrive in the Arctic to breed. The majority of these birds seek the wetlands and coastal shores of the tundra plains. No other place on Earth receives so many migratory species from nearly all corners of ...

Protected areas are very important for conserving biodiversity. In these areas, human activities are managed to achieve specific conservation goals, for example, to protect a certain species or to conserve a representative habitat or ecosystem. The Arctic has many terrestrial protected areas, but is generally lacking in marine protected areas (MPAs). As the climate warms and the sea ice melts, there will be greater access for activities such as f...

The Arctic Council study on trends in the polar ecosystems - the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) focuses on the areas displayed in this map. The high- and low Arctic regions are defined from the bioclimatic zones in the Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation Map (CAVM), while the sub-Arctic zone is the area definition that has been used int he Arctic Council.