Stocktake Sale on now: wide range of books at up to 70% off!
Register      Login
Pacific Conservation Biology Pacific Conservation Biology Society
A journal dedicated to conservation and wildlife management in the Pacific region.

Conservation Highlights in the Americas

Broadly, the Pacific can be taken to include the lands and waters of the western Pacific (East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania) the north Pacific (including parts of the Russian Federation), and the islands of the central and south Pacific across to countries on the North American and South American continents bordering on the eastern Pacific. The region includes diverse biotas threatened by resource consumption, management of agricultural lands and climate change. The solutions adopted in different Pacific jurisdictions reflect the diverse cultures of the region, some of which are still adjusting to autonomy after periods of colonial administration. In recognition of cultural and linguistic diversity, there are opportunities for scientists from the Pacific to publish abstracts of their work in their indigenous language.

While Pacific Conservation Biology welcomes papers from across the Pacific, many authors from the countries bordering the eastern Pacific may not realise that the journal is a suitable outlet for their conservation publications. For example, as well as publishing studies from Hawaii on topics as diverse as marine invertebrate communities and indigenous perspectives on conservation, Pacific Conservation Biology has included work from the mainland USA’s Pacific near-coastal terrestrial ecosystems. Moving south, papers on off-shore islands near Mexico and multiple contributions on the Galápagos Islands have made important contributions.

This collection focuses on contributions from researchers studying conservation problems and solutions along the eastern Pacific coast, with some contributions from Hawaii also included to illustrate the opportunities for those locations more commonly regarded as the Pacific. The papers from the eastern Pacific coast include both island and mainland examples, confirming that both are considered within the journal’s scope. They illustrate the range and quality of the work published by Pacific Conservation Biology, as well as the journal’s service to the scientific communities of the eastern Pacific coast.

Last Updated: 22 Mar 2024


Using benthic foraminifera to assess water quality in Kāne‘ohe Bay, Hawai‘i, we found a clear and robust spatial pattern for reef suitability in Kāne‘ohe Bay, with areas closer to the shore and especially closer to Kāne‘ohe City being less suitable, while samples from the northern bay area indicated conditions more suitable for reef growth and recovery.

PC21070Continental islands off the Pacific Coast of the Mexican state of Jalisco hold complementary plant conservation value

Victor Hugo Soria-González, Julieta Benítez-Malvido, Ireri Suazo-Ortuño, Juan Martínez Cruz and Héctor Hugo Siliceo-Cantero 0000-0002-8125-9203
pp. 325-339

Three protected islands with the same geological origin on the Pacific Coast, in Jalisco, Mexico, differ in species richness and habitat structure, sharing only 7 of 49 woody and cacti species. Observations suggest that human disturbances are threatening the maintenance of their diversity. The islands need an effective biodiversity monitoring and conservation program because they represent unique habitats.

PC18071Dry forests of the Galápagos: a comparative assessment of a World Heritage Site

Thomas W. Gillespie 0000-0002-7066-0691, Gunnar Keppel, Chelsea M. Robinson and Gonzalo Rivas-Torres
pp. 161-172

This research examines patterns of woody plant species richness and structure in dry forests on the three largest islands in the Galápagos. We identify the conservation status of woody plants within the dry forest region, assess forest cover change, and compare results to other tropical dry forests in the Pacific.

PC19007Exploitative competition between desert kit foxes and coyotes in the Mojave Desert

Erica C. Kelly 0000-0002-3033-1607, Brian L. Cypher 0000-0002-7349-545X and David J. Germano
pp. 57-66

Desert kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis arsipus) and coyotes (Canis latrans) in the Mojave Desert in California use similar food items and may engage in exploitative competition. However, kit foxes specialised on rodents and invertebrates while coyotes were more generalist consumers. Dietary specialisation by kit foxes may help reduce competition with coyotes.

PC17053A collaboratively derived environmental research agenda for Galápagos

Arturo Izurieta, Byron Delgado, Nicolas Moity, Monica Calvopiña, Iván Cedeño, Gonzalo Banda-Cruz, Eliecer Cruz, Milton Aguas, Francisco Arroba, Iván Astudillo, Diana Bazurto, Mónica Soria, Stuart Banks, Steve Bayas, Simone Belli, Rafael Bermúdez, Nicolai Boelling, Jimmy Bolaños, Mercy Borbor, Ma. Lorena Brito, Leopoldo Bucheli, Karl Campbell, David Carranza, Jorge Carrión, Maria Casafont, Xavier Castro, Sandra Chamorro, Juan Chávez, David Chicaiza, René Chumbi, Paulina Couenberg, David Cousseau, Marilyn Cruz, Noemí d'Ozouville, Cristina de la Guía, Giorgio de la Torre, Carla Molina Díaz, Jessica Duchicela, Daniel Endara, Vanessa Garcia, Cynthia Gellibert, James Gibbs, Juan Carlos Guzmán, Pippa Heylings, Andrés Iglesias, Juan Carlos Izurieta, Patricia Jaramillo, Asleigh Klingman, Andrew Laurie, Patricia Leon, Jaime Medina, Edison Mendieta, Godfrey Merlen, Carla Montalvo, Edwin Naula, Diego Páez-Rosas, Manuel Peralta, Marcos Peralvo, Mario Piu, José Poma, José Pontón, Mireya Pozo, Daniel Proaño, Mónica Ramos, Ana Rousseaud, Danny Rueda, Pelayo Salinas, Gloria Salmoral, Silvia Saraguro, Débora Simón-Baile, Washington Tapia, Byron Teran, Marilú Valverde, Andrea Vargas, Josué Vega, Wilson Velásquez, Alberto Vélez, Santiago Verdesoto, Hernán G. Villarraga, Fernando Vissioli, Cesar Viteri-Mejía, Lucía Norris-Crespo, Sophia C. Cooke, M. Veronica Toral-Granda and William J. Sutherland
pp. 168-177

A participatory approach – which included decision-makers, managers, scientists and civil society – that led to the definition of the 50 priority research questions for the Galapagos Islands. The proposed research agenda includes themes such as tourism, development, planning, education, agriculture, hydrology, invasive species, marine and conservation.

PC15020Marine invasive species: establishing pathways, their presence and potential threats in the Galapagos Marine Reserve

Inti Keith, Terence P. Dawson, Ken J. Collins and Marnie L. Campbell
pp. 377-385

Marine biological invasions have increased significantly in recent years due to global trade, transport and tourism. Invasive non-native species are the number one threat to Galapagos ecosystems and although many preventive and corrective measures have been applied to terrestrial problems, the impacts of invasive non-native species in the marine environment have received relatively little attention until now.


Only a few times in human history have scientists had the opportunity to study a volcanic eruption, its impact, and the following repopulation and revegetation. In August of 1952 a volcano erupted on San Benedicto Island, Mexico and killed approximately 20 000 sea birds in a few minutes. This study reports on 60 years of post-volcanic research on sea birds, land crabs and plants. The responses of these organisms was variable and not easily predictable.