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There is much debate surrounding the impact of feral cats (Felis catus) on wildlife. Conservancies areusually areas where indigenous flora and fauna are protected and aliens excluded or managed. The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Howard College campus (HCC) is an urban conservancy containing feral cats that are presently not managed, and little is known about their ecology and behaviour. Consequently a feral cat population census was conducted, and their home range investigated. Estimates of the overall campus feral cat population numbers ranged between 23.4–40.0 cats/km2 with a minimum of 55 identified as resident. They were not randomly distributed in the study area, with spacing patterns being related to resource availability. Home range area and core distribution of eight radio-collared cats were determined over 13 months. Total home range areas were relatively small, with considerable overlap between them. Home ranges were clustered in areas with permanent feeding stations and these were also within the cats’ core ranges. Supplemental food resources appear to have a major influence on numbers, home and core range area, and behavior of cats. It is clear that cat densities grow to high levels with reliable and abundant food supply and only ad hoc sterilization. This has implications for their management in the HCC urban conservancy.

Seismic surveying is widely used in the marine environment to define and analyse subsurface geological structures, mainly by the oil and gas exploration and production industry. Seismic surveying utilises a technique that directs acoustic energy (sound) into the rock beneath the sea floor from equipment towed behind a purpose-built seismic vessel.

Sound is very important to whales and dolphins for effective hunting, navigation and communication. Toothed whales and dolphins (e.g killer whales and bottle nose dolphins) use natural sonar system (echolocation) for hunting and navigating Baleen whales (e.g humpback and blue whales) use sound for communicating over long distances by producing a series of sounds which are frequently termed songs.

This article is a study on the dietary shift of black rats on Surprise Island, New Caledonia and their impact on the ecosystem in the presence and absence of breeding seabirds.

It is widely recognized that trophic interactions structure ecological communities, but their effects are usually only demonstrated on a small scale. As a result, landscape-level documentations of trophic cascades that alter entire communities are scarce. Islands invaded by animals provide natural experiment opportunities both to measure general trophic effects across large spatial scales and to etermine the trophic roles of invasive species within native ecosystems. Studies addressing the trophic interactions of invasive species most often focus on their direct effects. To investigate both the presence of a landscape-level trophic cascade and the direct and indirect effects of an invasive species, we examined the impacts of Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) introduced to the Aleutian Islands on marine bird densities and marine rocky intertidal community structures through surveys conducted on invaded and rat-free islands throughout the entire 1,900-km archipelago. Densities of birds that forage in the intertidal were higher on islands without rats. Marine intertidal invertebrates were more abundant on islands with rats, whereas fleshy algal cover was reduced. Our results demonstrate that invasive rats directly reduce bird densities through predation and significantly affect invertebrate and marine algal abundance in the rocky intertidal indirectly via a cross-community trophic cascade, unexpectedly changing the intertidal community structure from an algae- to an invertebrate-dominated system.

A training course on “Improving Sanitation and Wastewater Management for Tonga” is scheduled for 25 – 29 August 2008 in Tonga. Its implementation is a collaborative effort by the Tonga Community Development Trust, Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Coordination Office for the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation – Institute for Water Education (UNESCO- IHE). The donors EU Water Facility, UNDP and GEF are sincerely acknowledged.   This report acts as a background paper on the current status of wastewater and sanitation in Tonga. It was based on an independent review of available literature and stakeholder consultations conducted from 4 – 8 August (refer to annex 1 for agencies/representatives consulted). Tonga does not have a central reticulated wastewater system and thus relies on household-based management. This presents a number of problems when individual households are left to deal with wastewater (from bathrooms, kitchens and toilets).

In the Pacific, land and sea are life; livelihoods and the natural environment are inseparable. Culture, tradition and livelihoods, are underpinned by the incredible biodiversity of the nearly 3,000 islands and atolls of the Pacific. However, high birth rates, unsustainable use of natural resources, increasing dependency on the cash economy, labour migration, and the deterioration of traditional social systems, are changing traditional lifestyles. Globally, the Pacific is considered a unique region in the world, from both marine and terrestrial perspectives. However, the Pacific is also one of the most threatened with more extinctions per capita than anywhere else in the world. Less than 30% of the forest cover remains in a natural state and what is left is being removed at up to 4% per annum on some islands. The threat of extinctions will continue as more coastal areas are degraded by increased land based sources of pollution, the modification of critical habitats, the increasingly unsustainable exploitation of resources, and the impacts of climate change.

Information on the Coastal and Marine Resources Management in the Coral Triangle of the Pacific

Flooding imposes significant costs on households and businesses located in the lower Vaisigano catchment area. SOPAC, under the European Development Fund (EDF) project Reducing Vulnerability of Pacific ACP States, has worked with the Government of Samoa to develop the Samoa Flood Management and Action Plan, which identifies actions for government agencies, the private sector, NGOs and communities responsible for flood and floodplain management that can assist in reducing flood risks in Samoa, particularly in the lower Vaisigano catchment area located in Apia, which is subject to frequent flooding.

The Aleipata Marine Protected (MPA) Management Plan is a partnership between the Government of Samoa and all the villages of the District of Aleipata. Both partners have responsibility for the continuous implementation of this Plan which highlights a collaborative approach to the sustainable use and protection of the Marine resources and environment in the District.