Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust - Islands and Highlands

Islands and Highlands

In November 2003, in response to the ever-increasing threats to global biodiversity, the Trust unveiled plans for a re-focusing of its overseas activities. Two years of painstaking research have resulted in a global map which highlights where Durrell’s scientists believe the world’s ‘conservation priority areas’ are located. These areas, which tend to be located in island and highland regions, harbour unusually high concentrations of ‘endemic’ species – rare species that are found in these areas and nowhere else.

Whilst the new maps include many of the areas where the Trust is currently working, it also reveals several significant new areas, where the Trust has had no previous involvement. By using the new maps to guide the future development and expansion of its overseas conservation work, Durrell can be confident it is using its limited resources to the maximum benefit of the world’s precious biodiversity.