Research for nature conservation in south-east Asia

Priorities for research aimed at nature management were determined for South-east Asia, and especially Indonesia, by means of pooled expert opinion A number of conservation specialists working in Indonesia were asked independently to rank a number of habitats and types of research to be conducted in protected areas on a priority scale. The pooled expert opinion was taken to be the outcome of averaging these opinions and shows that most emphasis should be given to the study of rain forest, coral reefs, and wetlands. Moreover, research is apparently needed on keystone species, protection of conservation areas, buffer zones, and management of protected areas. Genetic and biomedical studies or those focussing on genetic resources are considered relatively unimportant, as are studies on micro-organisms, but ecological studies of trees, large mammals, fish and coral are considered very important for nature conservation and management.