Mountain gorillas exist in the wild today only in the Virunga volcanoes, which span the borders of Zaire, Rwanda and Uganda, and in the Bwindi Forest Reserve of Uganda, and number probably fewer than 400. The authors describe the 1981 survey of the entire Virunga gorilla population, the first to be done since 1973. The results clearly show how the gorillas in the Rwanda. section of the volcanoes have benefited from the protection afforded by the activities of the Karisoke Research Centre and the Mountain Gorilla Project in Rwanda. There is also optimism that the Zaire population, which has retained the potential for increase, could recover if given better protection from poaching and disturbance.

Inevitably, wildlife suffered during the military conflict in the Falkland Islands in 1982. But after the sounds of battle died away and there was time to assess the extent of the damage to wildlife it was recognised that it could have been much worse. Ian Strange, an Islands' resident, who was present throughout the occupation and conflict, here records not only the effects of the war but also of the military presence that has been maintained since it ended. As a naturalist/ conservationist he views with some disquiet the implications of the development aid that is pouring into the Islands and makes a plea that the Falklands be made an international reserve.

While penguin watching one summer's afternoon on New Island in 1979, Sir Peter Scott, Richard and Maisie Fitter, Ian and Maria Strange (owners of half of New Island) and Michael Wright of World Wildlife Fund—US, decided to form a charitable organisation through which efforts to protect the Falklands' unique wildlife and maritime heritage could be channelled. The result of their inspiration was the Falkland Islands Foundation of which Sir Peter became chairman. At the time, of course, nobody had any idea that the Falkland Islands would soon become an international battle ground and that threats to wildlife would take on a new intensity, but in retrospect the establishment of the Foundation could hardly have been more timely. The events of 1982, which rudely transformed the Falklands from a peaceful agricultural backwater into a bustling military stronghold, miraculously caused minimal direct damage to wildlife but greatly increased the need for urgent conservation measures to ensure that the spectacular breeding colonies of penguins and albatrosses, and the rest of the Islands' fauna and flora, still exist for future generations to enjoy.

Brazil has more primate species than any other country in the world but large-scale deforestation for agriculture and industry has brought an estimated 22 species to the verge of extinction. Nowhere is this habitat destruction more evident than in Brazil's Atlantic forest ecosystem. Although originally extending along the entire length of the eastern coastline, today only small isolated tracts of primary forest remain. In 1983 the authors, aided by an Oryx 100% Fund grant of £200, carried out a vegetation and habitat survey in the forest of Fazenda Montes Claros, one of the last remaining refuges for the woolly spider monkey Brachyteles arachnoids. The 47 individuals within the forest form the largest single breeding population in the world today. Rapid and effective action is required to secure this habitat if there is to be any hope of saving this primate from extinction.

The Bengal florican is perhaps amongst the most threatened species in the Indian subcontinent. It is virtually extinct throughout its former range due to the loss of grassland habitat, grass burning and, in earlier times, severe hunting pressure. The International Council for Bird Preservation, recognising that too little was known about the bird's present distribution in Nepal to take steps towards its conservation, organised a project to provide the missing information. The 1982 survey described here found that probably no more than 100 Bengal floricans remain in Nepal. The Nepalese Government has already taken one positive step: its planned extensions to one park and two reserves where the florican still breeds should result in substantial increases in areas of the grassland habitat that the birds favour.

When a scientific expedition visited Round Island in 1975 it found that introduced rabbits and goats had destroyed most of the vegetation, threatening the survival of the reptiles that depended upon it and causing soil erosion. (See Oryx, 14, page 51.) Eradication of the goats and rabbits was recommended. Seven years later the 1982 Round Island Expedition was launched to monitor the reptile, palm and alien mammal populations. ffPS contributed £100 which was raised through a special appeal. The authors, who participated in both surveys, report on the striking changes that have occurred in just seven years and discuss the future prospects for the island's wildlife, especially for the endemic reptiles.

The forests flanking the Panama Canal were protected in its early days for military reasons. Today the forest is seen to be essential to protect water supplies both for people and for the operation of the canal, and Panama has wisely created a national park. The Parque Nacional Soberania preserves 22,000 hectares of Neotropical forest and its wildlife. The author, who has been working in the area for the past 15 years, points out some of the park's advantages and difficulties.