A raptor species on the rebound, climate resilience at a national park and communities thriving through conservation: These were the attractions that brought CEPF donors to visit projects in the Dominican Republic in February.

CEPF donor representatives, staff and members of the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI)—CEPF’s regional implementation team (RIT)—visited the sites of three conservation projects following CEPF's semiannual donor meeting on 11 February. 

The field visits were an opportunity to give donors a first-hand view of what CEPF grantees are achieving through the US$11.8 million investment in the Caribbean Islands Biodiversity Hotspot. The investment, which started in 2021 and continues through 2027, is financed through the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund – Caribbean Hotspot Project of the World Bank, using funds provided by the Government of Japan. The conservation CEPF is currently supporting builds on progress made by CEPF grantees from 2010 to 2016 during a prior CEPF investment of US$6.9 million.

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Participants in the site visits.

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© O. Langrand

Those joining the field visits included:

• Matthieu Le Grix, Head of Agriculture, Rural Development and Biodiversity, Agence Française de Développement (AFD).
• Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, Global Environment Facility (GEF) CEO and Chairperson. 
• Sebastian Troëng, Conservation International Executive Vice President for Conservation Partnerships.
• Thierry Dudermel, European Commission Team Leader for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.
• Aurélie Godefroy, Deputy Head of Unit, Directorate-General for International Partnerships, European Commission.
• Camille Tatareau, AFD Chargée de projets, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.   

The field visits allowed participants to talk with grantees and people from local communities that are benefiting from CEPF-supported projects.

"I think what is important here is to witness how biodiversity and the local communities have benefited from the projects implemented by the grantees that we have been supporting," said CEPF Executive Director Olivier Langrand. "CEPF has been in this region for over 10 years, and in this timeframe we have seen very positive results: a better engagement of the communities in conservation programs and an improved capacity within local NGOs that are forming a cadre of strong partners in conservation next to the private sector and the government."

Ridgway's Hawk: A Comeback Story

Ridgway's hawk (Buteo ridgwayi) once had a breeding range that included the entire island of Hispaniola—made up of Haiti and the Dominican Republic—as well as some nearby islets and keys. But the species disappeared from 96% of its original range over the last century and was categorized as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2000, a status it still holds today. 

By 2009, there were as few as 109 breeding pairs. Most of them were found in Los Haitises National Park in the Dominican Republic. Without management actions, the species was predicted to go extinct by 2031.

But the tide has turned. The number of Ridgway's hawks has more than doubled over the past 20 years, with around 450 hawks reported via montoring in March. This change is in part the result of the long-term research and conservation action of The Peregrine Fund through its local branch, Fondo Peregrino - República Dominicana. And those efforts have also benefited habitat, other species and the people of the Dominican Republic.

CEPF joined the effort with a first grant to The Peregrine Fund in August 2023 and continues via a second grant that supports conservation activities through January 2027.

Addressing Threats to the Species

One of the top threats to Ridgway's hawk has been human persecution due to the misconception that this hawk species frequently preys on chickens kept as livestock. Other human disturbance, including capture for the wildlife trade or for food, also has played a role in undermining the species. CEPF grants to The Peregrine Fund have allowed it to expand outreach to local communities to address this threat, including by providing local families with wire chicken coops to protect their poultry from predation by another species—the Red-tailed hawk. In 2023, with CEPF's support, the project hired five Women in Conservation Fellows who conducted environmental education in communities around Los Haitises National Park. The number of people reached tripled, and the outreach continues to grow.

"The lack of knowledge, the lack of environmental education in those communities, together with the human persecution have been crucial for the decline of the species," said Carlos Suarez, Ridgway’s Hawk Field Technician at Fondo Peregrino. "So being able to expand the effort that we have been having during those years and to reach many people—I would say it’s almost 60,000 people in the communities where the hawks are—it’s been great for us."

"This is very interesting because people probably don't know that this hawk is only found on this island on Planet Earth. So, we are really, really on the frontline of conservation," said Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO and chairperson for the GEF.

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A Ridgway's hawk soars over Los Haitises.

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© O. Langrand

Humans aren't the only problem for Ridgway's hawks. Parasitic flies that target nestlings have also taken a toll. In response, the project team developed a treatment that reduced fly abundance by 89% among monitored nests. The treated nests had up to three times the number of fledglings compared to non-treated nests.

Another challenge for the species is its small, isolated population. But The Peregrine Fund has a plan: establishing new populations by translocating hawks. A new breeding population has been established in a private, protected reserve in Punta Cana, and efforts are being made to establish another breeding population in Aniana Vargas National Park.

"Developing strategies to tackle each one of those threats has been the most important part of the project," said Suarez. 

These activities are part of a species conservation action plan for the raptor that was developed by The Peregrine Fund. A key goal of the plan is to increase stewardship and leadership by Dominican biologists, organizations and governments.

"Here we can see CEPF, a global organization working at the hotspot level; The Peregrine Fund, working in specific places with raptors; and local communities and local government being able to bring out of extinction a species that would have gone extinct by now," said Rodriguez. 

Building Resilience at Los Haitises National Park

Another CEPF grantee is helping to shore up species found at Los Haitises National Park, and strengthen local communities, by supporting ecosystem-based climate resilience and species conservation. 

"Los Haitises is absolutely packed with endemic plant and animal species—species that are found nowhere else in the world," said Langrand.

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Conservation International's Sebastian Troëng, left, talks with Domingo Contreras of Fundación Centro de Innovación Atabey

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© O. Langrand

Through a project that began in July 2024, Fundación Centro de Innovación (CI) Atabey is working to restore 20 hectares of degraded habitat while providing sustainable livelihoods for two communities through reforestation and biodiversity-friendly agroforestry, including cacao cultivation. 

At the same time, the project team is designing, and plans to execute, a conservation program focused on four key endemic fauna species of Los Haitises: Hispaniolan hutia (Plagiodontia aedium), a small rodent; Hispaniolan solenodon (Solenodon paradoxus); and two species of Critically Endangered reptiles, Samana least gecko (Sphaerodactylus samanensis) and Cochran's least gecko (S. cochranae), with exclusive distribution in Los Haitises National Park.

The project aims to increase the number of community members—including women, men and young people—in scientific and technical activities in support of conservation. It will also train park rangers in Geographic Information System (GIS) and other tools. And Fundación CI Atabey is collaborating with the Ministry of Environment and local authorities and raising environmental awareness through communications outreach to local communities.

“Local communities and authorities value the fertile soil, fresh water, rich biodiversity and the buffer from extreme weather provided by Los Haitises ecosystems,” said Sebastian Troëng, executive vice president for Conservation Partnerships at Conservation International. “The park benefits local communities in very tangible ways through sustainable livelihoods, including biodiversity-friendly coffee and ecotourism. Conserving Los Haitises is an extremely effective way to secure the future of the Dominican Republic and its people. The return on investment is tremendous.”

Work has also begun on a web-based tool for sharing environmental data related to the park. 

Keeping La Humeadora's Forests and Communities Strong

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La Humeadora Mountain National Park.

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© Nina Marshall

La Humeadora Mountain National Park, located northwest of Santo Domingo, hosts an impressive variety of natural habitats and species. Broadleaf cloud forests, humid forests, riparian forests and wetlands can be found within the 29,000-hectare park. Among the species supported by La Humeadora are 705 species of vascular plants and 69 species of birds.

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Participants in a cacao cooperative near La Humeadora Mountain National Park.

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© Nina Marshall

CEPF grantee Instituto Dominicano de Desarrollo Integral (IDDI) has been working for years to address the primary threats to the park: the expansion of agriculture and livestock farming and the fires caused by slash-and-burn practices. A grant from CEPF that began in 2013 supported a precursor project by Fondo ProNaturaleza to develop a management plan for the park—the first plan of its kind in the Dominican Republic to include an analysis of climate change impacts. IDDI has since continued working in the area, building on what Fondo ProNaturaleza began.

New funding from CEPF that began in 2023 is being used to update the management plan and reduce agricultural encroachment into the park. The project also supports ecotourism and sustainable agroforestry for communities in the buffer zone around the park. The project team will prepare species conservation action plans for four key species and conduct training to strengthen park guard capacity. 

"We at the GEF are very, very proud to be supporting CEPF in the work with local communities," said Rodriguez. "Together with the GEF Small Grants Program, CEPF is one of the most successful in investing in developing countries with regard to conservation through local communities."