October 29, 2025
Data Shows Endangered Palau Ground Doves Swiftly Recovering After Successful Palauan Island Conservation Effort
Astounding evidence of recovery on Ulong Island in Palau after just one year!
Published on
March 28, 2016
Written by
Island Conservation
Photo credit
Island Conservation
The LA Times recently covered a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that highlights the benefits of invasive species eradication. One of the authors of the paper and Island Conservation’s Director of Science Nick Holmes calls the paper a “story of hope.”
The study examined the impacts of eradication projects on islands in New Zealand, Australia, Ecuador, Seychelles, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Mexico. The Scripps’s Murrelet, a tiny rare seabird, is one of 236 native island species that benefited from eradication projects. The Island Fox (photo above), whose numbers fell dangerously close to extinction, is doing so well after eradication efforts that it may lose its “endangered” status.

Here’s an intervention that we can see an impact within a lifetime. It’s a reason to celebrate.
Featured Image: San Nicolas Island Fox. Photo: Rory Stansbury/Island Conservation
Check out other journal entries we think you might be interested in.
October 29, 2025
Astounding evidence of recovery on Ulong Island in Palau after just one year!
July 22, 2025
A species once thought extinct just made its comeback. A study published in PLOS ONE confirms the Leaf-toed Gecko has been rediscovered on Rábida Island in the Galápagos.
July 17, 2025
Great news from Tuvalu--our projects to restore Nukufetau Atoll, Tepuka, and Falefatu were successful!
June 17, 2025
Two new islands join the Island-Ocean Connection Challenge, linking terrestrial and marine conservation for maximum impact!
June 13, 2025
Our partner Conservation X Labs has joined the IOCC, committing to deploying transformative technology to protect island ecosystems!
May 19, 2025
Read our position paper on The 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC 3) to see why we're attending and what we aim to accomplish!
March 11, 2025
New environmental DNA technology can help protect vulnerable island ecosystems from destructive invasive species.
February 27, 2025
A locally-extinct species of ground-dwelling bird was found on Floreana Island!
February 20, 2025
February 20, 2025, Bluff, New Zealand – The international conservation initiative, Island-Ocean Connection Challenge (IOCC), led by Island Conservation, Re:wild, and UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, proudly welcomes three of New Zealand’s most ecologically rich islands into its…