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IUCN SSC Tapir Specialist Group
IUCN COMMISSION GROUP

IUCN SSC Tapir Specialist Group

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Overview and description

Description:
The future of tapirs is threatened due to rapid decline and fragmentation of their habitat due to deforestation, agriculture and human habitation. Hunting and mining have also contributed to their ...
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The future of tapirs is threatened due to rapid decline and fragmentation of their habitat due to deforestation, agriculture and human habitation. Hunting and mining have also contributed to their loss. The Tapir Specialist Group supports the study of tapirs and their habitat, in order to gain a better understanding of their biology and perspectives on the most successful methods to guarantee their long term survival in the wild.

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Group leadership

Dr Patricia MEDICI
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Patrícia Medici is a Brazilian conservationist whose main professional interests are tapir conservation, tropical forest conservation, landscape ecology, and communication. Patrícia has a Bachelor's Degree in Forestry Sciences from the São Paulo University (USP - Universidade de São Paulo), a Master's Degree in Wildlife Ecology, Conservation and Management from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG - Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais), Brazil, and a Ph.D. Degree in Biodiversity Management from the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), University of Kent, United Kingdom. For the past 28 years, Patrícia has been working for a Brazilian non-governmental organization called IPÊ - Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas (Institute for Ecological Research) of which she was one of the founding members. Since 1996, Patrícia coordinates the Lowland Tapir Conservation Initiative (LTCI) and dedicates her life to the conservation of tapirs and their remaining habitats in Brazil. Since 2000, Patrícia has been the Chairperson of the IUCN SSC Tapir Specialist Group (TSG), a network of over 130 tapir conservationists from 27 different countries worldwide. Patrícia is a TED Fellow since 2014 and a National Geographic Explorer since 2019. She has been honored with several prestigious conservation awards: Harry Messel Conservation Leadership Award from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (2004); Future for Nature Award from the Future for Nature Foundation in the Netherlands (2008); Whitley Award from the Whitley Fund for Nature in the United Kingdom (2008); Columbus Zoo Commitment to Conservation Award (2017); William G. Conway International Conservation Award - Significant Achievement (2018); National Geographic Society / Buffett Award for Leadership in Conservation (2019); and, Whitley Gold Award from the Whitley Fund for Nature in the United Kingdom (2020).

Patrícia Medici is a Brazilian conservationist whose main professional interests are tapir conservation, tropical forest conservation, landscape ecology, and communication. Patrícia has a Bachelor's ...

More about the Specialist Group

The Tapir Specialist Group, a unit of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, strives to conserve biological diversity by stimulating, developing, and executing practical programs to study, save, restore, and manage the four species of tapir and their remaining habitats in Central and South America and Southeast Asia.

Our Strategies

  • Frequent review, status determination, and publicizing ...
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More about the Specialist Group

The Tapir Specialist Group, a unit of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, strives to conserve biological diversity by stimulating, developing, and executing practical programs to study, save, restore, and manage the four species of tapir and their remaining habitats in Central and South America and Southeast Asia.

Our Strategies

  • Frequent review, status determination, and publicizing of tapirs and their needs
  • Promoting and supporting research, and distributing materials
  • Promoting the implementation of conservation and management programs by appropriate organizations and governments
  • Establishing strong and effective relationships among tapir conservationists to stimulate communication and cooperation

The TSG and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Tapir Taxon Advisory Group (TAG), the main organizers of the Second International Tapir Symposium, together with the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) Tapir Taxon Advisory Group (TAG) and the Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF), are the key groups working on developing and implementing tapir research, conservation and management programs. An important aspect of the mission of these four groups is to contribute to the development of a coordinated international conservation strategy for tapirs.

TSG operates on a 100% volunteer basis. None of our members are paid by TSG for their tireless work on behalf of tapirs. In 2003 we established the Tapir Specialist Group Conservation Fund to raise funds to support the implementation of the recommendations of the IUCN/SSC Tapir Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. The fund supports such activities such as creating educational and marketing materials for in-situ and ex-situ education initiatives, giving small grants to tapir researchers to sustain their projects, and supporting vital meetings such as the International Tapir Symposiums where tapir researchers can come together in person to share information, strategize and plan for tapir conservation.

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The IUCN SSC Tapir Specialist Group (TSG) is dedicated to conserving tapirs and their habitat through strategic action-planning in countries where tapirs live, information sharing and through educational outreach that shows the importance of the tapir to local ecosystems and to the world at large.

Specialist Group work

TSG conserves biological diversity by stimulating, developing, and executing practical programs to study, save, restore, and manage the four species of tapir and their remaining habitats in Central and South America and Southeast Asia.

Understanding threats to Tapir’s

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Once widely abundant in their habitats, tapir populations have been in sharp decline in recent decades, leading to three of the four species becoming listed as Endangered. TSG studies Tapirs to gain understanding of their long-term survival in the wild.

TSG on the IUCN Red List

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TSG assesses species for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species to inform conservation efforts.

Annual Report

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Tapir, Tapirus - Credit: Diego Lizcano

Tapir recovery. Credit: Joao Marcos Rosa

Lowland Tapir Brazil. Credit: Patrícia Medici

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