Lessons learned from the conservation campaign for the Indonesian coelacanth, Latimeria menadoensis

THE DISCOVERY OF THE HERETOFORE UNknown Indonesian coelacanth, Latimeria menadoensis (Pouyaud et al., 1999), in 1997 in a fish market in Manado, North Sulawesi, provided a unique opportunity to formulate a conservation plan for a species not yet intentionally exploited by humans. Before the discovery was publicly announced, socialization of the find to key Indonesian government officials was initiated in order urgently to enact conservation measures preventing unregulated exploitation of L. menadoensis by local and international museums, aquariums and rare-animal collectors. Shortly thereafter, an intensive coelacanth conservation awareness campaign was launched involving a range of partners, including the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, the Japanese development agency JICA, and the environmental organization WWF. This campaign, aided by frequent and widespread media exposure of the coelacanth and its unique conservation status, has resulted in a strong sense of local and even national pride over the Indonesian coelacanth. Due in large part to this proactive conservation campaign, L. menadoensis has emerged as the 'flagship species' for Bunaken National Marine Park, and has significantly raised local and national interest in marine science and awareness of marine conservation issues in general. Since the experience gained in the conservation campaign for the Indonesian coelacanth are relevant to those nations in the Western Indian Ocean who have recently discovered their own coelacanth populations, these are detailed below.