{"id":24340,"date":"2023-02-08T14:38:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-08T13:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=24340"},"modified":"2023-02-13T10:15:06","modified_gmt":"2023-02-13T09:15:06","slug":"meet-the-scientist-roseman-adams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/2023\/02\/08\/meet-the-scientist-roseman-adams\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the scientist: Roseman Adams"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
MEET THE SCIENTIST <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Roseman Adams<\/h2>\n\n

Community leader on the recovery of the \u2018Polaroid\u2019 gecko on Union Island in the Caribbean<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Roseman Adams on Mount Taboi, the highest peak on Union Island <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

ROSEMAN ADAMS HAS ALWAYS BEEN PASSIONATE about wildlife but it wasn\u2019t until 1999 that he became involved in conservation more directly on an island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. \u201cI started to see many environmental issues on Union Island and to do something about it, I co-founded a community-based organisation, now known as Union Island Environmental Alliance (UIEA),\u201d he says. The primary focus of UIEA is to improve the livelihoods of \u2018Unionites\u2019 in balance with healthy natural ecosystems. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cWe started out with <\/strong>clean-up campaigns and water-quality testing, and now collaborate with international organisations on endemic and endangered species conservation and sustainable development,\u201d explains Roseman. The UIEA was involved in the comeback of the Critically Endangered Union Island gecko [nicknamed the \u2018Polaroid\u2019 gecko], along with Fauna & Flora International (FFI), Re:wild, and St Vincent and the Grenadines Forestry Department. Its population has increased from 10,000 in 2018 to around 18,000. UIEA activities include patrols and monitoring by wardens in the forest, and community outreach work. <\/p>\n\n

\"\"
A \u2018Polaroid\u2019 picture: the tiny and colourful Union Island gecko <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

\u201cThe Union Island gecko<\/strong>is a tiny creature with jewel-like markings,\u201d says Roseman. \u201cWhen it\u2019s brought into the light, it changes from dark brown to multicoloured \u2013 much like a Polaroid picture. It is truly remarkable.\u201d The entire population of this species is confined to a 0.5km 2 <\/sup>patch of ancient forest: \u201cFirst described by science in 2005, the Union Island gecko suffered severe population decline in the wild due to aggressive poaching for the international pet trade.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

\u201cThe gecko\u2019s recovery <\/strong>has been testament to the dedication of the local community to protect the species and its habitat,\u201d says Roseman. \u201cWithout their efforts, the recovery we have seen to date would not have been possible.\u201d The listing of the Union Island gecko on Appendix I of CITES in 2019 also afforded the species the highest level of protection against illegal trade. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cWe are working on a <\/strong>wider initiative to protect the gecko, the island and its community, while supporting sustainable development,\u201d he states. \u201cChatham Bay, where the gecko lives, is recognised as a Key Biodiversity Area and there are also calls for it to become a wildlife reserve.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Jo Price <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

<\/p>\n\n

PHOTOS: ROSEMAN ADAMS: JENNY DALTRY\/FFI AND RE:WILD; UNION ISLAND GECKO: JACOB BOCK\/FFI <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Community leader on the recovery of the \u2018Polaroid\u2019 gecko on Union Island in the Caribbean<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":24338,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"19","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"19","purple_seq_number":"2","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"2","purple_source_article":"article_19-2.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_19-2.xml","purple_source_issue":"March-2023","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"March-2023","purple_external_id":"March-2023-19-2","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"March-2023-19-2","purple_issue_code":"|0000087241||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000087241||","purple_android_product":"com.im.wildlife.501","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.im.wildlife.501","purple_ios_product":"com.im.wildlife.501","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.im.wildlife.501","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"58d61955-0ac4-406c-83f1-ab6f21d86b70","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2023-02-07T15:32:41Z","apple_news_article-theme":"","apple_news_api_id":"b5c55766-b8e0-4cca-86fd-89afc7a6abfe","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2023-02-13T09:15:11Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABA==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AtcVXZrjgTMqG_Ymvx6ar_g","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":true,"apple_news_is_preview":true,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_article_theme":"","apple_news_sections":"[]"},"categories":[25],"tags":[14],"apple_news_notices":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80.jpg",1625,1133,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80-300x209.jpg",300,209,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80-768x535.jpg",768,535,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80-1024x714.jpg",800,558,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80-1536x1071.jpg",1536,1071,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/ea6f269e-483a-4776-acd4-b56b912e8c80.jpg",1625,1133,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Community leader on the recovery of the \u2018Polaroid\u2019 gecko on Union Island in the Caribbean","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24340"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24340"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24340\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24944,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24340\/revisions\/24944"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}