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Good practice Imported

Predator Control for the Grenada Dove — Mt. Hartman & Perseverance Protected Areas (Grenada)

Grenada · Mt. Hartman · See the Grenada profile

Evidence: Observational / pre–post Top 96% 20/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Since 2013, Grenada's Forestry Department and BirdsCaribbean have trapped mongoose, rats and cats at Mt. Hartman and Perseverance to protect the critically endangered Grenada Dove, whose population has stayed near 160-190 birds for decades despite funding-driven suspensions.

~100 birds
Grenada Dove population (1987) (1987)
136 birds
Grenada Dove population (2007) (2007)
160±30 (range 107–229) birds
Grenada Dove population (2012–2013 distance-sampling survey) (2012–2013)
<200 individuals
Grenada Dove population estimate (December 2025)
~98% percent of stations
Mongoose occupancy of monitoring stations (recent tracking-tunnel study)
<10% percent of range
Protected-area coverage of dove's range (current)
Predator Control for the Grenada Dove — Mt. Hartman & Perseverance Protected Areas (Grenada)

Details

Promoter
Grenada Forestry and National Parks Department / BirdsCaribbean
Period
2013–present
Keywords
biodiversity conservation, invasive species control, protected areas

Context

The Grenada Dove (Leptotila wellsi), Grenada's national bird, is critically endangered and confined to two disjunct dry-forest sites in the southwest of the island (Mt. Hartman National Park and the Perseverance Protected Area/Dove Sanctuary), separated by roughly 9 km of urban development; population surveys found about 100 birds in 1987, 136 in 2007, and 160±30 (range 107–229) in a 2012–2013 distance-sampling survey, with fewer than 200 individuals estimated as of December 2025.

Activities

Introduced Indian mongoose, black rats, feral cats and opossums prey on dove nests and adults. From 2013, the Grenada Dove Conservation Programme (Forestry and National Parks Department) began sustained trapping at both sites, funded by American Bird Conservancy and the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, later supplemented by the Sandals Foundation, the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund and US Fish & Wildlife Service grants.

Results

A peer-reviewed tracking-tunnel study (Bird Conservation International) found mongoose activity had rebounded to occupy about 98% of monitoring stations, indicating predator pressure returned after earlier control lapsed; protected areas still cover under 10% of the dove's remaining range.

Conclusions

Trapping was suspended in recent years for staffing and funding reasons and is scheduled to restart in January 2026 with Mohammed Bin Zayed Foundation and UNDP support — an honest illustration of how PES-style conservation financing for a single-site endemic can stall without a durable funding mechanism.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Low (< €50k)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years) — Sustained trapping from 2013; recently suspended for staffing/funding reasons; scheduled to restart January 2026 with Mohammed Bin Zayed Foundation and UNDP support.
Staffing & skills
Grenada Forestry and National Parks Department (Grenada Dove Conservation Programme)

Conditions for success

  • Sustained, funded trapping effort at both remaining dove sites
  • Multi-donor funding coalition (American Bird Conservancy, Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, Sandals Foundation, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, US Fish & Wildlife Service)

Common failure modes

  • Trapping suspended in recent years due to staffing and funding shortages, allowing mongoose activity to rebound to about 98% of monitoring stations
  • Protected areas cover under 10% of the dove's remaining range, limiting effective habitat protection

Commonly funded by

Philanthropic / foundation funding

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

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