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The Aleipata islands are considered to be of great regional conservation significance because they are uninhabited (with the exception of Namua), relatively pristine as forest ecosystems, hosting many species threatened throughout the greater Samoa, and still not invaded by most invasive alien species (IAS) present within Upolu main island. Due to this reason they were included in the list of the 7 key biodiversity areas of Samoa (Conservation International et al. 2010).

Samoa is part of the Polynesia-Micronesia Biodiversity Hotspot, one of 34 regions of the world where extraordinary levels of biodiversity and endemism are coupled with extremely high levels of threat (Mittermeier et al. 2004). The four Aleipata islands (Photo 1), holding a high percentage of representative and threatened species of Samoa, certainly represent a key site in the Polynesia-Micronesia biodiversity hotspot. In a 1986 review of 226 islands in the South Pacific region, these islands together rated 30th in importance for biological diversity (Vanderwoude et al. 2006). They were also more recently included in the list of the 7 Key Biodiversity Areas of Samoa (Conservation International et al. 2010).

This report contributes to the GEF PAS project "Prevention, eradication and control of invasive alien species in the Pacific islands". It is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and executed by Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) in partnership with the Department of Environment Protection & Conservation, Vanuatu.

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