Reintroduction is a potentially powerful tool available to conservationists to cope with species population declines. Nonetheless, it is poorly understood and past reviews tend to indicate poor results. Reintroduction, under the sensu stricto IUCN definition, must have a primary objective of conservation; however species can be released to sites in their indigenous range (reintroduction sensu lato) to meet other objectives. The outcomes of these reintroductions s.l need to be assessed to determine how effectively they achieve their varied objectives. A Web of Science review revealed that only 32.1% of 131 publications on reintroduction provided clearly defined success criteria. Using economic, ecological, conservation and problem animal management objectives as reintroduction s.l. drivers, I developed context-dependent success definitions for each objective to use in reintroduction outcome assessments. These success criteria were then used to assess the reintroductions s.l. of large carnivores, namely lion, leopard, cheetah, African wild dog, spotted hyaena, and brown hyaena, to 16 private- and state-owned reserves in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Ecotourism and ecological restoration were the most common objectives for the reintroduction of top predators to these reserves. Overall the reintroductions of large carnivores have been successful in meeting their objectives. Only African wild dogs have failed to establish in the province. Causes of objective-specific failures for the other species in some reserves included introductions of same-sex populations, lack of breeding events and changes in reserve management objectives. Assessments for leopard and brown hyaena were inconclusive due to lack of monitoring data. The reintroduction of large carnivores to the Eastern Cape Province has also resulted in the emergence of human-carnivore conflict on neighbouring properties. Carnivores have reportedly escaped from 8 reserves (61.5% of reserves) in the Eastern Cape. A total of 75 conflict events on 68 neighbouring properties (36.7% of neighbouring properties) have been reported. There is a major gap in research around conflict resulting from carnivore reintroductions and future research is required to fully understand the situation in the province in order to develop effective mitigation methods. An adaptive management approach to reintroductions is encouraged to improve monitoring and ensure reintroductions continue to meet their objectives. Furthermore, emerging consequences, such as human-wildlife conflict, and related mitigation strategies should be incorporated into management of reintroduced populations. Communities surrounding reintroduction sites should be educated on lifting baselines where conflict-causing species are recovering to ensure continued success of reintroduction undertakings. National management plans should be developed for all large carnivore species to improve the conservation value of small, fenced reserves that are typical of South African conservation, through a managed metapopulation approach. Management plans should include social, political, and economic factors that can influence the success of reintroductions and ultimate conservation outcomes.

No description available.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2004. / Also available in print.

This thesis aims to achieve a better understanding of: (1) theoretical aspects of humannature relationships; and (2) socio-political dimensions of nature conservation practices. It is the result of social scientific research, and employs, on the basis of a ‘moderate’ social constructivist frame, a multi- (and partly inter-) disciplinary approach. Within the central theme of nature conservation, the concept of wilderness is used as a lens for study, with a specific research focus on ‘rewilding’ and ‘animal reintroduction’ in Scotland and the Netherlands. In the overarching context of the two central research aims, the four main chapters in this work have been developed, and are presented, as stand-alone parts. With respect to research aim 1, the relationship between rewilding and animal reintroduction is examined (Chapter 2). The main finding is that if animal reintroduction, as part of rewilding, is understood and implemented in a tentative manner, it can be an inspiring example of an essentially non-controlling human interaction with nature. Chapter 5 is a cultural-historical exploration of the concept of wilderness and of a Dutch national park. It establishes that paradoxes are an important element in the Western fascination with wilderness, and they are therefore an essential focus if contemporary societies want to restore their relationship with the wild. With regard to research aim 2, a discourse analysis is conducted of documents supporting animal reintroductions (Chapter 3). A crucial finding is that rhetoric and argumentation, in expert documents that inform environmental decision-making, become increasingly ‘reflexive’. In Chapter 4, political decision-making on Scottish animal reintroductions is researched in the light of late-modern governance shifts. It is found that these new modes of governance can actually undermine the very democratic principles that they seek to implement in the first place.

No description available.

Thesis (M.Sc.)--York University, 2004. Graduate Programme in Biology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ99289

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

In southern Manitoba, there is a significant need to reintroduce diverse, ecologically sound environments to redress serious events of watershed habitat loss and accompanying landscape deterioration. Soil erosion, water pollution, and declining wildlife populations are the results of current agricultural practices and policy. The adoption of ecologically sound farming and water management practices compatible with the environmental requirements of native plant and animal communities will restore stability to the local ecosystem, diversity and interest to the landscape and a stronger sense of place for people of the region. This study describes the methods for effectively reintroducing habitat as part of a farms drainage network and the positive effect this has on soil and water conservation, both of which ultimately stimulate increased agricultural production.

Conservation reintroduction aims to establish an organism into an area from where it has disappeared or was extirpated. Monitoring is essential to identify the factors that underpin successful establishment and persistence of a self-sustaining population. The Great Bustard (Otis tarda) is globally threatened and became extinct as a breeding species in the United Kingdom (UK) in 1832. Trial releases began in 2004 to reintroduce the Great Bustard to the UK based on the release of captive-reared chicks transported from a source population in Russia. The aim of this research was to investigate the factors influencing the establishment of a founder population of Great Bustards in the UK. In Chapter 1, I set the context of the reintroduction science and management in the world today and explore the issues surrounding it. Chapter 2 sets the baseline by which to measure the Great Bustard reintroduction project using the first five years of releases (2004 – 2008). Estimating vital rates and modelling population growth, I show that low recruitment to the founder population is a limitation for establishment. Chapters 3 and 4 investigate post-release survival and dispersal, both important variables in population establishment. By modelling individual post-release survival I show that earlier date of release can improve survival and could be used to improve recruitment. Conversely, post-release dispersal had mixed implication for the management of the reintroduced population. Surviving Great Bustards incorporated the release site into their annual range and as their breeding site. However, the birds had traversed large areas reducing our ability to monitor and control the environment of individuals. In Chapter 5, the research focus moves from the reintroduction project to an examination of the impact of disturbance and conspecific attraction (presence of conspecifics positively influences the movement of individuals) in habitat selection in a small extant population of Great Bustards. I show that the spatial distribution of display sites is influenced by anthropogenic disturbance; however, the number of males attending the display sites is influenced by the abundance of female conspecifics. The management implications of this result are that the attraction to conspecifics is an important factor in habitat selection. Finally, in Chapter 6, I discuss project limitations, potential interventions and identify future areas of research.

Almost half of the world�s mammal extinctions in the last two hundred years have occurred in Australia (Short and Smith 1994). The western barred bandicoot Perameles bougainville is one of a suite of species that is currently threatened with extinction, surviving only on two islands in Shark Bay, Western Australia. Reintroduction has been used as a tool in conservation biology to assist in the recovery of threatened species, such as the western barred bandicoot. The aims of this project were to 1) successfully reintroduce and establish a free-ranging mainland population of the western barred bandicoot at Heirisson Prong, Shark Bay, 2) contribute information on the biology of the species, its interactions with introduced species, and its likelihood of persistence as a reintroduced population in the longer-term, and 3) to provide recommendations to assist future reintroductions of the species. The first reintroduction of the western barred bandicoot from surviving remnant island populations to the mainland, some 60 years after its apparent mainland extinction, was from Dorre Island to Heirisson Prong in 1995. Animals were translocated initially to a predator-free refuge on Heirisson Prong, and then subsequently released to the 12 km2 peninsula where introduced predators (foxes Vulpes vulpes and feral cats Felis catus) had been controlled, but European rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus had not. Despite a small founder number and high mortality of free-range bandicoots in the presence of a low-density feral cat population, the bandicoot population successfully established. The reintroduced population of western barred bandicoots provided an opportunity to study the biology of the species, and to compare it with the remnant island populations and other species of Australian bandicoot. Many population parameters were similar between the island and mainland western barred bandicoot populations, as well as between the western barred bandicoot and other bandicoot species, suggesting that the habitat at the reintroduction site is suitable for long-term persistence of the population. However, there were some notable differences. The western barred bandicoot is the smallest extant species of bandicoot, with fewer young per litter than recorded for other bandicoot species, adult sex ratios were closer to parity, animals reached sexual maturity later, and it is the only species of bandicoot where females are larger than males. Home range size is larger also than recorded for other species. Some of these differences may be explained in part by trade-offs between island dwarfism, lactational pressures, and nest defence. The nesting biology of the western barred bandicoot was studied at Heirisson Prong, including during periods of high and low densities of rabbits. Individuals of the species constructed and utilised nests in a similar fashion to other species of Australian bandicoot, nesting amongst litter underneath shrubs. The western barred bandicoot appeared to favour particular shrub species, especially when vegetation condition was poor due to rabbit damage, but displayed flexibility in being able to construct nests under a variety of shrub species where at least some surface litter was present. Grasses were used in nest construction only when rabbit density was low. Nests appear important for protection against temperature extremes and diurnal predators. Vegetation exclosures around three of the shrub species most commonly used by the western barred bandicoot for nest sites (Acacia ligulata, A. tetragonophylla and Melaleuca cardiophylla) were used to examine the impact of rabbits on vegetation on Heirisson Prong. A high-density rabbit population over the summer of 1997/98 caused in a decrease in canopy cover and the death of mature A. ligulata. Subsequent rainfall and low-density rabbit populations allowed A. tetragonophylla shrubs to recover their former structure, and M. cardiophylla to recover, but not to the same degree. The flexibility of western barred bandicoots in use of nest materials and their omnivorous diet may enable the species to survive in the face of habitat modification by rabbits. Population viability analysis was used to examine future options for the recovery of the endangered western barred bandicoot. Biological data from the Dorre Island and Heirisson Prong populations were input to the computer simulation program VORTEX. The western barred bandicoot populations were modelled under a variety of scenarios to examine the possible effects of changes in carrying capacity, founder population size, inbreeding depression, and the occurrence of drought and cat predation as catastrophes, on the probability of population extinction. This analysis highlighted the need for eradication of feral cats, above all other management actions. Cat predation was particularly potent when it acted through high loss of juveniles, as well as adult bandicoots. Predator control is considered critical for the long-term persistence of reintroduced populations of the western barred bandicoot. This study documents the first reintroduction of the endangered western barred bandicoot to mainland Australia. The population had been extant for four years at the completion of data collection for this thesis, in late 1999 and for over eight years at the finalisation of this thesis in July 2004. The knowledge gained from the reintroduction was used to discuss management recommendations and future options for the recovery of the species. The primary concern for reintroductions of this, and other species of bandicoots, remains the control of introduced predators. For long-term persistence of small, isolated populations, such as those of the western barred bandicoot at Heirisson Prong and the Arid Recovery Project at Roxby Downs in South Australia, and the eastern barred bandicoot Perameles gunnii at a range of sites in Victoria, the complete eradication of introduced predators is essential.