Population Management. Florida Panther Florida Panther Distribution

Population Management

Florida Panther

Florida Panther Distribution

Panther Road Sign and Underpass

Panther Road Sign and Underpass

Wildlife Overpass Banff NP, Canada

Wildlife Overpass Catalonia, Spain

Wildlife Overpass Netherlands

Red Crab Crossing - Australia

Grate at Entrance to Bat Cave

Population management

• Limiting risks to populations

Feral Cat - Galapagos

Feral Cat Trapping

Piping Plover

Piping Plover Breeding Range

Moonstone Beach, RI

Piping Plover Protection

Feral pig in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Pig fence – Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Robbin’s Cinquefoil

Robbin’s Cinquefoil Habitat - White Mountains, New Hampshire

Robbin’s Cinquefoil Protection

Black Locust

Managing vs. Manipulating Populations

• Managing populations - controlling the environment (biological and physical) around the population and trying to ensure that the population has what it needs to survive in that environment 

• Manipulating a population is a more direct intervention - usually manipulating a population indicates a high level of human-population contact, often with humans directly handling the individuals in the population

Saving Species

“In terms of saving species, there are no hopeless cases, there are only difficult cases and people without hope.”

- Michael Soule

New Zealand

Giant Weta

Giant Weta And Biologist

Kiwi

Kiwi and egg

Kakapo

Kakapo and Biologist

Takahe

Takahe and chick

Desert Bighorn Sheep

Whitetail Deer

Wild Turkey

Wood Duck

When reintroducing animals, we have learned that:

1. larger founder populations are more successful

2. habitat suitability is important

3. increased number and sizes of clutches (litters) enhances success of establishment

4. herbivores are more successfully established than carnivores

5. competing species in an area may prevent successful establishment

Reintroductions more successful when:

• organisms must be translocated into undegraded habitat;

• substantial numbers of individuals must be reintroduced - often many of them over a long period of time;

• careful husbandry of the species may be required - providing food, water or controlling species which may have a negative effect on the species

Przewalski’s Horse or Takh

Przewalski’s Horse or Takh

Przewalski’s horse reserves – Mongolia and Uzbekistan

Restoration of desert streams and fish populations

Before After

1996 – Montana Wolf Reintroduction Protest

Yellowstone Wolf Pack Locations

Yellowstone Wolf Pack Locations

Yellowstone Wolf Pack Locations

Yellowstone Wolf

Yellowstone Wolf Prey

Idaho Wolf Release - 1996

Current Wolf Distribution – ID, WY, MT

Wolf Population Growth

Desert Tortoise

Desert Tortoise Habitat

Pacific Salmon Species

Peregrine Falcon – British subspecies - peregrinus

Peregrine Falcon – Alaskan coastal subspecies - pealei

Peregrine Falcon Range Map

Ecosystem Management And Preservation

Ecosystem Preservation – Boreal Forests, etc.

Semi-Natural Ecosystems

• Ecosystems that have been modified by some human activities such as logging, fishing and grazing but which are still dominated by native species

Early Conservation Efforts

• 3000 YA – Ikhnaton sets aside land for game preserve

• Asoka – 272-232 BCE declared some animals can’t be killed, forests not burned

Modern National Parks – Yellowstone N.P. - 1872

Hayden survey of Yellowstone – 1870

Yellowstone National Park – Army Bike Patrol

Reserves

• Reserves – any natural or semi-natural ecosystem that is protected from most forms of human use - however, we must remember that reserves go by several different names - national parks, refuges, national monuments, national wilderness areas, preserves and more

Reserve Selection

Reserves are developed by a variety of mechanisms:

1. Government action – usually at a national level, but may happen at regional or local level as well

2. Land purchases by private individuals and conservation organizations (such as The Nature Conservancy)

3. Actions of indigenous peoples and traditional societies

4. Development of biological field stations – usually combine biodiversity protection and research with education

Grand Canyon

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Houston Toad

Creating Preserves

Creating new reserves requires the following steps:

1. Identifying priorities for conservation

2. Determining those areas of each country that should be protected to meet conservation priorities

3. Linking new protected areas to existing conservation networks, using techniques such as gap analysis

Setting Priorities

1. Distinctiveness (or irrereplaceability) – an ecosystem that consists of primarily rare or endemic species or that has other unusual attributes (scenic value, geological features) is given highest priority

2. Endangerment (or vulnerability) – species in danger of extinction are of greater concern than those that are not

3. Utility – species that have present or potential value to people are given more conservation priority than species of no obvious use to people

Distinctive Ecosystem – Peat Bogs

Rarity – European Bison

Utility – wild apple Kazakhstan

Determining which areas should be protected

1. The Species Approach – focus on focal species (indicators, flagship or umbrella species)

2. The Ecosystem approach – save enough representatives of each ecosystem (at least 10%) can save most biodiversity

3. The Hotspot Approach – save areas that have high numbers of species – especially rare or endemic species

Indicator species – Freshwater mussels

Ecosystem Classification

Ponderosa Pine Forest

Hotspots

Hot spots or centers of diversity – are areas with high levels of species diversity and usually also high levels of endemism – thus become key areas to preserve – at least 34 global hotspots have been identified

Continental U.S. Biodiversity Hotspots

Protected Areas in the U.S.

Hotspots and Protected Areas in the U.S.

Hotspots on Mt. Mulanje, Malawi

Habitat Occupied and Reserves for Hawaiian Finches

Rare and Endangered Species in the US

• Andy Dobson examined the distributions of 900 rare and endangered species in the US and found:

• 0.8 to 3.3 percent of the land in the lower 48 states provides habitat for just over 50% of the rare and endangered species

• At risk reptiles and amphibians occupy 0.68% of US land; endangered fish take up the most space - 3.33 %

• San Diego County, California is a hot spot for endangered fish, mammals and plants

• Santa Cruz County, California is a hot spot for endangered arthropods, reptiles, amphibians, and plants

• 4 counties in Hawaii are hot spots for endangered birds and plants

Gap Analysis

1. Data are compiled on the species, ecosystems and physical features of the region – sometimes referred to as conservation units or ecoregions

2. Conservation goals are identified, such as amount of area to be protected for each ecosystem

3. Existing conservation areas are reviewed to determine what is protected already and what is not (identifying the gaps)

4. Additional areas are identified to help meet the conservation goals (filling the gaps)

5. Additional areas are acquired for conservation and a management plan is developed and implemented

6. The new protected areas are monitored and management plans adjusted

Idaho Ecoregions – birth of GAP analysis

Idaho – Western Juniper Shrubland