Recent Thoughts About Reintroduction Red and Mexican Wolves – Politics and Biology – Guard Donkeys? Grizzlies Lynx Whooping Cranes – Western and Eastern Efforts
Download
Report
Transcript Recent Thoughts About Reintroduction Red and Mexican Wolves – Politics and Biology – Guard Donkeys? Grizzlies Lynx Whooping Cranes – Western and Eastern Efforts
Recent Thoughts About
Reintroduction
Red and Mexican Wolves
– Politics and Biology
– Guard Donkeys?
Grizzlies
Lynx
Whooping Cranes
– Western and Eastern Efforts
California Condors
Bald Eagle Update
Red Wolves
1970’s few wolves left in Texas and
Louisiana
All that could be found (N = 17) were
captured by late 1970’s and brought in for
captive breeding (Point Defiance Zoo
initially then 20+ zoos)
Bred wolves in captivity successfully (300
+ were produced at 30+ facilities)
Began reintroduction in 1987
Red Wolf Reintroduction Areas
Red Wolf Reintroduction Stats
First releases at Alligator River National Wildlife
Refuge (1992: 30 animals roam free)
1988-90 marooned species on 3 islands
– 10 on Bulls Island (2 survived through 1990)
• Ended 2005
– 9 on Horn Island (5 survived through 1990)
• None currently
– 4 on St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge (all surviving)
• Minimal efforts now, but captives at visitor facility
– Goal was to produce wild-reared young wolves for reintroduction
2006: 100 in wild (20 packs, 1.7 mil. Acres in
NC), 184 in captivity
Reintroduction Strategies
Pre-release training
– minimum human contact
– varied feeding regime (boom bust)
– weaned from dog food to all meat
– exposed to live prey
10(j) status
– hunting and trapping of game allowed in release
area to get sportsmen behind the program
– can kill if threatening humans, but not livestock or
pets
Reintroduction Success
ARNWR---1987-90--released 29 captive born
wolves (19 adults, 10 pups) were released on 13
occasions
– 6 pups born in the wild
– mid Oct. 1990--->19 free-ranging
– 17 animals recaptured on 29 occasions
• 1 animal had to be returned to zoo
– 15 died
• 5 vehicle; 2 killed by other wolves; 2 infections; 1 choked on a
coon kidney; 1 drowned in leghold; 4 drowned crossing river
– This is now the center of the reintroduction
efforts and an increasing wild population is
distributed in 20 packs across 5 NC counties
Why No Losses to Human Hatred?
Pre-release public education campaign
– briefed enviros, congress, governor, local officials and
local landowners
– briefed navy and airforce which train next to refuge
– focused on hunters and trappers at public meetings prior to
release
10(j) status
Post-release press
– 22 mags, 24 newspapers, 5 national news
broadcasts, 4 documentaries
New landowner agreements
Humans Benefited From Release
Post-release press increased tourism
Portrayed the region as unaffected by
increase in human population where natural
resources are still thriving
– helped attract recreation
Other Spinoffs
Additional land for conservation
– Conservation Fund bought 47,000 ha next to
ARNWR
– 33 private citizens donated 10,000 ha to the
project
Civic groups got involved
– Rotary Club gave conservation internships
Not So Good in Smokies
1990 reintroductions began in Great Smoky
Mountains National Park
– 500,000 acre park (NC and Tenn)
– 1.5 mill acres of national forest adjoining with
inholdings
– 37 wolves released
• many strayed from park and were recaptured
– like beef--$7,900 paid for 24 cows killed
– liked people (taking handouts from tourists)
– 6 killed by cars, poison, shooting
– 33 pups born
• 4 survived through 1998
Lack of Food Important
Movements out of park were apparently in
response to lack of big game
Parvovirus also got some pups
4 remaining animals (2 adults and 2 pups)
were removed
Mexican Wolf Reintroduction
Sites
5 release areas in Apache
National Forest
Soft releases of family groups
Various degree of switch to
natural prey
Vehicles are mortality source
as is shooting
Ranch dogs and livestock
have been injured or killed
– Defenders paid full market value
Mexican Wolves
Captive propagation for release
First releases March 29-30 1998 (New Mexico
and Arizona) on NWR and USFS lands
– Recent info from Arizona Game and Fish
Public not happy
–
–
–
–
New Mexico cattle growers have sued
Mortalities from autos and shooting
5 of first 11 released were shot
2005 Recovery Planning on hold, reintroductions
continue
Perseverance is the Key
Babbitt was committed
– “release … is to send a message that this is
public land…..Americans support this
effort…I’ve got my instructions from the
American people”
As of Oct 12, 2006
– 26 wolves in 9 packs reproducing in AZ and
NM
– ~300 in captivity (including wolf haven)
Flexible Releases
Lightweight pens
– take into backcountry
– electrify soft mesh
– soft releases will continue to be used
• little room for error
Reducing Wolf Encounters with
Lifestock (M. Jimenez (PhD work)
Trials with Montana’s Ninemile Pack
– Cracker shells
• very short term deterrence
– Country Music
• music played at night by a crippled cow--kept wolves away
– Flags
• flags on fences keep wolves out
– Guard Donkeys
• burros with cattle--increase aggressiveness of the prey
– worked with coyotes
Grizzly Tales
New Concern for Yellowstone Griz (Kaiser 1999)
– USFWS proposes delisting
Conflict over assessing the rate of population
growth
– Pease and Mattson 1999--1% per year increase
– NPS 5% per year increase
1800---100,000 bears; 1975--<1000; 2004---580
PVA to incorporate many factors including shooting of
problem bears shows low increase
– NPS and others dispute PVA!
– Whitebark pine may be key--drop lately due to blister rust
Grizzly Reintroduction?
USFWS proposes reintroduction into
Northern Rockies
– would use 10(j) status
Good support in Montana, not so in Idaho
– “Bringing back bears is nothing but a polite
form of genocide” L. Barrett, Idaho State Rep.
– “I’m less scared of grizzlies than I am of the
Endangered Species Act” D. Burtenshaw, Idaho
State Senate
Threatened Lynx?
Listed as
threatened in
2004
As of 2006,
recovery outline
completed
– Interim, no
authority,
guidelines
Lynx Reintroduction Stats
Reintroduction occurring in Colorado
– winter 1999--11 Lynx brought to San Juans from
Canada
– hard release
– plan for 110 to be released over next 2 years
– cost = $1.4 million (for first 3 years)
Initial Poor Success was questioned
– 2 of first 5 died of starvation
Latest reintroductions went well
• 2006: 42 females are surviving and 11 kittens were born in
wild in 2005
Whooping Cranes
Early efforts in western US
–
–
–
–
–
1975--early 1990s whoopers cross fostered under Sandhill Cranes
Migrated and survived ok, but no breeding
1992--cross fostered whooper bred with a female sandhill
1993--cross fostered group down to 8 from high of 30 in 1980
Guide-bird program initiated
• incubate and hatch in captivity
• house chicks with cross fostered whoopers held in cages on breeding
grounds
• bond with whoopers to learn migration route
• imprint on whoopers to learn sexual preference
– 2005 efforts in west essentially halted
Changing Focus to Eastern US
Use of ultralights and direct reintroduction to re-
establish the eastern flyway population of
Whooping Cranes
Population is growing
– 5 young in 2002
– 64 in 2006
2005 saw first breeding
2006 first migration on
own by cranes initially
led by ultralight
Bringing Back Condors
Down to 27 in captivity with capture of last
wild bird in 1987, but brought back to 289
in 2006 with 135 in the wild
– Breeding in California and Arizona
– Still issues with learning to live with people
• Powerlines
• Lead
• Lack of fear in released birds
Bald Eagle Recovery
Population
increased
– removal of limiting
factor (DDE)
– captive breeding
and reintroduction
Costs in top 10 of
all bird
conservation efforts
References
Phillips, M. K. 1990a. The red wolf: recovery of an
endangered species. Endangered Species Update 8:79-81.
Phillips, M. K. 1990b. Measures of the value and success
of a reintroduction project: red wolf reintroduction in
Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. Endangered
Species Update 8:24-26.
Kaiser, J. 1999. Study sounds alarm on Yellowstone
Grizzlies. Science 284:568.
Davis, T. 1997. Agencies dunk endangered songbird. High
Country News Sept. 15, 1997
Drewien, R. C. 1993. Guide bird program holds promise
for whoopers. Habitat.
More References
Borenstein, S. 1999. The bald eagle to be taken off
endangered list. Seattle Times. June 17, 1999.
Weller, R. 1999. Lynx reintroduced to Colorado. Seattle
Times February 4, 1999.
London, J. 1996. Red Wolf Country. Penguin Books, New
York.
Miller, E. 1997. Salmon says no bears, no way. High
Country News. October 27, 1997