Effect of Citizen Action on Suppression of Invasive Alien Lizard Population: A Case of the Removal of Eutropis Multifasciata on Green Island, Taiwan

Abstract

Chao -Lin: Effect of citizen action on suppression of invasive alien lizard population - Abstract. This paper analyzes data from the 2009-2016 projects for the removal of the invasive alien species Eutropis multifasciata from Green Island, Taiwan. In this study, the perimeter trapping method was used, and the validity of the method was verified at the beginning of the study. The result showed that the exponential regression analysis showed a statistically significant negative relationship between capture rate and time. Thus perimeter trapping was indeed an effective way of removing E. multifasciata. Besides, it investigates whether citizen action can assist in the removal of invasive alien species. The process of removal occurred in two stages; the first was funded by government, and the second involved citizen action. When citizens took over the work of removal, the size of the animals removed continued to decrease, as did the ratio of alien to indigenous individuals captured. In this case, introducing citizen action was an effective method of removing this invasive alien species.

How to Engage Tourists in Invasive Carp Removal: Application of a Discrete Choice Model

“…IAS management programs have considered that public involvement is an essential tool to succeed, since it could overcome the management resources shortage, such as a lack of human and financial resources (Dunn et al 2018;Gaertner et al 2016;McNeely 2001). For example, common sun skinks (Eutropis multifasciata) were removed by tourists on Green Island, leading to a decrease in skink numbers (Chao and Lin 2017). Based on these results, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) mentioned that citizens were one of the most important players in IAS management (CBD 2014).…”

Using Transformative Learning Theory to Explore the Mechanisms of Citizen Participation for Environmental Education on the Removal of Invasive Species: The Case of Green Island, Taiwan

“…Green Island, a remote island off the southeast of Taiwan, has few residents and therefore has few community volunteers who can work on the removal of invasive species. The insufficient human resources may affect the ability to remove alien species (Chao & Lin, 2017). However, owing to its natural beauty, the island has become an important tourist attraction in Taiwan.…”

“…Even though some Green Island residents have volunteered to participate in removing the invasive species through the process of transformative learning, the peak seasons for common sun skink activity are summer and fall, which coincide with the main periods that residents are involved in tourism activities; therefore, relying solely on community volunteers to remove the invasive common sun skink has limited effectiveness (Chao & Lin, 2017). It is therefore necessary to recruit additional manpower assistance.…”

“…Following the participation of voluntourists in the removal of invasive species, data from interviews with the voluntourists and from their social media interactions indicate that voluntourists' initial motivation is related to the expectations of coming into contact with animals. Since the removal of the invasive common sun skink from Green Island uses the perimeter trapping method (Chao & Lin, 2017), which is a type of physical trapping used for lizards, voluntourists also come into contact with lizards, snakes, amphibians, crabs, and land snails. When voluntourists assist with the removal process for invasive species, aside from explaining the ecological problems associated with the common sun skink, community volunteers also provide explanations about the other animals of Green Island that are captured.…”

“…The common sun skink may affect the survival of the native species of lizard (Lin, 2008), making its removal necessary. Work to remove the invasive species began in 2009 (Chao & Lin, 2017).…”