Headstarting as a Conservation Strategy for Threatened and Endangered Species

Thomas, Patrick R.; Boyer, Donal M.; Oehler, David A.; Silver, Scott C.; Perrotti, Lou

doi:10.1017/9781108183147.004

Cited by 5 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Artificial hatch rate is not often higher than natural one. Only maleo could be an exception with 41-78% success of parentless natural incubation, and 91% rate was reached in Bronx Zoo [7]. In case with SbS, artificial incubation success was ca.…”

Section: Comparison To Other Headstarted Speciesmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…For piping plovers [13], the gain was similar with 77% HS fledging rate compared to natural 50%, but this could still be improved. For maleo, the protocol target was 40% in terms of reaching 30 days age [7]. For takahe, 90% survival up to 1-year age has been reported with 1 to 4-fold improvement of natural rate in different years [8].…”

Section: Comparison To Other Headstarted Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Headstarting (HS) is a conservation approach that suggests offering an advantage to a population by improving survival of embryos and/or juveniles. A number of successful HS projects are known for reptiles [7], while practical examples are far less numerous for birds. This approach has been applied to increase productivity of the maleo Macrocephalon maleo [7], takahe Porphyrio mantelli [8], mangrove finch Camarhynchus heliobates [9], as well as of several species of waders, the american oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus [10], black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa [11], black stilt Himantopus novaezelandiae [12], piping plover Charadrius melodus [13] and snowy plover Ch.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evaluating the Impacts of Headstarting on the Critically En-Dangered Spoon-Billed Sandpiper <em>Calidris pygmaea</em>

Loktionov¹,

Digby²,

Yakushev³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Headstarting is a conservation approach that suggests offering an advantage to a population by improving egg production, survival of embryos and/or juveniles. In this article, we are providing the quantitative data obtained during 10-years for different stages of headstarting (production of eggs per pair, hatching and fledging rates) and the resulting impact (survival to maturity, philopatry rate, sex ratio, apparent survival, growth/decline rate) on the local population of the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper. We have shown that headstarting gain is reduced over time from fledging to long-term recruitment to the local breeding population. The possible reasons for this reduction are suggested and discussed. The unexpected finding was a drastic difference in sex ratios of the new recruits which was about even for headstaring, but strongly male-biased for wild reared birds. We suggest that to happen due to increased mortality of female chicks in nature. We have also shown only headstarting could stop the global decline of the species, particularly once the suggested improvements are implemented and the number of pairs involved is scaled up. Headstarting also had a significant social effect due to involvement of in-creasing numbers of people both in the local communities in Chukotka and from many countries on the flyway into searching for marked birds and learning about waders, raising awareness about ecological problems on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, thus, making the need for conservation actions on the flyway more obvious and sensible.

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Section: Comparison To Other Headstarted Speciesmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Comparison To Other Headstarted Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Evaluating the Impacts of Headstarting on the Critically En-Dangered Spoon-Billed Sandpiper <em>Calidris pygmaea</em>

Loktionov¹,

Digby²,

Yakushev³

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…It is considered particularly vulnerable to extinction, with various continuing pressures possibly contributing to suspected low population sizes, including habitat loss through overgrazing by a native urchin ( Heliocidaris erythrogramma ), various localized anthropogenic impacts, and potentially climate change (Bessell et al, 2022). Conservation efforts for the species only began in late 2018, and include headstarting (i.e., raising fish from eggs in captivity that are then released into the wild to bolster numbers) (see Thomas et al, 2019) as well as habitat restoration attempts through management of urchin numbers (Stuart‐Smith et al, 2021). Although conservation strategies are in place for the species, currently reliable population estimates for red handfish are lacking.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population parameters and conservation implications for one of the world's rarest marine fishes, the red handfish (Thymichthys politus)

Bessell,

Stuart‐Smith,

Johnson

et al. 2024

Journal of Fish Biology

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Population estimates are required for effective conservation of many rare marine species, but can be difficult to obtain. The critically endangered red handfish (Thymichthys politus) is a coastal anglerfish known only from two fragmented populations in southeast Tasmania, Australia. It is at a high risk of extinction due to low numbers, loss of habitat, and the impacts of climate change. To aid conservation efforts, we provide the first empirical population size estimates of red handfish and investigate other important aspects of the species' life history, such as growth, habitat association, and movement. We surveyed both red handfish local populations via underwater visual census on scuba over 3 years and used photographic mark‐recapture techniques to estimate biological parameters. In 2020, the local adult population size was estimated to be 94 (95% confidence interval [CI] 40–231) adults at one site, and 7 (95% CI 5–10) at the other site, suggesting an estimated global population of 101 adults. Movement of individuals was extremely limited at 48.5 m (± 77.7 S.D.) per year. We also found evidence of declining fish density, a declining proportion of juveniles, and increasing average fish size during the study. These results provide a serious warning that red handfish are likely sliding toward extinction, and highlight the urgent need to expand efforts for ex situ captive breeding to bolster numbers in the wild and maintain captive insurance populations, and to protect vital habitat to safeguard the species' ongoing survival in the wild.

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“…Releasing wildlife after time under human care ('HC') is a shared objective among reactive rescue-rehab-release and proactive conservation strategies like conservation breeding and headstarting, which seek to reinforce or reintroduce free-ranging populations and protect/restore genetic diversity (Thomas et al, 2019) and are distinct from other contexts like mitigation translocations that do not keep animals under HC for lengthy periods (Bradley et al, 2022). The aims of rescue-rehab-release's later stages overlap with those of proactive breeding/headstarting for translocation, including determining whether wildlife are releasable, preparing them for release, and monitoring postrelease (Figure 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Revisiting the 4 R’s: Improving post-release outcomes for rescued mammalian wildlife by fostering behavioral competence during rehabilitation

Goldenberg

Parker²,

Chege³

et al. 2022

Front. Conserv. Sci.

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Rescue, rehabilitation, and release (‘rescue-rehab-release’) of wildlife is an increasingly widespread practice across ecosystems, largely driven by habitat loss, wildlife exploitation and a changing climate. Despite this, its conservation value has not been realized, in part due to the scarcity of what has been termed “the 4th R”, research. Similar to conservation breeding and headstarting, rescue and rehabilitation entails close association of humans and the wildlife in their care over impressionable and extended periods. However, unlike these interventions, rescue and rehabilitation require an initial, and sometimes sustained, focus on crisis management and veterinary needs which can impede the development of natural behaviors and promote habituation to humans, both of which can compromise post-release survival and recruitment. In this perspective, we discuss the pathways toward, and implications of, behavioral incompetence and highlight opportunities for testable interventions to curtail negative outcomes post-release, without compromising the health or welfare of rescued individuals. We propose that practitioners ‘switch gears’ from triage to fostering behavioral competence as early in the rehabilitation process as is possible, and that research be implemented in order to develop an evidence-base for best practices that can be shared amongst practitioners. We focus on four mammalian species to illustrate specific contexts and considerations for fostering behavioral competence by building on research in the conservation translocation literature. Finally, we discuss a way forward that calls for greater cross-pollination among translocation scenarios involving extended time under human care during developmentally sensitive periods.

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Headstarting as a Conservation Strategy for Threatened and Endangered Species

Cited by 5 publications

References 38 publications

Evaluating the Impacts of Headstarting on the Critically En-Dangered Spoon-Billed Sandpiper <em>Calidris pygmaea</em>

Evaluating the Impacts of Headstarting on the Critically En-Dangered Spoon-Billed Sandpiper <em>Calidris pygmaea</em>

Population parameters and conservation implications for one of the world's rarest marine fishes, the red handfish (Thymichthys politus)

Revisiting the 4 R’s: Improving post-release outcomes for rescued mammalian wildlife by fostering behavioral competence during rehabilitation

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