The peninsular pronghorn (Antilocapra americana peninsularis) in the Baja California peninsula is an endangered subspecies. We constructed captive breeding facilities in the Vizcaino Desert within the current range of peninsular pronghorn to assist in population recovery. The captive breeding facilities included fences, shade, feeders, an irrigation system, observation towers, housing for caretakers, and a visitor center. We document the initial 6‐year cycle of the captive management, 1 step of the recovery effort, from the first capture of 5 fawns in 1998 to 90 captive peninsular pronghorns by the end of 2003. We identified problems with the captive breeding facility (e.g., identification of animals and movements into, and accidents with, fences), but overall the facility has been a success. We projected the first potential translocation of animals into the wild in 2004. If the translocation of captive animals is successful, peninsular pronghorn may begin the recovery process in the wild.

No abstract

Endangered species with small population sizes are susceptible to genetic erosion, which can be detrimental to long-term persistence. Consequently, monitoring and mitigating the loss of genetic diversity are essential for conservation. The Peninsular pronghorn (Antilocapra americana peninsularis) is an endangered pronghorn subspecies that is almost entirely held in captivity. Captive breeding has increased the number of pronghorns from 25 founders in 1997 to around 700 individuals today, but it is unclear how the genetic diversity of the captive herd may have changed over time. We therefore generated and analysed data for 16 microsatellites spanning 2009–2021. We detected a decline in heterozygosity and an increase in the proportion of inbred individuals over time. However, these trends appear to have been partially mitigated by a genetically informed breeding management attempt that was implemented in 2018. We also reconstructed the recent demographic history of the Peninsular pronghorn, revealing two sequential population declines putatively linked to the desertification of the Baja California peninsula around 6000 years ago, and hunting and habitat loss around 500 years ago, respectively. Our results provide insights into the genetic diversity of an endangered antelope and indicate the potential for genetically informed management to have positive conservation outcomes.

Endangered species with small population sizes are susceptible to genetic erosion, which can be detrimental to long-term persistence. Consequently, monitoring and mitigating the loss of genetic diversity are key to successful conservation. The peninsular pronghorn (Antilocapra americana peninsularis) is an endangered pronghorn subspecies that is almost entirely held in captivity. Captive breeding has increased the number of pronghorns from 25 founders in 1997 to around 700 individuals today, but it is unclear how the genetic diversity of the captive herd may have changed over time. We therefore generated and analysed microsatellite data spanning 2009–2021. We found a decline in heterozygosity and an increase in the proportion of inbred individuals over time. However, these trends appear to have abated in response to a genetically informed selective breeding attempt undertaken in 2018. We also reconstructed the recent demographic history of the peninsular pronghorn, revealing two sequential population declines putatively linked to the desertification of the Baja California peninsula around 6,000 years ago, and hunting and habitat loss around 500 years ago. Our results provide insights into the genetic diversity of an endangered antelope and highlight the potential for selective breeding to have positive conservation outcomes.