Reintroduction objectives, decisions and outcomes: global perspectives from the herpetofauna

Abstract

Reintroductions and other conservation translocations are an important but often controversial form of wildlife management. Some authors have suggested the low success rates may reflect poor planning and decision-making. In this study, we used examples of herpetofaunal reintroductions, published in four volumes of the IUCN's Reintroduction Specialist Group Global Perspectives in Reintroduction Biology, to identify the objectives set by reintroduction practitioners, the indicators of success they choose and the types of difficulties they encounter. We found objectives focused on target species, but also on broader ecological objectives, such as ecosystem restoration, and social and economic aims. Practitioners reported high success rates: however, these referred to a mixture of general objectives, reflecting the fundamental aims of programmes, and technical aspects, such as developing husbandry protocols, that are important only as stepping stones for broader objectives. In some cases, important objectives were not assigned relevant indicators, thus making assessment impossible. Non-biological aspects such as funding dynamics were the most important source of difficulties; however, they were not always openly recognized by assigning relevant objectives and indicators. We argue that the adoption of a more structured approach to decision-making could help in addressing all these issues. In particular, we recommend that where possible, managers should clearly state all relevant objectives and constraints, and distinguish their respective relevance and importance. If such elements are not clearly defined a priori, planning and assessing reintroductions can become difficult or even impossible, increasing the risk of inefficient use of resources.

Making structured decisions for reintroduced populations in the face of uncertainty

“…In fact, many reintroduction decisions are made based on poorly defined objectives (Ewen, Soorae, 2014;Ewen, Walker, 2014) and simple deterministic predictions of the consequences of management alternatives that do not incorporate uncertainty. Uncertainty permeates most components of reintroduction decisions; linguistic uncertainty compromises our meaning at all decision steps causing confusion within management teams, whereas aleatory and epistemic uncertainties mean our knowledge of systems and how they will respond to management are never known with certainty.…”

<b>Conservation of the Southern River Terrapin <I>Batagur affinis</I> (Reptilia: Testudines: Geoemydidae) in Malaysia: a case study involving local community participation</b>

“…Common indicators of successful reintroductions includes positive survival and reproduction rates, establishment of viable Community participation in a Batagur affinis conservation project Chen wild and captive populations, increased population sizes, developed protocols, etc. Non-biological indicators include increased public and local stakeholder awareness and establishment of legal protection for the wildlife (Ewen et al 2014). The only way to carry out a real evaluation of the reintroduction project is by long-term monitoring (Bertolero & Oro 2009).…”

Using Qualitative Disease Risk Analysis for Herpetofauna Conservation Translocations Transgressing Ecological and Geographical Barriers

“…Translocations have become increasingly commonplace in conservation, with an increasing variety of taxonomic groups being moved (Seddon et al 2005) including within the herpetofauna (Germano and Bishop 2009; Ewen et al 2014). Recovery efforts for many amphibian species have been reliant on translocation as a recovery tool (Griffiths and Pavajeau 2008).…”