Kristin Leus

Captive breeding and conservation

Abstract Captive breeding is one of a myriad of tools at the disposal of conservationists. It can fulfil specific tasks that should be an integral part of the overall conservation action plan for a species. Captive breeding and other types of intensive management of individuals and populations often become necessary when human caused threats (habitat destruction, exploitation etc.) have caused the population of a species to become so small and fragmented that even if the human caused threats could be magically reversed, the species would still have a high probability of extinction purely due to random demographic and genetic events, environmental variation and catastrophes; or when the continuing, unchecked decline in population size indicates that this will soon become the case. Provided sufficient knowledge on the biology and husbandry of the species exists, breeding individuals in the relative safety of captivity, under expert care and sound management may provide an insurance against extinction, and/or a stock for reintroduction or reinforcement efforts, and/or opportunities for education, raising of awareness, scientific and husbandry research and other contributions to conservation. Important challenges include recognising when “the time is right”, identifying the precise role of the captive breeding efforts within the overall conservation action plan, setting realistic targets in terms of required time spans, population sizes, founder numbers, resources etc., ensuring sound management and cooperation and developing much needed new technical methods and tools. The above is illustrated with examples from the Arabian Peninsula.

The Arabian Leopard Panthera pardus nimr conservation breeding programme

Abstract Captive breeding has the potential to play a pivotal role in conserving threatened species, among others by providing a healthy “safety net” population with which to buffer dwindling numbers in the wild. The Arabian Leopard Panthera pardus nimr is Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Captive breeding is an essential component of conservation for this species. Many experts are of the opinion that the chances for survival of the Arabian Leopard in the wild are much reduced without the potential for reintroduction of animals. The captive breeding programme has been operating on a regional level since 1999, although the first Arabian Leopards registered in the studbook were caught in 1985. The current living population consists of 42 males, 32 females, and three unsexed leopards; nineteen are wild caught (of which 3 are siblings) and a substantial number of these do not actively participate in the breeding programme. The program focuses on ensuring a genetically sound population that closely resembles the wild population. Current and predicted trends within the population are compared with recommended trends and graphically illustrated using dedicated population management software, PM2000.

Chapter 19 – The Global Captive Population of the Red Panda – Possibilities for the Future

Publisher Summary This chapter investigates the potential long-term future strategies for the captive populations of the two subspecies i.e. A. f. styani and A. f. fulgens. Most of the red pandas in captivity worldwide are part of regional, cooperative, science-based captive-breeding programmes that function within their respective regional zoo and aquarium associations. The majority of the Ailurus fulgens fulgens captive population taking part in cooperative breeding programmes lives in Europe and North America, with smaller populations in Australia and New Zealand, South Africa, India, and Japan. The managed section of the Ailurus fulgens styani global captive population is spread over two subpopulations in North America and Japan. A sizeable number of A. f. styani and A. f. fulgens live in Chinese zoos, but the individuals in the latter subpopulation are not yet cooperatively managed. There are many different ways in which an ex situ population can directly contribute to the conservation of the taxon in question, for example, by: providing a genetically and demographically sustainable backup population for the wild population; functioning as a source for individuals for reintroduction or supplementation; being the source for long-term gene and biomaterial banking; and being the subject of research on biological and ecological questions relevant to in situ conservation. Depending on the particular situation of the species in question, the relative importance of each of these components will vary.

Synchronous diversification of Sulawesi's iconic artiodactyls driven by recent geological events

The high degree of endemism on Sulawesi has previously been suggested to have vicariant origins, dating back to 40 Ma. Recent studies, however, suggest that much of Sulawesis fauna assembled over the last 15 Myr. Here, we test the hypothesis that more recent uplift of previously submerged portions of land on Sulawesi promoted diversification and that much of its faunal assemblage is much younger than the island itself. To do so, we combined palaeogeographical reconstructions with genetic and morphometric datasets derived from Sulawesis three largest mammals: the babirusa, anoa and Sulawesi warty pig. Our results indicate that although these species most likely colonized the area that is now Sulawesi at different times (14 Ma to 2–3 Ma), they experienced an almost synchronous expansion from the central part of the island. Geological reconstructions indicate that this area was above sea level for most of the last 4 Myr, unlike most parts of the island. We conclude that emergence of land on Sulawesi (approx. 1–2 Myr) may have allowed species to expand synchronously. Altogether, our results indicate that the establishment of the highly endemic faunal assemblage on Sulawesi was driven by geological events over the last few million years.

The effect of inbreeding on infant mortality in captive bonobos (Pan paniscus), determined from DNA analysis of hair samples [Abstract]

Folia Primatol 2008;79:305–401 DOI: 10.1159/000137690 2nd Congress of the European Federation for Primatology Prague, September 3–7, 2007 Editors: Vaclav Vancata and Marina Vancatova, Prague, Czech Republic Do Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus apella) Deal with Tokens as They Do with Real Food? Elsa Addessi a , Alessandra Mancini a, b , Lara Crescimbene a, b , Elisabetta Visalberghi a a Unit of Cognitive Primatology and Primate Centre, Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, CNR, Rome, b Università La Sapienza, Rome, Italy E-Mail: elsa.addessi@istc.cnr.it