Breeding biology of captive, reintroduced and wild greater bilbies, Macrotis lagotis (Marsupialia : Peramelidae)

2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 621 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. I. Southgate ◽  
P. Christie ◽  
K. Bellchambers
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Reproductive Output ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Breeding Biology ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
Average Litter Size ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Reintroduced Population ◽  
Intensively Managed

The breeding biology and growth of Macrotis lagotis was investigated using captive stock in Alice Springs and Dubbo and a reintroduced population at Watarrka National Park. Individuals of M. lagotis reached sexual maturity at about six months of age and continued growing until about 18 months old. Pouch life and weaning took approximately 90 days and females produced up to four litters per year. Litters comprised 1–3 young. Average litter size at pouch exit ranged from 1.0 to 1.88, depending on whether animals were studied in captivity or under reintroduced free-range conditions. Females commonly continued breeding past the age of four years and longevity extended to 10 years in captivity. In comparison, the most animals caught in the wild were estimated to be less than 12 months old. Animals in the reintroduced population exhibited a greater reproductive output than the captive populations examined. However, survivorship was far greater for animals in captivity. An intensively managed captive population may achieve a three-fold increase in size in a 12-month period.

A last chance to save the northern white rhino?

Oryx ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kes Hillman-Smith ◽  
Mankoto ma Oyisenzoo ◽  
Fraser Smith
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Ceratotherium Simum ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
White Rhino

The northern subspecies of white rhinoCeratotherium simum cottoniis very close to extinction. Probably fewer than 50 remain in the wild and only 13 are known in captivity. Garamba National Park in northern Zaire contains the only potentially viable group, of 15–20 individuals, and here there is a possibility of action to save them.

scholarly journals Breeding Biology and Success of a Reintroduced Population of the Critically Endangered Puaiohi (Myadestes Palmeri)

The Auk ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 753-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik J. Tweed ◽  
Jeffrey T. Foster ◽  
Bethany L. Woodworth ◽  
William B. Monahan ◽  
Jherime L. Kellerman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
First Record ◽  
Nesting Success ◽  
Breeding Biology ◽  
Rodent Control ◽  
Breeding Behavior ◽  
Adult Females ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Daily Nest Survival ◽  
High Predation ◽  
Reintroduced Population

Abstract The ultimate success of reintroduction programs for endangered species depends on the ability of reintroduced animals to breed in the wild. We studied the nesting success and breeding biology of a reintroduced population of Puaiohi (Myadestes palmeri) on the island of Kaua'i, Hawaii. Thirty-four captive-bred Puaiohi were released into the Alaka'i Swamp in 1999-2001 and monitored using radiotelemetry. Ten females and two males paired with wild and other released birds, including one polygynous trio. From March to September, 31 nests were built. Mean clutch size was 2.0 eggs, daily nest survival was 0.97 ± 0.01 (mean ± SE) and overall nest success was 0.40 ± 0.02. We confirmed predation, most probably by rats (Rattus spp.), as the greatest cause of nest failure, occurring at 38% of active nests with known fates, and causing the death of two nesting adult females. Ground-based rodent control proved ineffective at protecting nest attempts. Successful nests fledged an average of 1.4 young each (n = 10), and 85% of fledglings survived at least two weeks. Importantly, breeding behavior and success were comparable to those of wild Puaiohi. This is the first record of breeding in the wild from captive-bred endangered Hawaiian passerines. The ability of captive-bred Puaiohi to survive and breed successfully in the wild bodes well for future releases of this and other endangered passerines, but high predation rates on nests and nesting females highlights the importance of maintaining and restoring safe habitat for recovery. Biología y Éxito Reproductivo de una Población Reintroducida de Myadestes palmeri, una Especie en Peligro Crítico

scholarly journals Somewhat saved: a captive breeding programme for two endemic Christmas Island lizard species, now extinct in the wild

Oryx ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 171-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Andrew ◽  
Hal Cogger ◽  
Don Driscoll ◽  
Samantha Flakus ◽  
Peter Harlow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Native Species ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Breeding Programme ◽  
Lizard Species ◽  
Christmas Island ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
Captive Breeding Programme ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild

AbstractAs with many islands, Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean has suffered severe biodiversity loss. Its terrestrial lizard fauna comprised five native species, of which four were endemic. These were abundant until at least the late 1970s, but four species declined rapidly thereafter and were last reported in the wild between 2009 and 2013. In response to the decline, a captive breeding programme was established in August 2009. This attempt came too late for the Christmas Island forest skink Emoia nativitatis, whose last known individual died in captivity in 2014, and for the non-endemic coastal skink Emoia atrocostata. However, two captive populations are now established for Lister's gecko Lepidodactylus listeri and the blue-tailed skink Cryptoblepharus egeriae. The conservation future for these two species is challenging: reintroduction will not be possible until the main threats are identified and controlled.

scholarly journals Firefly Translocation: A Case Study of Genetic and Behavioral Evaluation in Thailand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anchana Thancharoen
Keyword(s):  
Success Rate ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Metropolitan Region ◽  
Success Rates ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Threatened Fauna

Conservation translocation is frequently used to conserve the threatened fauna by releasing individuals from the wild or captive populations into a particular area. This approach, however, is not successful in many cases because the translocated populations could not self-sustain in the new habitats. In this chapter, I reviewed the concept of translocation for conservation and the factors associated with the success rate. I used example problems from several cases involving different insect taxa. With its often high potential to mass rear in captivity, captive breeding can be a powerful tool by assuring large population size for insect translocation, which can result in a high success rate. However, genetic consequences from inbreeding and genetic adaptation to captivity can reduce the fitness of the captive population to establish successfully in the wild. Additionally, as the evidence in Japanese fireflies shows, the genetic differences between the translocated and local populations should be considered for a sustainable translocation program. A case study involved genetic and behavioral evaluation of S. aquatilis populations to assess the possibility of including the species for the firefly translocation program in Thailand. Although the results revealed no genetic variation among populations, examination of the variation in flash signals showed that the long-distance population had a longer courtship flash pulse than other populations in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. With no geographical barrier, the light pollution and urbanization are probably important fragmented barriers causing adaptation of flash communication to increase the fitness. As a consequence, firefly translocation should consider flash variation between populations to prevent this potential pre-mating isolation mechanism from resulting in probable lower translocation success rates.

scholarly journals Comparisons of Activity Budgets, Interactions, and Social Structures in Captive and Wild Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1063
Author(s):  
Nodoka Inoue ◽  
Masaki Shimada
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Environmental Enrichment ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Social Grooming ◽  
Activity Budgets ◽  
Mahale Mountains National Park ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Behavior Characteristics ◽  
Zoological Park

Chimpanzees in zoos with sufficient and appropriate environmental enrichment devices are expected to exhibit behaviors, interactions, and societies similar to those in the wild. In this study, we compared the activity budgets of each observed behavior, characteristics of social grooming, and social networks of captive chimpanzees at Tama Zoological Park (Tama) with those of wild chimpanzees at Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania (Mahale), and tested our predictions. We surveyed 16 chimpanzees in both Tama and Mahale and recorded the behaviors and individuals in proximity of each focal individual and social grooming the focal individuals participated in. The proportion of time spent collecting foraging was significantly lower in Tama than in Mahale. Additionally, the percentage of mutual grooming was much higher in Tama than in Mahale. All focal individuals in Mahale performed mutual grooming interactions, including grooming handclasp (GHC) but this was not observed in Tama. The result of a high rate of mutual grooming in chimpanzees in Tama without GHC and the finding that individuals forming the core of their social network are sex independent suggest that chimpanzees placed in an appropriate environmental enrichment have idiosyncratic grooming or social features, even in captivity.

Exogenous corticosterone mimics a late fasting stage in captive Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae)

2011 ◽  
Vol 300 (5) ◽  
pp. R1241-R1249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Spée ◽  
Lorène Marchal ◽  
Anne-Mathilde Thierry ◽  
Olivier Chastel ◽  
Manfred Enstipp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Uric Acid ◽  
Locomotor Activity ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Phase Iii ◽  
High Dose ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Breeding Constraints ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Fasting is part of penguin's breeding constraints. During prolonged fasting, three metabolic phases occur successively. Below a threshold in body reserves, birds enter phase III (PIII), which is characterized by hormonal and metabolic shifts. These changes are concomitant with egg abandonment in the wild and increased locomotor activity in captivity. Because corticosterone (CORT) enhances foraging activity, we investigated the variations of endogenous CORT, and the effects of exogenous CORT on the behavioral, hormonal, and metabolic responses of failed breeder Adélie penguins. Untreated and treated captive male birds were regularly weighed and sampled for blood while fasting, and locomotor activity was recorded daily. Treated birds were implanted with various doses of CORT during phase II. Untreated penguins entering PIII had increased CORT (3.5-fold) and uric acid (4-fold; reflecting protein catabolism) levels, concomitantly with a rise in locomotor activity (2-fold), while prolactin (involved in parental care in birds) levels declined by 33%. In CORT-treated birds, an inverted-U relationship was obtained between CORT levels and locomotor activity. The greatest increase in locomotor activity was observed in birds implanted with a high dose of CORT (C100), locomotor activity showing a 2.5-fold increase, 4 days after implantation to a level similar to that of birds in PIII. Moreover, uric acid levels increased three-fold in C100-birds, while prolactin levels declined by 30%. The experimentally induced rise in CORT levels mimicked metabolic, hormonal, and behavioral changes, characterizing late fasting, thus supporting a role for this hormone in the enhanced drive for refeeding occurring in long-term fasting birds.

scholarly journals A macromutation eliminates colour patterning in captive butterflies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph J. Hanly ◽  
Luca Livraghi ◽  
Christa Heryanto ◽  
W. Owen McMillan ◽  
Chris D. Jiggins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Selection ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Population Demographics ◽  
Autozygosity Mapping ◽  
Animal Populations ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Insect Populations ◽  
Mixed Origin

Captive populations often harbor variation that is not present in the wild due to artificial selection. Recent efforts to map this variation have provided insights into the genetic and molecular basis of variation. Heliconius butterflies display a large array of pattern variants in the wild and the genetic basis of these patterns has been well-described. Here we sought to identify the genetic basis of an unusual pattern variant that is instead found in captivity, the ivory mutant, in which all scales on both the wings and body become white or yellow. Using a combination of autozygosity mapping and coverage analysis from 37 captive individuals, we identify a 78kb deletion at the cortex wing patterning locus as the ivory mutation. This deletion is undetected among 458 wild Heliconius genomes samples, and its dosage explains both homozygous and heterozygous ivory phenotypes found in captivity. The deletion spans a large 5' region of the cortex gene that includes a facultative 5' UTR exon detected in larval wing disk transcriptomes. CRISPR mutagenesis of this exon replicates the wing phenotypes from coding knock-outs of cortex, consistent with a functional role of ivory-deleted elements in establishing scale color fate. Population demographics reveal that the stock giving rise to the ivory mutant has a mixed origin from across the wild range of H. melpomene, and supports a scenario where the ivory mutation occurred after the introduction of cortex haplotypes from Ecuador. Homozygotes for the ivory deletion are inviable, joining 40 other examples of allelic variants that provide heterozygous advantage in animal populations under artificial selection by fanciers and breeders. Finally, our results highlight the promise of autozygosity and association mapping for identifying the genetic basis of aberrant mutations in captive insect populations.

scholarly journals First record of tapeworm Moniezia (Cestoda: Anoplocephalidae) infections in Leopards: Coprological survey of gastrointestinal parasites of wild and captive cats in Sri Lanka

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 9956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vishvapali Kobbekaduwa ◽  
Caroline Fillieux ◽  
Ashan Thududgala ◽  
R.P.V. Jayantha Rajapakse ◽  
Rupika Subashini Rajakaruna
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
National Park ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
First Record ◽  
Gastrointestinal Parasites ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Fecal Samples ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Fragmented Population

Sri Lanka is home to four species of wildcats: Leopard, Fishing Cat, Rusty-spotted Cat and Jungle Cat.  All four, except the Jungle Cat, are listed threatened.  A coprological survey was carried out in 2014 to determine the gastrointestinal (GI) parasites of wild and captive cats in Sri Lanka.  Parasite eggs and cysts were isolated and morphologically identified using iodine smears and a modified salt flotation.  The intensity of infection was quantified using a McMaster counting technique.  A total of 45 fecal samples were analyzed.  Except for the six captive Rusty-spotted Cats, all cats were infected with one or more GI parasites.  The presence of Moniezia sp. in Leopards in the Horton Plains National Park with an intensity of 150–1850 EPG (eggs per gram of feces) was unexpected.  Moniezia is a common GI parasite of ruminants and before our study it had never been recorded in Leopards.  Cross species infection with Moniezia could be possible due to accidental ingestion of cysticercoid infected oribatid mites, the intermediate host which could have been picked up in the pasture while feeding on carcasses.  Among the other parasitic infections in Leopards Toxocara was most common (61.9%) followed by strongyle infections (15.4%).  Of the fecal samples collected from wild Leopards 80.0% were infected with GI parasites while no GI parasites were found in the captive Leopard samples.  The Jungle Cats and the Rusty-spotted Cats sampled were in captivity and only the Jungle Cats were infected with strongyles.  Toxocara was recorded in Leopards and Fishing Cat both in captivity and in the wild.  It is a common GI infection of cats causing morbidity in all age groups and mortality in young animals.  Although parasitic infections of cats may not be a direct reason for a species’ decline, parasitic infections spreading within a small fragmented population could reduce the vitality and numbers and threaten the population further.  This is the first report of GI parasites of wildcats of Sri Lanka and the first record of Moniezia infections in Leopards.

scholarly journals Senescence or selective disappearance? Age trajectories of body mass in wild and captive populations of a small-bodied primate

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1791) ◽  
pp. 20140830 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anni Hämäläinen ◽  
Melanie Dammhahn ◽  
Fabienne Aujard ◽  
Manfred Eberle ◽  
Isabelle Hardy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Evolutionary Process ◽  
Sex Bias ◽  
Extrinsic Mortality ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Demographic Processes ◽  
High Predation ◽  
Dependent Mortality

Classic theories of ageing consider extrinsic mortality (EM) a major factor in shaping longevity and ageing, yet most studies of functional ageing focus on species with low EM. This bias may cause overestimation of the influence of senescent declines in performance over condition-dependent mortality on demographic processes across taxa. To simultaneously investigate the roles of functional senescence (FS) and intrinsic, extrinsic and condition-dependent mortality in a species with a high predation risk in nature, we compared age trajectories of body mass (BM) in wild and captive grey mouse lemurs ( Microcebus murinus ) using longitudinal data (853 individuals followed through adulthood). We found evidence of non-random mortality in both settings. In captivity, the oldest animals showed senescence in their ability to regain lost BM, whereas no evidence of FS was found in the wild. Overall, captive animals lived longer, but a reversed sex bias in lifespan was observed between wild and captive populations. We suggest that even moderately condition-dependent EM may lead to negligible FS in the wild. While high EM may act to reduce the average lifespan, this evolutionary process may be counteracted by the increased fitness of the long-lived, high-quality individuals.

scholarly journals Observations on the Behaviour of the Scarlet Ibis, Eudocimus Ruber, in Artis Zoo, Amsterdam

1985 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. E. Spil ◽  
M. W. van Walstijn ◽  
H. Albrecht
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Biology ◽  
Eudocimus Albus ◽  
Eudocimus Ruber ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
White Ibis

The Scarlet Ibis, Eudocimus ruber (Linnaeus), fam. Threskiornithidae, is the closest relative of the White Ibis, Eudocimus albus (Linnaeus). The two species live in adjoining geographical areas. Nothing is known about the Scarlet Ibis’s breeding biology in the wild and only little about its breeding biology in captivity. A better understanding of the breeding of this species in captivity should help to improve its management and also to elucidate its relationship with its much better known counterpart, the White Ibis.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document