Reserves Maintain high diversity and abundance Attract human populations Why?

Bushmeat In Africa, forest referred to as “the bush” Meat derived from wildlife = bushmeat Subsistence, trading: multi-billion $/yr in Africa –↑ human population, poverty, food insecurity –Private extractive industries facilitate access –Low government capacity for enforcement Studies show majority is unsustainable, threatens conservation goals

Project for Ecosystem Management of the Peripheral Zone of the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park (PROGEPP) Government of Congo – WCS Congo – Private timber company – Communities No snare hunting No hunting of legally protected species No bushmeat export

Wildlife Trade Trade and exchange of wildlife and wildlife products made from them Not all sustainable: leads to quick decline of many species Since 1970, 90% of world’s rhinos gone –Horns for medicinal purposes or dagger handles 12,000 African elephants killed annually for domestic markets

Annual World Trade in Selected Wildlife & Plants Product At least Primates (live) 40,000 Birds (live) 3,000,000 Ornamental fish 350,000,000 Furs 40,000,000 Reptile skins 20,000,000 Reptiles (live) 100,000,000 Coral (raw) 1,000 tons Cacti 10,000,000 Orchids 2,000,000 (Henley 1995)

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Aim: to ensure international trade of species does not threaten their survival 1975 – IUCN Voluntary Listed species decided upon by member countries –Spp threatened with extinction Spp may be threatened through trade –Spp not globally threatened but member country asked for help in protection

Why are Some Species Rare? Body Size Trophic position Geographic distribution –islands –endemics Degree of ecological specialization –niche width Reproductive rate Recentcy speciation

Why are Rare Species Prone to Extinction? Demographic Stochasticity –By chance alone population fluctuates in growth rate and hence change in size from one year to the next –When population is small, extinction can occur with relatively high probability even if chances of survival and successful reproduction are high

Why are Rare Species Prone to Extinction? Environmental Stochasticity –random series of environmental changes –a couple of bad years in a row can be especially devastating to rare populations El Niño and Alala –Poor reproduction, even in captivity –Compounding effect of predators (Io) »specializing on crows more?

Why are Rare Species Prone to Extinction? Genetic Problems –Difficulty Finding Mates –Genetic Drift – chance alterations in small populations: bottlenecks and founder effects Inbreeding Depression –Close relatives breed, heterozygosity goes down because they share many alleles, semilethal recessives are expressed more frequently –Random Changes in Phenotype –Decreased Genetic Variance

What is the historical pattern of extinction? Five major mass extinctions through geologic time –Late Permian--formation of Pangea, loss of shallows, many marine organism extinctions (Schopf 1974) Loss of Dinos Mostly Marine Shallows (Myers 1997)

Causes of Historic Extinctions are Varied Meteors Continental Drift Humans –Pattern of extinctions during last 30,000 years (late Pleistocene) closely matches pattern of human colonization

Human Occupation of Earth (Diamond Guns, Germs, and Steel)

So, Extinction is Natural, but Current Episode is Unusual Estimated to be million species on earth –This present extinction rate is 10,000x greater than background rate through geologic time (Nott et al. 1995)

How Many Extinctions Have Been Documented in last 400 years? Total of 611 species completely extinct (30 more extinct in the wild but survive in captivity) Mammals 86 (3) Birds 104 (4) Reptiles 20 (1) Amphibians 5 (0) Fishes 81 (11) Molluscs 230 (9) Crustaceans 9 (1) Insects 72 (1) Other inverts 4 (0)

(Pimm et al. 1995; Chapin et al 2000) Current extinction risk

Distribution of Imperiled Species by Ecoregion Number of Species Number of Endemic Imperiled Species > > Source: Precious Heritage (2000) © TNC, NatureServe

Vulnerable Orders Loss of all representatives of an Order would be extreme pruning of tree of life Mammal orders at risk –e.g. elephant, monotremes Bird orders at risk –e.g. cranes Reptiles –e.g. tuatara

Endangered Species Preservation Act (1966) 1st attempt to address species endangerment comprehensively Determined the wildlife facing extinction in the U.S. and sponsored research on those species “Taking” of endangered species prohibited only on NWR Take = harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct Relatively weak legislation but good foundation Endangered Species Conservation Federal Level

Endangered Species Conservation Act (1969) Expanded 1966 Act: includes all vertebrates and some invertebrates in danger of “worldwide extinction” Prohibits importation or sale of endangered species or their products Addition of foreign species to the U.S. list Leads to the formation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES, 1973) Endangered Species Conservation Federal Level

Endangered Species Act (ESA, 1973) Extends protection to plants Stresses maintaining integrity of the ecosystems Goal = “recover” listed species Prohibits federal agencies from authorizing, funding, or carrying out any action that would jeopardize a listed species or destroy or modify its "critical habitat" Distinctions made between threatened and endangered Day to day implementation falls to USFWS and NOAA Endangered Species Conservation Federal Level

Endangered Species Act Endangered species: an animal or plant species in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range Threatened species: an animal or plant species likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range

Steps in Classification and Conservation Petition Process Classification Recovery Team Recovery Plan Critical habitat Implement Recovery Plan Monitor populations Re-classify or de-list Endangered Species Act

So, What Do We Do? Use Scientific Method to Identify Threat Determine Spatial Extent of Protection REMOVE THREAT Release Probe to Test if Threat is Removed Captive Breeding Monitor Recovery Restock Manage in situ Set up Reserves ?

Removing threat of conservation reliant species Modify habitat Control of invasives Use of prescribed fire to maintain suitable habitat Restrict grazing or public access Modify interactions Predator control Limited translocations to maintain genetic diversity

Endangered Species Management Political Considerations Land Use Legal Constraints Competition With Other Wildlife and People Biological Knowledge Limited Habitat Limited Breeding Population Constraints on Endangered Species Management