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The role of behavioral ecology in improving wildlife conservation and management has been the subject of much recent debate. We sought to answer 2 foundational questions about the current use of behavioral knowledge in conservation: To what extent is behavioral knowledge used in wildlife conservation and management, and how does the use of animal behavior differ among conservation fields in both frequency and types of use? We searched the literature for intersections between key fields of animal behavior and conservation and created a systematic heat map (i.e., graphical representation of data where values are represented as colors) to visualize relative efforts. Some behaviors, such as dispersal and foraging, were commonly considered (mean [SE] of 1147.38 [353.11] and 439.44 [108.85] papers per cell, respectively). In contrast, other behaviors, such as learning, social, and antipredatory behaviors were rarely considered (mean [SE] of 33.88 [7.62], 44.81 [10.65], and 22.69 [6.37] papers per cell, respectively). In many cases, awareness of the importance of behavior did not translate into applicable management tools. Our results challenge previous suggestions that there is little association between the fields of behavioral ecology and conservation and reveals tremendous variation in the use of different behaviors in conservation. We recommend that researchers focus on examining underutilized intersections of behavior and conservation themes for which preliminary work shows a potential for improving conservation and management, translating behavioral theory into applicable and testable predictions, and creating systematic reviews to summarize the behavioral evidence within the behavior-conservation intersections for which many studies exist. El papel de la ecología conductual en el mejoramiento de la conservación y el manejo de la fauna ha sido sujeto recientemente a muchas discusiones. Buscamos responder dos preguntas fundamentales acerca del uso actual del conocimiento conductual en la conservación: ¿Hasta qué punto se utiliza el conocimiento conductual en la conservación y manejo de la fauna y cómo difiere el uso del comportamiento animal, tanto en frecuencia como en tipos de uso, entre las áreas de conservación? En la literatura buscamos intersecciones entre áreas clave de la conservación y el comportamiento animal y creamos un mapa sistemático de calor (es decir, una representación gráfica de los datos en la que los valores se representan con colores) para visualizar los esfuerzos relativos. Algunos comportamientos, como la dispersión y el forrajeo, se consideraron como comunes (media [SE] de 114.38 [353.11] y 439.44 [108.85] artículos por celda, respectivamente). En contraste, otros comportamientos como el aprendizaje y las conductas sociales y anti-depredadores se consideraron como raras (media [SE] de 33.88 [7.62], 44.81 [10.65] y 22.69 [6.37] artículos por celda, respectivamente). En muchos casos, la detección de la importancia del comportamiento no se tradujo en una herramienta aplicable de manejo. Nuestros resultados presentan un reto a las sugerencias previas de que existe poca asociación entre las áreas de la ecología conductual y la conservación y revelan una variación tremenda en el uso de diferentes comportamientos dentro de la conservación. Recomendamos que los investigadores se enfoquen en examinar intersecciones sub-utilizadas de temas de comportamiento y conservación para los que el trabajo preliminar muestre un potencial para mejorar la conservación y el manejo; traduzcan la teoría conductual a predicciones aplicables y evaluables; y creen revisiones sistemáticas para resumir la evidencia conductual dentro las intersecciones de comportamiento-conservación para las que existen muchos estudios.

Ex situ conservation strategies for threatened species often require long-term commitment and financial investment to achieve management objectives. We present a framework that considers the decision to adopt ex situ management for a target species as the end point of several linked decisions. We used a decision tree to intuitively represent the logical sequence of decision making. The first decision is to identify the specific management actions most likely to achieve the fundamental objectives of the recovery plan, with or without the use of ex-situ populations. Once this decision has been made, one decides whether to establish an ex situ population, accounting for the probability of success in the initial phase of the recovery plan, for example, the probability of successful breeding in captivity. Approaching these decisions in the reverse order (attempting to establish an ex situ population before its purpose is clearly defined) can lead to a poor allocation of resources, because it may restrict the range of available decisions in the second stage. We applied our decision framework to the recovery program for the threatened spotted tree frog (Litoria spenceri) of southeastern Australia. Across a range of possible management actions, only those including ex situ management were expected to provide >50% probability of the species' persistence, but these actions cost more than use of in situ alternatives only. The expected benefits of ex situ actions were predicted to be offset by additional uncertainty and stochasticity associated with establishing and maintaining ex situ populations. Naïvely implementing ex situ conservation strategies can lead to inefficient management. Our framework may help managers explicitly evaluate objectives, management options, and the probability of success prior to establishing a captive colony of any given species. Las estrategias de conservación ex situ para las especies amenazadas generalmente requieren de un compromiso a largo plazo y la inversión financiera para alcanzar objetivos de manejo. Diseñamos un marco de trabajo que considera la decisión de adoptar el manejo ex situ para las especies focales como el punto final de varias decisiones enlazadas. Usamos un árbol de decisiones para representar de manera intuitiva la secuencia lógica de la toma de decisiones. La primera decisión consiste en identificar las acciones de manejo específicas con mayor probabilidad de alcanzar los objetivos fundamentales del plan de recuperación, con o sin el uso de poblaciones ex situ. Una vez que esta decisión ha sido tomada, se decide si se establece o no una población ex situ tomando en cuenta la probabilidad de éxito de la fase inicial del plan de recuperación, como la probabilidad de la reproducción exitosa en cautiverio. Trabajar con estas decisiones en el orden inverso (intentar establecer una población ex situ antes de que su propósito esté definido claramente) puede derivar en una mala asignación de los recursos, ya que esto puede restringir el rango de decisiones disponibles en la segunda etapa. Aplicamos nuestro marco de trabajo de decisiones en el programa de recuperación de la rana arborícola moteada (Littoria spencer) del sureste de Australia, una especie amenazada. A lo largo de un rango de acciones de manejo posibles, sólo de aquellas que incluyeron el manejo ex situ se esperó que proporcionaran >50 % de probabilidad de de persistencia de la especie, pero estas acciones cuestan más que sólo usar alternativas in situ. Se pronosticó que los beneficios esperados de las acciones ex situ serían compensados con la incertidumbre adicional y los procesos estocásticos asociados con el establecimiento y mantenimiento de las poblaciones ex situ. Implementar ingenuamente estrategias de conservación ex situ puede llevar al manejo ineficiente. Nuestro marco de trabajo puede ayudar a los manejadores a evaluar explícitamente los objetivos, opciones de manejo y la probabilidad de éxito previo al establecimiento de una colonia cautiva de cualquier especie dada.

The global amphibian crisis has resulted in renewed interest in captive breeding as a conservation tool for amphibians. Although captive breeding and reintroduction are controversial management actions, amphibians possess a number of attributes that make them potentially good models for such programs. We reviewed the extent and effectiveness of captive breeding and reintroduction programs for amphibians through an analysis of data from the Global Amphibian Assessment and other sources. Most captive breeding and reintroduction programs for amphibians have focused on threatened species from industrialized countries with relatively low amphibian diversity. Out of 110 species in such programs, 52 were in programs with no plans for reintroduction that had conservation research or conservation education as their main purpose. A further 39 species were in programs that entailed captive breeding and reintroduction or combined captive breeding with relocations of wild animals. Nineteen species were in programs with relocations of wild animals only. Eighteen out of 58 reintroduced species have subsequently bred successfully in the wild, and 13 of these species have established self-sustaining populations. As with threatened amphibians generally, amphibians in captive breeding or reintroduction programs face multiple threats, with habitat loss being the most important. Nevertheless, only 18 out of 58 reintroduced species faced threats that are all potentially reversible. When selecting species for captive programs, dilemmas may emerge between choosing species that have a good chance of surviving after reintroduction because their threats are reversible and those that are doomed to extinction in the wild as a result of irreversible threats. Captive breeding and reintroduction programs for amphibians require long-term commitments to ensure success, and different management strategies may be needed for species earmarked for reintroduction and species used for conservation research and education.

Global amphibian declines are one of the biggest challenges currently facing the conservation community, and captive breeding is one way to address this crisis. Using information from the International Species Information System zoo network, we examined trends in global zoo amphibian holdings across species, zoo region, and species geographical region of origin from 1994 to 2014. These trends were compared before and after the 2004 Global Amphibian Assessment to assess whether any changes occurred and whether zoo amphibian conservation effort had increased. The numbers of globally threatened species (GTS) and their proportional representation in global zoo holdings increased and this rate of increase was significantly greater after 2004. North American, European, and Oceanian GTS were best represented in zoos globally, and proportions of Oceanian GTS held increased the most since 2004. South American and Asian GTS had the lowest proportional representation in zoos. At a regional zoo level, European zoos held the lowest proportions of GTS, and this proportion did not increase after 2004. Since 1994, the number of species held in viable populations has increased, and these species are distributed among more institutions. However, as of 2014, zoos held 6.2% of globally threatened amphibians, a much smaller figure than for other vertebrate groups and one that falls considerably short of the number of species for which ex situ management may be desirable. Although the increased effort zoos have put into amphibian conservation over the past 20 years is encouraging, more focus is needed on ex situ conservation priority species. This includes building expertise and capacity in countries that hold them and tracking existing conservation efforts if the evidence‐based approach to amphibian conservation planning at a global level is to be further developed.

Some species have insufficient defenses against climate change, emerging infectious diseases, and non-native species because they have not been exposed to these factors over their evolutionary history, and this can decrease their likelihood of persistence. Captive breeding programs are sometimes used to reintroduce individuals back into the wild; however, successful captive breeding and reintroduction can be difficult because species or populations often cannot coexist with non-native pathogens and herbivores without artificial selection. In captive breeding programs, breeders can select for host defenses that prevent or reduce pathogen or herbivore burden (i.e., resistance) or traits that limit the effects of parasitism or herbivory on host fitness (i.e., tolerance). We propose that selection for host tolerance may enhance the success of reintroduction or translocation because tolerant hosts generally have neutral effects on introduced pathogens and herbivores. The release of resistant hosts would have detrimental effects on their natural enemies, promoting rapid evolution to circumvent the host resistance that may reduce the long-term probability of persistence of the reintroduced or translocated species. We examined 2 case studies, one on the pathogenic amphibian chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis [Bd]) and the other on the herbivorous cactus moth (Cactoblastis cactorum) in the United States, where it is not native. In each case study, we provide recommendations for how captive breeders and managers could go about selecting for host tolerance. Selecting for tolerance may offer a promising tool to rescue hosts species from invasiver natural enemies as well as new natural enemies associated with climate change-induced range shifts. Algunas especies no tienen suficientes defensas contra el cambio climático, enfermedades infecciosas emergentes y especies no nativas porque no han sido expuestas a estos factores a lo largo de su historia evolutiva, y esto puede disminuir su probabilidad de persistencia. El éxito de la reproducción en cautiverio y de la reintroducción puede ser difícil porque las especies o poblaciones a menudo no pueden coexistir con patógenos y herbívoros no nativos sin selección artificial. En programas de reproducción en cautiverio, los criadores pueden seleccionar defensas que prevengan infecciones o herbivoría o que reducen la carga de patógenos o herbívoros atacando directamente al patógeno o herbívoro (i.e., resistencia) o atributos que limitan los efectos del parasitismo o la herbivoría sobre la adaptabilidad del huésped (i.e., tolerancia). Proponemos que la selección de tolerancia del huésped puede incrementar el éxito de los programas de reintroducción o translocación. Nuestra hipótesis es que los huéspedes tolerantes generalmente tienen efectos neutros sobre patógenos y herbívoros introducidos. En contraste, planteamos la hipótesis que los huéspedes resistentes tienen efectos perjudiciales sobre los patógenos y herbívoros porque promueven la evolución rápida para sortear la resistencia del huésped, lo cual puede reducir la probabilidad de persistencia a largo plazo de la especie reintroducida o translocada. Examinamos dos casos de estudio, uno en el hongo quitridio patógeno de anfibios (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis [Bd]) y el otro en la polilla herbívora (Cactoblastis cactorum) en los Estados Unidos, donde es no nativa. Con anfibios, la tolerancia a Bd puede provenir de respuestas inmunológicas o de atributos fisiológicos que mantienen la función osmorguladora. En cactos, la tolerancia a la herbivoría puede ser mediada por incremento en la producción de brotes o por redistribución de energía de las raíces a la reproducción. El conocimiento de la importancia relativa de la tolerancia de huéspedes versus la resistencia podría tener implicaciones para taxa de plantas y animales amenazados.

Success of captive-breeding programs centers on consistent reproduction among captive animals. However, many individuals do not reproduce even when they are apparently healthy and presented with mates. Mate choice can affect multiple parameters of reproductive success, including mating success, offspring production, offspring survival, and offspring fecundity. We investigated the role of familiarity and preference on reproductive success of female Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) as measured by litter production, litter size, average number of young that emerged from the burrow, and average number of young that survived to 1 year. We conducted these studies on pygmy rabbits at the Oregon Zoo (Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.) and Washington State University (Pullman, Washington, U.S.A.) from February to June 2006, 2007, and 2008. Before mating, we housed each female adjacent to 2 males (neighbors). Female preference for each potential mate was determined on the basis of behavioral interactions observed and measured between the rabbits. We compared reproductive success between females mated with neighbor and non-neighbor males and between females mated with preferred and nonpreferred males. Our findings suggest that mating with a neighbor compared with a non-neighbor and mating with a preferred neighbor compared with a nonpreferred neighbor increased reproductive success in female pygmy rabbits. Litter production, average number of young that emerged, and average number of young that survived to 1 year were higher in rabbits that were neighbors before mating than in animals who were not neighbors. Pairing rabbits with a preferred partner increased the probability of producing a litter and was significantly associated with increased litter size. In captive breeding programs, mates are traditionally selected on the basis of genetic parameters to minimize loss of genetic diversity and inbreeding coefficients. Our results suggest that integrating genetic information with social dynamics and behavioral measures of preference may increase the reproductive output of the pygmy rabbit captive-breeding program. Our findings are consistent with the idea that allowing mate choice and familiarity increase the reproductive success of captive-breeding programs for endangered species. El éxito de los programas de reproducción en cautiverio se centra en la reproducción constante de animales cautivos. Sin embargo, muchos individuos no se reproducen aun cuando aparentemente están sanos y tienen parejas. La selección de pareja puede afectar múltiples parámetros del éxito reproductivo, incluyendo el éxito de apareamiento, la producción de crías, la supervivencia de crías y fecundidad de crías. Investigamos el papel de la familiaridad y la preferencia en el éxito reproductivo de conejos pigmeo (Brachylagus idahoensis) medido en términos de la producción de crías, tamaño de camada, número promedio de juveniles que emergieron de la madriguera y el número promedio de juveniles que sobrevivieron hasta 1 año. Realizamos estos estudios en el Zoológico de Oregon (Portland, Oregon, E.U.A.) y en la Universidad Estatal de Washington (Pullman, Washington, E.U.A.) de febrero a junio de 2006, 2007 y 2008. Antes del apareamiento, alojamos a cada hembra con dos machos adyacentes (vecinos). La preferencia de las hembras por cada pareja potencial fue determinada con base en las interacciones conductuales observadas y medidas. Comparamos el éxito reproductivo entre hembras apareadas con machos vecinos y no vecinos y entre hembras apareadas con machos preferidos y no preferidos. Nuestros resultados sugieren que el apareamiento con un vecino comparado con un no vecino y el apareamiento con un vecino preferido comparado con el de un vecino no preferido incrementaron el éxito reproductivo de las hembras de conejo pigmeo. La producción de crías, el número promedio de juveniles que emergieron y el número promedio de juveniles que sobrevivieron hasta 1 año fue mayor en conejos que eran vecinos antes del apareamiento que en animales que no eran vecinos. El apareamiento de conejos con una pareja preferida incrementó la probabilidad de producir una camada y se asoció significativamente con el incremento en el tamaño de la camada. En programas de reproducción en cautiverio, las parejas tradicionalmente son seleccionadas con base en parámetros genéticos para minimizar la pérdida de diversidad genética y los coeficientes de endogamia. Nuestros resultados sugieren que la integración de información genética con la dinámica social y medidas conductuales de preferencia pueden incrementar la producción reproductiva del programa de reproducción de conejo pigmeo en cautiverio. Nuestros resultados son consistentes con la idea de permitir la selección de pareja y la familiaridad para incrementar el éxito reproductivo de programas de reproducción en cautiverio de especies amenazadas.

Captive breeding of animals is widely used to manage endangered species, frequently with the ambition of future reintroduction into the wild. Because this conservation measure is very expensive, we need to optimize decisions, such as when to capture wild animals or release captive-bred individuals into the wild. It is unlikely that one particular strategy will always work best; instead, we expect the best decision to depend on the number of individuals in the wild and in captivity. We constructed a first-order Markov-chain population model for two populations, one captive and one wild, and we used stochastic dynamic programming to identify optimal state-dependent strategies. The model recommends unique sequences of optimal management actions over several years. A robust rule of thumb for species that can increase faster in captivity than in the wild is to capture the entire wild population whenever the wild population is below a threshold size of 20 females. This rule applies even if the wild population is growing and under a broad range of different parameter values. Once a captive population is established, it should be maintained as a safety net and animals should be released only if the captive population is close to its carrying capacity. We illustrate the utility of this model by applying it to the Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx). The threshold for capturing the entire Arabian oryx population in the wild is 36 females, and captive-bred individuals should not be released before the captive facilities are at least 85% full.

Reintroduction of captive-reared animals has become increasingly popular in recent decades as a conservation technique, but little is known of how demographic factors affect the success of reintroductions. We believe whether the increase in population persistence associated with reintroduction is sufficient to warrant the cost of rearing and relocating individuals should be considered as well. We examined the trade-off between population persistence and financial cost of a reintroduction program for Crested Coots (Fulica cristata). This species was nearly extirpated from southern Europe due to unsustainable levels of hunting and reduction in amount and quality of habitat. We used a stochastic, stage-based, single-sex, metapopulation model with site-specific parameters to examine the demographic effects of releasing juveniles or adults in each population for a range of durations. We parameterized the model with data from an unsuccessful reintroduction program in which juvenile captive-bred Crested Coots were released between 2000 and 2009. Using economic data from the captive-breeding program, we also determined whether the strategy that maximized abundance coincided with the least expensive strategy. Releasing adults resulted in slightly larger final abundance than the release of nonreproductive juveniles. Both strategies were equally poor in achieving a viable metapopulation, but releasing adults was 2-4 times more expensive than releasing juveniles. To obtain a metapopulation that would be viable for 30 years, fecundity in the wild would need to increase to the values observed in captivity and juvenile survival would need to increase to almost unity. We suggest that the most likely way to increase these vital rates is by increasing habitat quality at release sites. En décadas recientes, la reintroducción de animales criados en cautiverio se ha vuelto cada vez más popular como una técnica de conservación, pero se conoce poco sobre el efecto de factores demográficos sobre el éxito de las reintroducciones. Creemos que también se debe considerar sí el incremento en la persistencia de la población asociada con la reintroducción es suficiente para garantizar el costo de criar y reubicar individuos. Examinamos la compensación entre la persistencia de la población y el costo financiero de un programa de reintroducción de Fulica cristata. Esta especie fue casi extirpada del sur de Europa debido a niveles de cacería no sustentable y la reducción en la cantidad y calidad de hábitat. Utilizamos un modelo metapoblacional estocástico, unisex, basado en etapas con parámetros de sitios específicos para examinar los efectos demográficos de la liberación de juveniles o adultos en cada población en un rango de duraciones. Alimentamos el modelo con datos de un programa de reintroducción no exitoso en el que se liberaron F. cristata juveniles criados en cautiverio entre 2000 y 2009. Mediante datos económicos del programa de reproducción en cautiverio, también determinamos si la estrategia que maximizaba la abundancia coincidía con la estrategia menos costosa. La liberación de adultos resultó en una abundancia final ligeramente mayor que la liberación de juveniles no reproductivos. Ambas estrategias fueron igualmente pobres para lograr una metapoblación viable, pero la liberación de adultos fue 2-4 veces más costosa que la liberación de juveniles. Para alcanzar una metapoblación que fuera viable por 30 años, la fecundidad en el medio natural tendría que incrementar hasta valores observados en cautiverio y la supervivencia de juveniles tendría que incrementar casi hasta la unidad. Sugerimos que la forma más probable de incrementar estas tasas vitales es mediante el incremento de la calidad del hábitat en los sitios de liberación.

Ex situ conservation is of increasing importance to prevent the extinction of endangered animals in the wild. Despite low success rates of reintroduction programs few researchers have investigated empirically the efficacy of captive breeding regimes for the release of captive-bred vertebrates. We used guppies (Poecilia reticulata) from two populations in Trinidad to compare different conservation breeding regimes. The upper Aripo population was chosen for its small effective population size ($N_{e} \\approx 100$) and genetic isolation, which makes it representative of many endangered natural populations. By contrast, the lower Aripo population is a genetically diverse, much larger population ($N_{e} \\approx 2400$). We examined three captive-breeding regimes: (1) inbreeding fish crossed with their full siblings, (2) minimized inbreeding, no consanguineous matings, and (3) control fish crossed at random. We kept pedigree records for all regimes so that we could calculate inbreeding coefficients over four generations. The body size and fertility of guppies was significantly reduced due to inbreeding depression. The genetic load of sterile equivalents was particularly high for the lower Aripo population. Body size also declined due to breeding conditions in the captive environment. After four generations in captivity, the fish were released into a mesocosm in Trinidad. Captive-bred guppies were extremely susceptible to gyrodactylidparasites (58% survival rate) compared with their wild counterparts (96% survival). A reduced level of immunogenetic variation due to inbreeding and lack of exposure to natural parasites may have rendered captive-bred individuals more prone to infectious disease. The threat of disease outbreak is particularly high when naive captive-bred hosts are released in wild populations. Susceptible, captive-bred hosts could facilitate the transmission of parasites throughout the wild population, thus initiating an epidemic. This risk could potentially be reduced by prior exposure to parasites before release and gradual release of captive-bred individuals.

Mate choice by females can introduce difficulties to captive breeding programs because there may be a conflict between the conservation manager's choice of mate (based on random allocation or maximizing heterogeneity) and the females' own preferences, often resulting in incompatibility and aggression. Similar effects are caused by inappropriate social contexts at the time of pairing. We manipulated the social experience of male and female harvest mice (Micromys minutus) to investigate whether we could enhance compatibility between randomly allocated mates by altering female preferences. In one experiment, we used a choice test to identify female preferences between two males and then varied the competitive context of unpreferred males by transferring competitor's scent marks into their cages. The manipulation caused them to increase their investment in a form of olfactory signaling (scent marking), which female rodents use as an indicator of male quality when choosing mates. The manipulation increased their attractiveness relative to the initially preferred male when the choice test was repeated. In a second experiment, we tested the effect of females' familiarity with the odor of males by transfer of male scent marks to female cages. Females preferred familiar males in choice tests and were less aggressive toward them when pairs were introduced than females paired with unfamiliar males. This kind of approach can influence mate choice, and transferring scent marks between cages or collections is an effective and practical behavioral means of improving success in conservation breeding programs.