The impacts of a global pandemic on the efficacy and stability of contemporary wildlife conservation: South Africa as a case study.

Conservationists speculated on potential benefits to wildlife of lockdown restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic but voiced concern that restrictions impeded nature conservation. We assessed the effects of lockdown restrictions on biodiversity conservation in South Africa, a biodiverse country with economic inequality and reliance on wildlife resources. We solicited expert opinion using the IUCN's Threats Classification Scheme to structure a questionnaire and illustrated responses with individual case studies from government parastatal and non-governmental conservation organisations. The most highly reported threats were biological resource use, residential/commercial developments, invasive species, and human intrusions. The trends reported by 90 survey respondents were supported by case studies using environmental compliance data from parastatal conservation organisations. Lack of tourism revenue and funding were cited as hindrances to conservation. Mechanisms to prevent environmental degradation in the face of global emergencies must be implemented and 'ring-fenced' to ensure conservation is not a casualty during future global crises.

A framework to measure the wildness of managed large vertebrate populations.

As landscapes continue to fall under human influence through habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing is increasingly being used to mitigate anthropogenic threats and enhance the commercial value of wildlife. Subsequent intensification of management potentially erodes wildness by disembodying populations from landscape-level processes, thereby disconnecting species from natural selection. Tools are needed to measure the degree to which populations of large vertebrate species in formally protected and privately owned wildlife areas are self-sustaining and free to adapt. We devised a framework to measure such wildness based on 6 attributes relating to the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of vertebrates (space, disease and parasite resistance, exposure to predation, exposure to limitations and fluctuations of food and water supply, and reproduction). For each attribute, we set empirical, species-specific thresholds between 5 wildness states based on quantifiable management interventions. We analysed data from 205 private wildlife properties with management objectives spanning ecotourism to consumptive utilization to test the framework on 6 herbivore species representing a range of conservation statuses and commercial values. Wildness scores among species differed significantly, and the proportion of populations identified as wild ranged from 12% to 84%, which indicates the tool detected site-scale differences both among populations of different species and populations of the same species under different management regimes. By quantifying wildness, this framework provides practitioners with standardized measurement units that link biodiversity with the sustainable use of wildlife. Applications include informing species management plans at local scales; standardizing the inclusion of managed populations in red-list assessments; and providing a platform for certification and regulation of wildlife-based economies. Applying this framework may help embed wildness as a normative value in policy and mitigate the shifting baseline of what it means to truly conserve a species.

Un Marco de Trabajo para Medir el Estado Salvaje de Poblaciones de Vertebrados Mayores bajo Manejo Resumen Conforme los paisajes siguen cayendo bajo la influencia del humano por causa de la pérdida del hábitat y la fragmentación, cada vez se usa más el encercado para mitigar las amenazas antropogénicas o incrementar el valor comercial de la fauna. La intensificación subsecuente del manejo tiene el potencial para erosionar el estado salvaje al desincorporar a las poblaciones de los procesos a nivel de paisaje, desconectando así a las especies del proceso de selección natural. Por lo tanto, se necesitan herramientas para medir el grado al cual las poblaciones de especies de vertebrados mayores dentro de áreas de fauna protegidas y privadas son autosostenibles y libres de adaptarse. Diseñamos un marco de trabajo para medir dicho estado salvaje con base en seis atributos relacionados con las dinámicas evolutivas y ecológicas de los vertebrados (espacio, resistencia a las enfermedades y a los parásitos, exposición a la depredación, exposición a las limitaciones y fluctuaciones en las reservas de agua y alimentos, y reproducción). Para cada atributo, establecimos umbrales empíricos y específicos por especie entre cinco estados salvajes basados en las intervenciones de manejo cuantificables. Usamos datos de 205 propiedades privadas de fauna con objetivos de manejo que abarcan desde el ecoturismo hasta el uso para consumo para probar el marco de trabajo en seis especies de herbívoros con una gama de estados de conservación y valores comerciales. Los puntajes de estado salvaje entre las especies difirieron significativamente y la proporción de poblaciones identificadas como salvajes osciló del 12% al 84%, lo que indica que la herramienta detectó diferencias a escala de sitio entre las poblaciones de diferentes especies y las poblaciones de la misma especie bajo diferentes regímenes de manejo. Si cuantificamos el estado salvaje, este marco de trabajo les proporciona a los practicantes las unidades de medida estandarizadas que vinculan a la biodiversidad con el uso sostenible de la fauna. Las aplicaciones de este marco de trabajo incluyen informar a los planes de manejo de las especies a escalas locales; estandarizar la inclusión de las poblaciones manejadas en las evaluaciones de listas rojas; y proporcionar una plataforma para la certificación y regulación de las economías basadas en la fauna. La aplicación de este marco de trabajo puede ayudar a insertar a la fauna como un valor normativo dentro de la política y a mitigar la línea base cambiante de lo que significa conservar verdaderamente a una especie.

Heading for the hills: risk avoidance drives den site selection in African wild dogs.

Compared to their main competitors, African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) have inferior competitive abilities and interspecific competition is a serious fitness-limiting factor. Lions (Panthera leo) are the dominant large carnivore in African savannah ecosystems and wild dogs avoid them both spatially and temporally. Wild dog young are particularly vulnerable and suffer high rates of mortality from lions. Since lions do not utilize all parts of the landscape with an equal intensity, spatial variation in lion densities can be exploited by wild dogs both during their general ranging behaviour, but more specifically when they are confined to a den with vulnerable young. Since patches of rugged terrain are associated with lower lion densities, we hypothesized that these comparatively safe habitats should be selected by wild dogs for denning. We investigated the relationship between the distribution of 100 wild dog den sites and the occurrence of rugged terrain in four wild dog populations located in Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa. A terrain ruggedness index was derived from a 90 m digital elevation model and used to map terrain ruggedness at each site. We compared characteristics of actual and potential (random) den sites to determine how wild dogs select den sites. The distributions of wild dog dens were strongly associated with rugged terrain and wild dogs actively selected terrain that was more rugged than that available on average. The likelihood of encountering lions is reduced in these habitats, minimizing the risk to both adults and pups. Our findings have important implications for the conservation management of the species, especially when assessing habitat suitability for potential reintroductions. The simple technique used to assess terrain ruggedness may be useful to investigate habitat suitability, and even predict highly suitable denning areas, across large landscapes.