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Kovach AI, Cheeseman AE, Cohen JB, Rittenhouse CD, Whipps CM. Separating Proactive Conservation from Species Listing Decisions. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2022; 70:710-729. [PMID: 36100759 PMCID: PMC9470069 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-022-01713-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Proactive Conservation is a paradigm of natural resource management in the United States that encourages voluntary, collaborative efforts to restore species before they need to be protected through government regulations. This paradigm is widely used to conserve at-risk species today, and when used in conjunction with the Policy for Evaluation of Conservation Efforts (PECE), it allows for successful conservation actions to preclude listing of species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Despite the popularity of this paradigm, and recent flagship examples of its use (e.g., greater sage grouse, Centrocercus urophasianus), critical assessments of the outcomes of Proactive Conservation are lacking from the standpoint of species status and recovery metrics. Here, we provide such an evaluation, using the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), heralded as a success of Proactive Conservation efforts in the northeastern United States, as a case study. We review the history and current status of the species, based on the state of the science, in the context of the Conservation Initiative, and the 2015 PECE decision not to the list the species under the ESA. In addition to the impacts of the PECE decision on the New England cottontail conservation specifically, our review also evaluates the benefits and limits of the Proactive Conservation paradigm more broadly, and we make recommendations for its role in relation to ESA implementation for the future of at-risk species management. We find that the status and assurances for recovery under the PECE policy, presented at the time of the New England cottontail listing decision, were overly optimistic, and the status of the species has worsened in subsequent years. We suggest that use of PECE to avoid listing may occur because of the perception of the ESA as a punitive law and a misconception that it is a failure, although very few listed species have gone extinct. Redefining recovery to decouple it from delisting and instead link it to probability of persistence under recommended conservation measures would remove some of the stigma of listing, and it would strengthen the role of Species Status Assessments in endangered species conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrienne I Kovach
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA.
| | - Amanda E Cheeseman
- South Dakota State University, Natural Resource Management, Brookings, SD, USA
| | - Jonathan B Cohen
- Department of Environmental Biology, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Chadwick D Rittenhouse
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Connecticut, Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Center, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Christopher M Whipps
- Department of Environmental Biology, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY, USA
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Bauer ML, O'Brien KM, Kovach AI. Can at‐risk species serve as effective conservation surrogates? Case study in northeastern
US
shrublands. Ecosphere 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L. Bauer
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham New Hampshire USA
| | - Kathleen M. O'Brien
- Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge United States Fish and Wildlife Service Wells Maine USA
| | - Adrienne I. Kovach
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham New Hampshire USA
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Douglas MR, Mussmann SM, Chafin TK, Anthonysamy WJB, Davis MA, Mulligan MP, Schooley RL, Louis W, Douglas ME. Population connectivity in voles (Microtus sp.) as a gauge for tall grass prairie restoration in midwestern North America. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0260344. [PMID: 34882713 PMCID: PMC8659414 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecological restoration can promote biodiversity conservation in anthropogenically fragmented habitats, but effectiveness of these management efforts need to be statistically validated to determine ’success.’ One such approach is to gauge the extent of recolonization as a measure of landscape permeability and, in turn, population connectivity. In this context, we estimated dispersal and population connectivity in prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster; N = 231) and meadow vole (M. pennsylvanicus; N = 83) within five tall-grass prairie restoration sites embedded within the agricultural matrix of midwestern North America. We predicted that vole dispersal would be constrained by the extent of agricultural land surrounding restored habitat patches, spatially isolating vole populations and resulting in significant genetic structure. We first employed genetic assignment tests based on 15 microsatellite DNA loci to validate field-derived species-designations, then tested reclassified samples with multivariate and Bayesian clustering to assay for spatial and temporal genetic structure. Population connectivity was further evaluated by calculating pairwise FST, then potential demographic effects explored by computing migration rates, effective population size (Ne), and average relatedness (r). Genetic species assignments reclassified 25% of initial field identifications (N = 11 M. ochrogaster; N = 67 M. pennsylvanicus). In M. ochrogaster population connectivity was high across the study area, reflected in little to no spatial or temporal genetic structure. In M. pennsylvanicus genetic structure was detected, but relatedness estimates identified it as kin-clustering instead, underscoring social behavior among populations rather than spatial isolation as the cause. Estimates of Ne and r were stable across years, reflecting high dispersal and demographic resilience. Combined, these metrics suggest the agricultural matrix is highly permeable for voles and does not impede dispersal. High connectivity observed confirms that the restored landscape is productive and permeable for specific management targets such as voles and also demonstrates population genetic assays as a tool to statistically evaluate effectiveness of conservation initiatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marlis R. Douglas
- Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Steven M. Mussmann
- Southwestern Native Aquatic Resources and Recovery Center, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Dexter, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Tyler K. Chafin
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, United States of America
| | | | - Mark A. Davis
- Illinois Natural History Survey, University of Illinois, Champaign, Illinois, United States of America
| | | | - Robert L. Schooley
- Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Wade Louis
- Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Gibson City, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Michael E. Douglas
- Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States of America
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McGreevy TJ, Michaelides S, Djan M, Sullivan M, Beltrán DM, Buffum B, Husband T. Location and Species Matters: Variable Influence of the Environment on the Gene Flow of Imperiled, Native and Invasive Cottontails. Front Genet 2021; 12:708871. [PMID: 34659333 PMCID: PMC8511500 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.708871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The environment plays an important role in the movement of individuals and their associated genes among populations, which facilitates gene flow. Gene flow can help maintain the genetic diversity both within and between populations and counter the negative impact of genetic drift, which can decrease the fitness of individuals. Sympatric species can have different habitat preferences, and thus can exhibit different patterns of genetic variability and population structure. The specialist-generalist variation hypothesis (SGVH) predicts that specialists will have lower genetic diversity, lower effective population sizes (Ne), and less gene flow among populations. In this study, we used spatially explicit, individual-based comparative approaches to test SGVH predictions in two sympatric cottontail species and identify environmental variables that influence their gene flow. New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis) is the only native cottontail in the Northeast US, an early successional habitat specialist, and a species of conservation concern. Eastern cottontail (S. floridanus) is an invasive species in the Northeast US and a habitat generalist. We characterized each species' genomic variation by developing double-digest Restriction-site Associated DNA sequence single nucleotide polymorphism markers, quantified their habitat with Geographic Information System environmental variables, and conducted our analyses at multiple scales. Surprisingly, both species had similar levels of genetic diversity and eastern cottontail's Ne was only higher than New England cottontail in one of three subregions. At a regional level, the population clusters of New England cottontail were more distinct than eastern cottontail, but the subregional levels showed more geographic areas of restricted gene flow for eastern cottontail than New England cottontail. In general, the environmental variables had the predicted effect on each species' gene flow. However, the most important environmental variable varied by subregion and species, which shows that location and species matter. Our results provide partial support for the SGVH and the identification of environmental variables that facilitate or impede gene flow can be used to help inform management decisions to conserve New England cottontail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas J McGreevy
- Department of Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | | | - Mihajla Djan
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
| | - Mary Sullivan
- USDA Agricultural Research Service, National Cold Water Marine Aquaculture Center, Kingston, RI, United States
| | - Diana M Beltrán
- Department of Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | - Bill Buffum
- Department of Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | - Thomas Husband
- Department of Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
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7
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Ward JS, Williams SC. Influence of Deer Hunting and Residual Stand Structure on Tree Regeneration in Deciduous Forests. WILDLIFE SOC B 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/wsb.1120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey S. Ward
- Department of Forestry and Horticulture The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station 123 Huntington Street New Haven CT 06511 USA
| | - Scott C. Williams
- Department of Forestry and Horticulture The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station 123 Huntington Street New Haven CT 06511 USA
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McNeil DJ, Rodewald AD, Ruiz‐Gutierrez V, Johnson KE, Strimas‐Mackey M, Petzinger S, Robinson OJ, Soto GE, Dhondt AA, Larkin JL. Multiscale drivers of restoration outcomes for an imperiled songbird. Restor Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Darin J. McNeil
- Department of Natural Resources Cornell University Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
- Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
- Department of Entomology Pennsylvania State University State College PA 16803 U.S.A
| | - Amanda D. Rodewald
- Department of Natural Resources Cornell University Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
- Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
| | | | - Kirsten E. Johnson
- Department of Biology Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana PA 15705 U.S.A
| | | | | | | | - Gerardo E. Soto
- Department of Natural Resources Cornell University Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
- Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
| | - Andre A. Dhondt
- Department of Natural Resources Cornell University Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
- Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Ithaca NY 14850 U.S.A
| | - Jeffery L. Larkin
- Department of Biology Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana PA 15705 U.S.A
- American Bird Conservancy The Plains VA 20198 U.S.A
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Bauer ML, Ferry B, Holman H, Kovach AI. Monitoring a New England Cottontail Reintroduction with Noninvasive Genetic Sampling. WILDLIFE SOC B 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/wsb.1069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L. Bauer
- Department of Natural Resources and the EnvironmentUniversity of New Hampshire Durham NH 03824 USA
| | - Brett Ferry
- New Hampshire Fish and Game Concord NH 03301 USA
| | - Heidi Holman
- New Hampshire Fish and Game Concord NH 03301 USA
| | - Adrienne I. Kovach
- Department of Natural Resources and the EnvironmentUniversity of New Hampshire Durham NH 03824 USA
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Fenderson LE, Kovach AI, Llamas B. Spatiotemporal landscape genetics: Investigating ecology and evolution through space and time. Mol Ecol 2019; 29:218-246. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.15315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2019] [Revised: 09/22/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lindsey E. Fenderson
- Australian Centre for Ancient DNA School of Biological Sciences Environment Institute University of Adelaide Adelaide South Australia Australia
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham NH USA
| | - Adrienne I. Kovach
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham NH USA
| | - Bastien Llamas
- Australian Centre for Ancient DNA School of Biological Sciences Environment Institute University of Adelaide Adelaide South Australia Australia
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Hierarchical population structure of a rare lagomorph indicates recent fragmentation has disrupted metapopulation function. CONSERV GENET 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10592-019-01206-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Kristensen TV, Kovach AI. Spatially explicit abundance estimation of a rare habitat specialist: implications for
SECR
study design. Ecosphere 2018. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.2217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Thea V. Kristensen
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham New Hampshire 03824 USA
| | - Adrienne I. Kovach
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment University of New Hampshire Durham New Hampshire 03824 USA
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Algeo TP, Slate D, Caron RM, Atwood T, Recuenco S, Ducey MJ, Chipman RB, Palace M. Modeling Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Habitat Connectivity to Identify Potential Corridors for Rabies Spread. Trop Med Infect Dis 2017; 2:E44. [PMID: 30270901 PMCID: PMC6082097 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed2030044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2017] [Revised: 08/07/2017] [Accepted: 08/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services National Rabies Management Program has conducted cooperative oral rabies vaccination (ORV) programs since 1997. Understanding the eco-epidemiology of raccoon (Procyon lotor) variant rabies (raccoon rabies) is critical to successful management. Pine (Pinus spp.)-dominated landscapes generally support low relative raccoon densities that may inhibit rabies spread. However, confounding landscape features, such as wetlands and human development, represent potentially elevated risk corridors for rabies spread, possibly imperiling enhanced rabies surveillance and ORV planning. Raccoon habitat suitability in pine-dominated landscapes in Massachusetts, Florida, and Alabama was modeled by the maximum entropy (Maxent) procedure using raccoon presence, and landscape and environmental data. Replicated (n = 100/state) bootstrapped Maxent models based on raccoon sampling locations from 2012⁻2014 indicated that soil type was the most influential variable in Alabama (permutation importance PI = 38.3), which, based on its relation to landcover type and resource distribution and abundance, was unsurprising. Precipitation (PI = 46.9) and temperature (PI = 52.1) were the most important variables in Massachusetts and Florida, but these possibly spurious results require further investigation. The Alabama Maxent probability surface map was ingested into Circuitscape for conductance visualizations of potential areas of habitat connectivity. Incorporating these and future results into raccoon rabies containment and elimination strategies could result in significant cost-savings for rabies management here and elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy P Algeo
- USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, National Rabies Management Program, Concord, NH 03301, USA.
| | - Dennis Slate
- USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, National Rabies Management Program, Concord, NH 03301, USA.
| | - Rosemary M Caron
- Department of Health Management and Policy, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA.
| | - Todd Atwood
- USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, CO 80521, USA.
| | - Sergio Recuenco
- National Center for Public Health (Insitituto Nacional de Salud), Capac Yupanqui 1400, Jesus Maria, Lima 15073, Peru.
| | - Mark J Ducey
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA.
| | - Richard B Chipman
- USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, National Rabies Management Program, Concord, NH 03301, USA.
| | - Michael Palace
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA.
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Milanesi P, Holderegger R, Bollmann K, Gugerli F, Zellweger F. Three-dimensional habitat structure and landscape genetics: a step forward in estimating functional connectivity. Ecology 2017; 98:393-402. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.1645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2016] [Revised: 10/19/2016] [Accepted: 10/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- P. Milanesi
- Swiss Ornithological Institute; Seerose 1 Sempach 6204 Switzerland
- WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute; Zürcherstrasse 111 Birmensdorf CH-8903 Switzerland
| | - R. Holderegger
- WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute; Zürcherstrasse 111 Birmensdorf CH-8903 Switzerland
- Department of Environmental Systems Science; ETH Zurich; Universitätsstrasse 16 Zurich 8092 Switzerland
| | - K. Bollmann
- WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute; Zürcherstrasse 111 Birmensdorf CH-8903 Switzerland
| | - F. Gugerli
- WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute; Zürcherstrasse 111 Birmensdorf CH-8903 Switzerland
| | - F. Zellweger
- WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute; Zürcherstrasse 111 Birmensdorf CH-8903 Switzerland
- Department of Environmental Systems Science; ETH Zurich; Universitätsstrasse 16 Zurich 8092 Switzerland
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