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Author |
De Stoppelaire, G.H.; Gillespie, T.W.; Brock, J.C.; Tobin, G.A. |
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Title |
Use of remote sensing techniques to determine the effects of grazing on vegetation cover and dune elevation at Assateague Island National Seashore: impact of horses |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2004 |
Publication |
Environmental Management |
Abbreviated Journal |
Environ Manage |
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Volume |
34 |
Issue |
5 |
Pages |
642-649 |
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Keywords |
Animals; Animals, Wild; Conservation of Natural Resources; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; *Feeding Behavior; *Horses; Maryland; Plants/*growth & development; Population Dynamics; Silicon Dioxide; *Soil |
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Abstract |
The effects of grazing by feral horses on vegetation and dune topography at Assateague Island National Seashore were investigated using color-infrared imagery, lidar surveys, and field measurements. Five pairs of fenced and unfenced plots (300 m2) established in 1993 on sand flats and small dunes with similar elevation, topography, and vegetation cover were used for this study. Color-infrared imagery from 1998 and field measurements from 2001 indicated that there was a significant difference in vegetation cover between the fenced and unfenced plot-pairs over the study period. Fenced plots contained a higher percentage of vegetation cover that was dominated by American beachgrass (Ammophila breviligulata). Lidar surveys from 1997, 1999, and 2000 showed that there were significant differences in elevation and topography between fenced and unfenced plot-pairs. Fenced plots were, on average, 0.63 m higher than unfenced plots, whereas unfenced plots had generally decreased in elevation after establishment in 1993. Results demonstrate that feral horse grazing has had a significant impact on dune formation and has contributed to the erosion of dunes at Assateague Island. The findings suggest that unless the size of the feral horse population is reduced, grazing will continue to foster unnaturally high rates of dune erosion into the future. In order to maintain the natural processes that historically occurred on barrier islands, much larger fenced exclosures would be required to prevent horse grazing. |
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US Geological Survey, Center for Coastal and Watershed Studies, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701, USA. georgia.destoppelaire@my.FWC.com |
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0364-152X |
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PMID:15633024 |
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1896 |
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Baltic, M.; Jenni-Eiermann, S.; Arlettaz, R.; Palme, R. |
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Title |
A noninvasive technique to evaluate human-generated stress in the black grouse |
Type |
Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences |
Abbreviated Journal |
Ann N Y Acad Sci |
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Volume |
1046 |
Issue |
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Pages |
81-95 |
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Keywords |
Adrenocorticotropic Hormone/metabolism; Animals; Bird Diseases/*metabolism; Conservation of Natural Resources; Corticosterone/*metabolism; Ecosystem; Feces/*chemistry; Female; Galliformes/*metabolism; Immunoenzyme Techniques/methods/veterinary; Male; Reproducibility of Results; Stress/metabolism/*veterinary; Tritium/diagnostic use |
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Abstract |
The continuous development of tourism and related leisure activities is exerting an increasingly intense pressure on wildlife. In this study, a novel noninvasive method for measuring stress in the black grouse, an endangered, emblematic species of European ecosystems that is currently declining in several parts of its European range, is tested and physiologically validated. A radiometabolism study and an ACTH challenge test were performed on four captive black grouse (two of each sex) in order to get basic information about the metabolism and excretion of corticosterone and to find an appropriate enzyme-immunoassay (EIA) to measure its metabolites in the feces. Peak radioactivity in the droppings was detected within 1 to 2 hours. Injected (3)H-corticosterone was excreted as polar metabolites and by itself was almost absent. A cortisone-EIA was chosen from among seven tested EIAs for different groups of glucocorticoid metabolites, because it cross-reacted with some of the formed metabolites and best reflected the increase of excreted corticosterone metabolites, after the ACTH challenge test. Concentrations of the metabolites from fecal samples collected from snow burrows of free-ranging black grouse were within the same range as in captive birds. The noninvasive method described may be appropriate for evaluating the stress faced by free-living black grouse populations in the wild, particularly in mountain ecosystems where human disturbance, especially by winter sports, is of increasing conservation concern. |
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Zoological Institute, Division of Conservation Biology, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland |
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0077-8923 |
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PMID:16055845 |
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Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4080 |
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Author |
Moehlman, P.D. |
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Title |
Endangered wild equids |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Scientific American |
Abbreviated Journal |
Sci Am |
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Volume |
292 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
74-81 |
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Keywords |
Africa; Americas; Animals; *Animals, Wild/physiology; Asia; *Conservation of Energy Resources; Environment; *Equidae/physiology; Food Chain; Humans; Male; Reproduction |
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IUCN-The World Conservation Union/Species Survival Commission Equid Specialist Group |
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0036-8733 |
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PMID:15859216 |
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no |
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Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
Serial |
551 |
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Author |
Keay, J.M.; Singh, J.; Gaunt, M.C.; Kaur, T. |
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Title |
Fecal glucocorticoids and their metabolites as indicators of stress in various mammalian species: a literature review |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2006 |
Publication |
Journal of zoo and wildlife medicine : official publication of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians |
Abbreviated Journal |
J Zoo Wildl Med |
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Volume |
37 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
234-244 |
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Keywords |
Animals; *Animals, Wild/metabolism; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid/methods/veterinary; Circadian Rhythm; Conservation of Natural Resources; *Ecosystem; Feces/*chemistry; Glucocorticoids/*analysis/metabolism; Humans; Seasons; Species Specificity; Specimen Handling/methods/veterinary; Stress, Psychological/*metabolism |
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Conservation medicine is a discipline in which researchers and conservationists study and respond to the dynamic interplay between animals, humans, and the environment. From a wildlife perspective, animal species are encountering stressors from numerous sources. With the rapidly increasing human population, a corresponding increased demand for food, fuel, and shelter; habitat destruction; and increased competition for natural resources, the health and well-being of wild animal populations is increasingly at risk of disease and endangerment. Scientific data are needed to measure the impact that human encroachment is having on wildlife. Nonbiased biometric data provide a means to measure the amount of stress being imposed on animals from humans, the environment, and other animals. The stress response in animals functions via glucocorticoid metabolism and is regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Fecal glucocorticoids, in particular, may be an extremely useful biometric test, since sample collection is noninvasive to subjects and, therefore, does not introduce other variables that may alter assay results. For this reason, many researchers and conservationists have begun to use fecal glucocorticoids as a means to measure stress in various animal species. This review article summarizes the literature on many studies in which fecal glucocorticoids and their metabolites have been used to assess stress levels in various mammalian species. Variations between studies are the main focus of this review. Collection methods, storage conditions, shipping procedures, and laboratory techniques utilized by different researchers are discussed. |
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Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech, 0442 Duck Pond Drive, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA |
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1042-7260 |
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PMID:17319120 |
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no |
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refbase @ user @ |
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616 |
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Author |
Robert, N.; Walzer, C.; Ruegg, S.R.; Kaczensky, P.; Ganbaatar, O.; Stauffer, C. |
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Title |
Pathologic findings in reintroduced Przewalski's horses (Equus caballus przewalskii) in southwestern Mongolia |
Type |
Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Journal of zoo and Wildlife Medicine : Official Publication of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians |
Abbreviated Journal |
J Zoo Wildl Med |
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Volume |
36 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
273-285 |
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Keywords |
Animals; Babesiosis/epidemiology/pathology/*veterinary; Cause of Death; Conservation of Natural Resources; Disease Susceptibility/veterinary; Environment; Female; Food Chain; Horse Diseases/*epidemiology/pathology; Horses; Male; Mongolia/epidemiology; Streptococcal Infections/epidemiology/pathology/*veterinary; *Streptococcus equi; Theileriasis/*epidemiology/pathology; Weather |
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The Przewalski's horse (Equus caballus przewalskii) was extinct in the wild by the mid 1960s. The species has survived because of captive breeding only. The Takhin Tal reintroduction project is run by the International Takhi Group; it is one of two projects reintroducing horses to the wild in Mongolia. In 1997 the first harem group was released. The first foals were successfully raised in the wild in 1999. Currently, 63 Przewalski's horses live in Takhin Tal. Little information exists on causes of mortality before the implementation of a disease-monitoring program in 1998. Since 1999, all dead horses recovered (n = 28) have been examined and samples collected and submitted for further investigation. Equine piroplasmosis, a tick-transmitted disease caused by Babesia caballi or Theileria equi, is endemic in Takhin Tal and was identified as the cause of death of four stallions and one stillborn foal. In December 2000, wolf predation was implicated in the loss of several Przewalski's horses. However, thorough clinical, pathologic, and bacteriologic investigations performed on dead and surviving horses of this group revealed lesions compatible with strangles. The extreme Mongolian winter of 2000-2001 is thought to have most probably weakened the horses, making them more susceptible to opportunistic infection and subsequent wolf predation. Other occasional causes of death since 1999 were trauma, exhaustion, wasting, urolithiasis, pneumonia, abortion, and stillbirth. The pathologic examination of the Przewalski's horses did not result in a definitive diagnosis in each case. Several disease factors were found to be important in the initial phase of the reintroduction, which could potentially jeopardize the establishment of a self-sustaining population. |
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Center for Fish and Wildlife Health, Institute of Animal Pathology, University of Berne, Langgass-Strasse 122, CH-3001 Berne, Switzerland |
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1042-7260 |
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Notes |
PMID:17323569 |
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no |
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2023 |
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Author |
Watson, L.H.; Odendaal, H.E.; Barry, T.J.; Pietersen, J. |
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Title |
Population viability of Cape mountain zebra in Gamka Mountain Nature Reserve, South Africa: the influence of habitat and fire |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Biological Conservation |
Abbreviated Journal |
Biol. Conserva. |
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Volume |
122 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
173-180 |
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Mountain zebra; Population viability analysis; Habitat suitability; Fire; Conservation management |
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Abstract |
The small Cape mountain zebra population in Gamka Mountain Nature Reserve represents a third of the entire gene pool of this endangered species and is thus vital for it's conservation. Presently, management of this population is largely hands off, with the belief that it will grow to levels which will allow it to form a source for the mixing of mountain zebra stocks in the future. The growth of this population however, has been slow and we investigated the influence of habitat and fire on this growth. Firstly, we used a diffusion model to perform a population viability analysis. This analysis indicated that the population had a low probability of attaining quasi-extinction in the next 50 years (G = 0.0032). However, our findings indicated that less than 30% of the reserve was suitable for mountain zebra and that the preferred habitat would have to be burnt at unnaturally short intervals to sustain the present growth. We therefore argue that the risk of quasi-extinction to this population is greater than predicted and suggest that management options need to be implemented to reduce this risk. These options include; translocation to another protected area; acquisition of adjacent land; burning preferred habitat at unnaturally short intervals; forming a conservancy with adjacent landowners; leasing cultivated land for pasture. We suggest that only the latter two options are likely to stimulate mountain zebra population growth in the short term and that these should receive immediate attention. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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3547 |
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Author |
Wilson, R.T. |
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Title |
Biodiversity of Domestic Livestock in the Republic of Yemen |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2003 |
Publication |
Tropical Animal Health and Production |
Abbreviated Journal |
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35 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
27-46 |
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Abstract This paper describes the domestic livestock of the Republic of Yemen and aspires to complement earlier sources listing or partially describing `breeds'. It attempts to cover all species and provide indications of production parameters through a literature review and via field observations made by the author in 1999. Information is provided on livestock numbers and the economic importance of animal production. Most animals are kept in sedentary mixed crop-livestock production systems; transhumant systems have the next greatest number of stock; with nomadic systems being of least and declining importance. Yemen's livestock appear to comprise at least 11 breeds of sheep, 5 breeds of goat, 2 breeds of cattle, 4 breeds of camel, 2 breeds of donkey and 1 breed of horse. There are no data on breeds of poultry but domestic fowl (where clearly considerable diversity exists) and pigeons are kept. There is little formal information on the history and relationships of most breeds. Some appear to be of ancient local origin, whereas others show affinities with those of neighbouring and other countries. None of the identified types is considered endangered, so conservation would be premature. A more formal and detailed genetic characterization, to add to the largely morphological and traditional classification, may, however, reveal such a need. |
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Abstract This paper describes the domestic livestock of the Republic of Yemen and aspires to complement earlier sources listing or partially describing `breeds'. It attempts to cover all species and provide indications of production parameters through a literature review and via field observations made by the author in 1999. Information is provided on livestock numbers and the economic importance of animal production. Most animals are kept in sedentary mixed crop-livestock production systems; transhumant systems have the next greatest number of stock; with nomadic systems being of least and declining importance. Yemen's livestock appear to comprise at least 11 breeds of sheep, 5 breeds of goat, 2 breeds of cattle, 4 breeds of camel, 2 breeds of donkey and 1 breed of horse. There are no data on breeds of poultry but domestic fowl (where clearly considerable diversity exists) and pigeons are kept. There is little formal information on the history and relationships of most breeds. Some appear to be of ancient local origin, whereas others show affinities with those of neighbouring and other countries. None of the identified types is considered endangered, so conservation would be premature. A more formal and detailed genetic characterization, to add to the largely morphological and traditional classification, may, however, reveal such a need. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4389 |
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Author |
Álvarez, I.; Royo, L.J.; Pérez-Pardal, L.; Fernández, I.; Lorenzo, L.; Goyache, F. |
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Title |
Assessing diversity losses due to selection for coat colour in the endangered bay-Asturcón pony using microsatellites |
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Journal Article |
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Livestock Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Livest Sci |
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In Press, Corrected Proof |
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Conservation; MC1r; Asip; Gene diversity; Allelic richness |
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The bay-Asturcón pony (A21) population recovery started recently. A total of 297 samples (180 from founder individuals) belonging to the A21 population were genotyped for: a) a set of 15 microsatellites; and b) the presence of the two recessive chestnut alleles reported in the literature (e and ea) on the MC1r gene (locus Extension) and the deletion on the ASIP gene (locus Agouti) associated with recessive black coat in horses. The extent to which the genetic variability of the A21 population could be affected by selection strategies aimed at decreasing the frequency of the chestnut allele was quantified in terms of gene diversity and allelic richness. The possible genetic impact of a controlled introgression of A21 offspring into the black-coated Asturcón (A20) population was also assessed using 261 available A20 genotypes. The wild alleles for the Extension and Agouti loci (E and A, respectively) were the most frequent (77.8% and 59.4%) in the A21 population. Both the e and ea recessive chestnut alleles were identified with frequencies of 21.2% and 1.0%. As expected, the contribution to overall diversity of the founder subpopulation was always higher than that of the A21 offspring subpopulation. Total contribution of the offspring subpopulation to overall allelic richness was negative (- 1.84%), showing that all their alleles were present in the founder subpopulation. Although favourable, the chestnut carrier individuals had poor contributions to overall gene diversity and tended to have negative contributions to allelic richness. The elimination of the chestnut carrier A21 individuals would not affect genetic variability to a significant extent. Therefore, efforts for preserving the genetic variability in the A21 population could focus on a careful planning of matings between individuals free of the recessive chestnut alleles. The expected influence of a controlled introgression of A21 offspring on the genetic variability of the A20 population was always favourable. The gene diversity of the introgressed population was higher than that of the original A20 population for both gene diversity (GDT = -1.2% ± 0.04%) and, particularly, allelic richness (CT = 4.9% ± 0.27%). Very limited gene flow may increase the number of alleles of the A20 population but also would yield a balance of the allelic frequencies at a population level. Therefore, a common breeding policy for the two Asturcón pony populations may ensure the viability of this prominent genetic resource. |
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1871-1413 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5174 |
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López-Bao, J.V.; Sazatornil, V.; Llaneza, L.; Rodríguez, A. |
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Title |
Indirect Effects on Heathland Conservation and Wolf Persistence of Contradictory Policies that Threaten Traditional Free-Ranging Horse Husbandry |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2013 |
Publication |
Conservation Letters |
Abbreviated Journal |
Conservation Letters |
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6 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
448-455 |
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Farmland biodiversity; heathlands; integration of environmental policies; management of livestock carcasses; traditional land uses; wolf conservation |
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Conservation agencies within the European Union promote the restoration of traditional land uses as a cost-effective way to preserve biodiversity outside reserves. Although the European Union pursues the integration of the environment into strategic decision-making, it also dictates sectoral policies that may damage farmland biodiversity. We illustrate this point by outlining the socioeconomic factors that allow the persistence of traditional free-ranging horse husbandry in Galicia, northwestern Spain. Free-ranging Galician mountain ponies provide ecological and socioeconomic services including the prevention of forest fires, the maintenance of heathlands and wolves, and the attenuation of wolf-human conflicts. This traditional livestock system may have persisted because it entails negligible costs for farmers. Wolf predation upon Galician mountain ponies does not threaten farmer's economies and seems to be tolerated better than attacks to more valuable stock. Recently, European Union's regulations on animal welfare, carcass management, or meat production put new economic and administrative burdens on farmers, make free-ranging horse rearing economically unsustainable, and incentivize its abandonment. The aim of the European Union to integrate environmental policies may be successful to preserve farmland biodiversity only through careful anticipation of the side effects of apparently unrelated regulations on the fragile equilibrium that sustain traditional land uses. |
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1755-263x |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6211 |
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Meriggi,A.; Lovari, S. |
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A Review of Wolf Predation in Southern Europe: Does the Wolf Prefer Wild Prey to Livestock? |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
1996 |
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Journal of Applled Ecology |
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J. Appl. Ecol |
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33 |
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1561-1571 |
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Canis lupus, conservation, food habits, prey abundance, prey availability. |
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Abstract |
1. The recent recovery of the wolf in southern Europe has not yet removed the risk
of local extinction. Wolf populations are fragmented and often comprise fewer than
500 individuals. In North America, northern and eastern Europe, wolves feed maiiily
on wild herbivores. In southern Europe, this canid has apparently adapted to feed
also on fruit, rubbish, livestock, small and medium-size mammals.
2. The main conservation problem lies with predation o n domestic ~ingulates,w liich
leads to extensive killing of wolves. The reintroduction of wild large herbivores has
been advocated as a means of reducing attacks on livestock, but predatiori on the
latter may remain high if domestic ungulates are locally abundant.
3. Our synthesis of 15 studies, published in the last 15 years, on food habits of the
wolf in southern Europe, has shown that ungulates have been the main diet component
overall. A significant inverse correlation was found between the occurrence (%) of
wild and domestic ungulates in the diet. The presence of relatively few wild ungulate
species was necessary to reduce predation on livestock.
4. Selection of wild and domestic ungulate prey was influenced mainly by their local
abundance, but also by their accessibility. Feeding dependence on rubbish was local
and rare. In Italy, the consumption of riibbish/fruit and that of ungulates was significantly
negatively correlated. Diet breadth increased as the presence of large prey
in tlie diet decreased.
5. The simultaneous reintroduction of severa1 wild ungulate species is likely to reduce
predation on livestock and may prove to be one of the most effective conservation
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6387 |
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