Ecolog Forum and Symposium leaders:
While at some point in the decline of a population and its reproductive
capacity it makes sense to "bank" seeds or cage animals for eventual "return
to the wild," the key factor in reintroduction/restoration is whether or not
conditions exist or can be made to exist under which a population of the
organisms concerned can and will maintain perpetually viable populations.
Such "conservation" can be delayed until it is too late, or it can be done
at the expense of wild populations by removing too many individuals for
captive breeding. Other times, victory can apparently be snatched from the
jaws of defeat or defeat can be snatched from the jaws of victory; in other
cases, artificial management must be (or is) continued long after
reintroduction, just to preserve genes until effective reintroduction in the
ecological context (self-sufficiency) becomes possible. This is equally true
under conditions of "climate change" or "normal" climatological conditions.
Rapid shifts in altitude and/or latitude can no doubt induce shifts in
habitat conditions, especially for species of limited distribution, and
relatively isolated populations might require some assistance. But it should
be borne in mind that climate is not necessarily the only critical variable.
Soil development, for example, can take decades, centuries, millennia, and
merely assisting in the colonization of new sites is not necessarily a
guarantee of viability.
In the case of plants in particular, many efforts at reintroduction fail
because the habitat conditions suitable for their development no longer
exist or are not created, but they commonly fail also from excessive efforts
to ensure their survival, such as irrigation, fertilization, and "weed"
control. Particularly in the case of sensitive/endemic species with low
populations and genetic diversity, failures, (well-intentioned or not*) are
not acceptable, especially when the "collection" of propagules can depress
reproductive capacity. This does not mean that collection and artificial
propagation and population maintenance never should be done, only that it
should be done with great care and attention to the impact of
well-intentioned efforts upon wild populations and the habitat conditions
required for their continuation and recovery if not enhancement.
Unfortunately, I have personally witnessed far too many ill-conceived
efforts, even by apparently well-qualified individuals and groups, that
missed such fundamental concepts as the suitability of the habitat
conditions of the reintroduction sites for the "target" species.
For these and other reasons I am gratified to see that this symposium is
placing emphasis upon "Taking stock of our progress with reintroduction is
essential if we are going to make wise decisions for preserving biodiversity
. . .." I hope that equal emphasis is placed upon taking stock of the
failures of plant reintroduction and ecosystem restoration efforts and
analyzing the reasons for such failures--and embracing the need for the
expansion of theoretical foundations to be tested by competent modeling,
well-considered laboratory studies, and evaluation of applied methodologies
and practices. It is essential also that practitioners and researchers
recognize that most such work lies in the realm of "more successful than
unsuccessful or more unsuccessful than successful," but this should not be
considered a license to defraud. Professional work should be required to
answer only to performance (in terms of testable trends, not perfection),
not to money or grant-getting ability, nor to public or peer pressure. It's
a lonely job, but it's the only job which qualifies.
WT
*A veritable industry has sprung up in the past two or three decades around
"making things look good" (on paper and in the field) which serve to make
clients/agencies/the public feel good, but which are almost never checked
long enough to verify their perpetual viability and ability to function in
the relevant ecosystem context.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Joyce Maschinski" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, May 06, 2009 8:28 AM
Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Evaluating Plant Reintroductions CPC International
Symposium Oct 21-22, 2009
Center for Plant Conservation International Symposium
"Evaluating Plant Reintroductions as a Plant Conservation Strategy: Two
Decades of Evidence" October 21-22, 2009, Sheraton Clayton Plaza, 7730
Bonhomme Avenue, Saint Louis, MO.
The Center for Plant Conservation is pleased to announce its fourth
symposium entitled, “Evaluating Plant Reintroductions as a Plant
Conservation Strategy: Two Decades of Evidence.” In commemoration of 25
years of plant conservation experience, The Center for Plant Conservation
is hosting its fourth symposium on plant conservation science on October
21-22, 2009. We will comprehensively review the past and current state of
knowledge about plant reintroductions and their role in improving
endangered species conservation and these proceedings will be published as
an edited volume.
Reintroductions are not only helping the practice of plant conservation,
but are also contributing to restoration ecology theory. Understanding
the planning and ground work required for successful reintroductions is
becoming critical in the face of climate change. Taking stock of our
progress with reintroduction is essential if we are going to make wise
decisions for preserving biodiversity in the future. Because we are
particularly interested in assessing progress and prospects of
reintroduction as a viable conservation strategy in the face of climate
change, symposium participants will be invited to participate in break out
sessions to review "Reintroduction Guidelines" and “Prospects and Cautions
for Appropriate Use of Assisted Migration”.
The symposium will feature a keynote address by Dr. Peter Raven. Invited
oral presentations will be given by plant conservation professionals: Dr.
Matthew Albrecht, Missouri Botanic Garden, St. Louis, MO; Dr. Tim Bell,
University of Illinois, Chicago, IL; Dr. Marlin Bowles, Morton Arboretum,
Lisle, IL; Dr. Sarah Dalrymple, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK; Dr.
Irene Avila Diaz, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Morelia,
Michoacán, México; *Dr. Kingsley Dixon, Kings Park Botanic Garden, Perth,
WA Australia; Dr. Don Falk, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ; Mima
Falk, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tucson, AZ; Dr. Edward O. Guerrant,
Jr., Berry Botanic Garden, Portland, OR; Dr. Kristin E. Haskins, The
Arboretum at Flagstaff, Flagstaff, AZ; Dr. Kayri Havens, Chicago Botanic
Garden, Glencoe, IL; Kapua Kawelo, Environmental Division, U.S. Army,
Oahu, HI; Brian Keel, USFS; Dr. Kathryn Kennedy, Center for Plant
Conservation, St. Louis, MO; Dr. Tiffany Knight, Washington University,
St. Louis, MO; Crystal Krause, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff,
AZ; Dr. Joyce Maschinski, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami, FL;
Dr. Leonie Monks, Western Australia Dept Environment and Conservation,
Australia; Dr. Jenny Neale, Denver Botanic Garden, Denver, CO; Dr. Valerie
Pence, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden's Center for Conservation and
Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW); Dr. Sarah Reichard, University of
Washington, Seattle, WA; Dr. Wei-Bang Sun, Kunming Botanic Gardens of KIB,
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yunnan, China; Dr. Raymond Tremblay,
University of Puerto Rico, Humacao, Puerto Rico; Dr. Pati Vitt, Chicago
Botanic Garden, Glencoe, IL ; Samuel J. Wright, Fairchild Tropical
Botanic Garden, Miami, FL
For a detailed meeting agenda and registration form see the posting at
www.centerforplantconservation.org or contact Maureen Fischer at
[email protected]
The nonprofit Center for Plant Conservation (CPC) was founded in 1984 as a
national, nonprofit network of community-based institutions (botanic
gardens, arboreta, museums) providing professional, hands-on assistance to
prevent extinction and achieve recovery for imperiled plants native to the
United States. The 33 participating institutions secure seed and living
collections off site for conservation, conduct scientific research, work
with land managers to restore rare species populations in the wild and
engender public support for conservation through educational outreach.
Please forward this announcement to any interested colleagues.
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