Guy Amanda J, Stone Olivia M L, Curnoe Darren
School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
Primates. 2012 Apr;53(2):171-9. doi: 10.1007/s10329-011-0292-0. Epub 2012 Jan 19.
In South Africa, vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops) are frequently persecuted, resulting in large numbers of injured and/or orphaned animals. Rehabilitation centres aim to care for these monkeys and ultimately return them to the wild whenever possible. However, it is unknown whether rehabilitation is successful in its goal of creating wild-living, independent, self-sustaining troops due to limited published research in this area. This study describes the release and subsequent fate of a troop of rehabilitated vervet monkeys over a 6-month period. A troop of 16 monkeys was released into the Ntendeka Wilderness Area, a protected part of Ngome Forest, by the WATCH (Wild Animal Trauma Centre and Haven) rehabilitation centre in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Monitoring data were evaluated with regard to survival, mortality, suitability of the release site, breeding, condition, troop composition, behaviour, group dynamics, ranging patterns and the effectiveness of monitoring tools. The release was considered to be a partial success in that the troop exhibited behaviour, group dynamics and ranging patterns similar to wild conspecifics. However, the survival rate was low and the troop was judged to be non-self-sustaining. The main problems identified were the limited lifetimes of radio collars, which resulted in missing animals and caused monitoring to be cut short, illegal hunting activities, predation and a small troop size with few adults. The authors recommend improvements that may increase success, such as retaining troops in release enclosures for longer periods, releasing a larger troop with more adults that more closely matches wild troop composition, selecting a release site at least 3 km from the nearest human settlement and the use of GPS collars to allow for a longer monitoring period encompassing all seasonal conditions. Furthermore, all primates for release should be medically screened so as to avoid potential negative impacts on wild populations.
在南非，绿猴（Chlorocebus aethiops）经常受到迫害，导致大量猴子受伤和/或成为孤儿。康复中心旨在照顾这些猴子，并尽可能最终将它们放归野外。然而，由于该领域发表的研究有限，尚不清楚康复是否能成功实现创建野生生存、独立、自我维持群体的目标。本研究描述了一群经过康复的绿猴在6个月内的放归情况及后续命运。南非夸祖鲁 - 纳塔尔省的野生动物创伤中心及避难所（WATCH）康复中心将一群16只猴子放归到恩滕德卡荒野地区，该地区是恩戈梅森林的一个保护区。对监测数据进行了评估，内容包括生存、死亡、放归地点的适宜性、繁殖、健康状况、群体组成、行为、群体动态、活动范围模式以及监测工具的有效性。此次放归被认为取得了部分成功，因为这群猴子表现出了与野生同类相似的行为、群体动态和活动范围模式。然而，存活率较低，且这群猴子被判定无法自我维持。确定的主要问题包括无线电项圈寿命有限，导致一些猴子失踪，监测被迫中断；非法狩猎活动、捕食以及成年猴子数量少导致群体规模较小。作者建议进行一些改进措施以提高成功率，例如将猴群在放归围栏中保留更长时间，放归更大规模且成年猴子更多、更接近野生群体组成的猴群，选择距离最近人类住区至少3公里的放归地点，并使用GPS项圈以延长监测期，涵盖所有季节条件。此外，所有待放归的灵长类动物都应进行医学筛查，以避免对野生种群产生潜在负面影响。
