Sokos Christos, Birtsas Periklis, Papaspyropoulos Konstantinos G, Giannakopoulos Alexios, Athanasiou Labrini V, Manolakou Katerina, Spyrou Vassiliki, Billinis Charalambos
Laboratory of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Greece,
Environ Manage. 2015 Jan;55(1):19-30. doi: 10.1007/s00267-014-0388-6. Epub 2014 Oct 26.
Wildlife managers are challenged with the task of deciding whether a management measure is appropriate or not, and furthermore they have to convince others about the merits of their decision. Population decline of some hare species (genus Lepus) has resulted in their Red Listing and conservation measures are being undertaken. Release or restocking is a frequent measure in some countries, and thousands of hares are released annually, mainly for hunting purposes. These hares can be obtained by either intensive or extensive rearing or translocation of the wild animals. Each method entails difficulties and different survival rates in the wild. Survival rates in the wild are low for hares intensively reared in cages but are higher for hares reared extensively in enclosures and wild translocated hares. The benefits of the hare release practice are significantly lower than the action's implementation cost. Hare releases have not increased significantly the wild hare population or the hunting harvest in areas where the practice has been applied. The risk of genetic and evolutionary degradation and pathogen transmission is possible in wild populations. The need for wise management of this practice is evident and the term 'Permitted Transferring Units' should be introduced to denote regions where hares should not be transferred for rearing and release.
野生动物管理者面临着一项挑战，即要决定一项管理措施是否合适，而且他们还必须让其他人相信其决策的优点。一些野兔物种（兔属）的种群数量下降，导致它们被列入红色名录，并且正在采取保护措施。放归或重新引种在一些国家是一种常见的措施，每年有数千只野兔被放归，主要用于狩猎目的。这些野兔可以通过集约化或粗放式养殖或野生动物的迁移来获得。每种方法都有困难，且在野外的存活率也不同。在笼子里集约化饲养的野兔在野外的存活率较低，但在围栏中粗放式饲养的野兔和野生迁移的野兔在野外的存活率较高。野兔放归做法的益处远低于该行动的实施成本。在采用该做法的地区，野兔放归并没有显著增加野兔种群数量或狩猎收获量。野生种群存在遗传和进化退化以及病原体传播的风险。显然需要明智地管理这种做法，并且应该引入“允许转移单位”这一术语来表示不应将野兔转移用于饲养和放归的地区。
