Bouley Paola, Paulo Antonio, Angela Mercia, Du Plessis Cole, Marneweck David G
Department of Conservation, Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique.
Carnivore Conservation Programme, Endangered Wildlife Trust, Johannesburg, South Africa.
PLoS One. 2021 Apr 22;16(4):e0249860. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0249860. eCollection 2021.
Large carnivores have experienced widespread extirpation and species are now threatened globally. The ecological impact of the loss of large carnivores has been prominent in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique, after most were extirpated during the 1977-92 civil war. To remedy this, reintroductions are now being implemented in Gorongosa, initiating with endangered African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus), hereafter 'wild dogs'. We describe the first transboundary translocation and reintroduction of founding packs of wild dogs to Gorongosa over a 28-month study period and evaluate the success of the reintroduction based on five key indicator categories. We also assess how wild dog space use and diet influenced their success. We found that pre-release, artificial pack formation in holding enclosures aided group cohesion and alpha pair establishment. Post-release, we also observed natural pack formations as a result of multiple dispersal events. Founder and naturally formed packs produced pups in two of the three breeding seasons and packs successfully recruited pups. Survival rate for all wild dogs was 73% and all mortality events were from natural causes. Consequently, the population grew significantly over the study period. All indicators of success were fully achieved and this study documents the first successful reintroduction of wild dogs into a large, unfenced landscape in Mozambique and only the second on the continent. Potential mechanisms underlying these early successes were the avoidance of habitats intensively used by lions, dietary partitioning with lion, avoidance of human settlements, and Gorongosa's management strategy. We predict further population expansion in Gorongosa given that 68% of the park is still unused by wild dogs. This expansion could be stimulated by continued reintroductions over the short- to medium-term. Recovery of wild dogs in Gorongosa could aid in the re-establishment of a larger, connected population across the greater Gorongosa-Marromeu landscape.
大型食肉动物在全球范围内经历了广泛的灭绝，目前物种受到全球威胁。在莫桑比克的戈龙戈萨国家公园，大型食肉动物数量减少所产生的生态影响十分显著，因为在1977年至1992年内战期间，大多数大型食肉动物都已灭绝。为了补救这一情况，戈龙戈萨目前正在开展重新引入大型食肉动物的工作，首先引入的是濒危的非洲野犬（非洲野犬属），以下简称“野犬”。在为期28个月的研究期内，我们描述了将野犬创始群体首次跨境转移并重新引入戈龙戈萨的过程，并基于五个关键指标类别评估了重新引入的成功率。我们还评估了野犬的空间利用和饮食如何影响它们的生存。我们发现，在放生前，在圈养围栏中进行人工群体组建有助于增强群体凝聚力并确立首领配对。放生后，由于多次扩散事件，我们还观察到了自然群体的形成。创始群体和自然形成的群体在三个繁殖季节中的两个季节产下了幼崽，并且群体成功养育了幼崽。所有野犬的存活率为73%，所有死亡事件均由自然原因导致。因此，在研究期间，野犬数量显著增长。所有成功指标均已完全达成，本研究记录了首次成功将野犬重新引入莫桑比克一个大型、无围栏区域的案例，这也是非洲大陆上的第二例。这些早期成功背后的潜在机制包括避开狮子大量使用的栖息地、与狮子进行饮食划分、避开人类住区以及戈龙戈萨的管理策略。鉴于该公园68%的区域仍未被野犬利用，我们预计戈龙戈萨的野犬数量将进一步增加。在短期至中期内持续进行重新引入工作可能会刺激这一增长。戈龙戈萨野犬数量的恢复有助于在更大的戈龙戈萨 - 马罗梅乌区域重新建立一个更大的、相互连接的种群。
