Unforeseen consequences of conservation management practices: case study on herding rhino as an anti‐poaching measure

The current biodiversity crisis calls for effective conservation measures. However, some measures may have unforeseen negative consequences on individual species. Herding, a management practice currently used in some wildlife species to protect animals from poachers, can cause habituation to humans, which unintentionally might increase their risk of being poached at a later time. Herding could also negatively impact animal welfare and physiology when perceived as a stressor, with potential negative consequences at the individual and population level. In this study, we tested the following hypotheses: 1) herding elicits habituation to humans in white rhino, and 2) this practice affects the behavior and physiological state of rhino, but they can habituate to it. To that aim, we investigated the effects of herding on the response of rhino to initially unfamiliar people, expression of aggressive and discomfort behaviors, and fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentrations (a commonly used indicator of physiological stress) in two cohorts of six and 10 semi‐wild orphan white rhino. Rhino did not interrupt their activity to an approaching person on foot (99%) or in a vehicle (94%), indicating habituation to humans. Aggressive and discomfort behaviors were displayed more often while being herded, and their frequency increased significantly with increasing herding pressure. Finally, overall mean fGCM concentrations were 16.1% higher under herding compared to non‐herding conditions, but individual fGCM levels varied up to 17‐fold under each scenario, suggesting that herding might not elicit a physiological stress response in these animals. While rhino security is paramount in the current poaching crisis, management practices must ensure that they do not impact negatively at the individual and population level.University of Pretoria, Epi‐Use and National Research Foundation South Africa.https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/146917952021-10-07hj2021Centre for Wildlife ManagementMammal Research InstituteParaclinical SciencesProduction Animal Studie

A Field Study of Wild Echidna Responses to Conspecific Odour

Mammalian olfactory cues play a crucial role in coordinating matingbehaviour as they contain pertinent information on sex, reproductive status andreceptivity to mating. Males of many species are particularly attentive tochanges in female odour cues, as these can be used to find potential mates andmonitor changes in reproductive condition. Such sensitivity is likely to beespecially important for usually solitary or seasonally breeding individuals. Weused remote scent trials in the field to examine if wild short-beaked echidnas areattracted to conspecific female odour. Our results are consistent with thehypothesis that male echidnas use olfactory cues during the breeding season tolocate females: Echidnas were only observed investigating female odour samplesand not empty camera trap stations, more echidnas (including knownindividual males) were attracted to female odours during the breeding season,than during the non-breeding season and we noted olfactory behaviours such assniffing and tongue-flicking at the odour source. Male echidnas increase theirmating opportunities by engaging in scramble competition and being sensitive tovolatile and non-volatile female odour components, allowing them to locatepotential mates and minimise search costs. Consequently, male ability to locatefemales may be sexually selected, but further bioassays, along with geneticinformation, is needed to investigate this further