11 research outputs found

    Reducing persecution is more effective for restoring large carnivores than restoring their prey

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    We gratefully acknowledge funding by the Federal State of Berlin, Germany (Elsa Neumann Scholarship to BB), and the German Research Foundation (GH 149/1-1 and ZU 361/1-1). We further thank all participants of the workshop on the revi- sion of the Strategy for Leopard Conservation in the Caucasus in Tbilisi, Georgia in 2017. We are grateful to J. Buchner, A. Heidelberg, V.C. Radeloff, and H. Yin for fruitful discussions, and F. Poetzschner for help with preparing data. Additionally, we thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

    Recent hard evidence for the occurrence of the Leopard, <i>Panthera pardus</i> (Mammalia: Felidae), in the Eastern Greater Caucasus

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    Recent hard evidence for the occurrence of the Leopard, <i>Panthera pardus</i> (Mammalia: Felidae), in the Eastern Greater Caucasu

    Modelling the potential distribution of subalpine birches (Betula spp.) in the Caucasus

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    The treeline ecosystems in the Caucasus are mainly composed of birch (Betuletum) stands. These high-mountain forests encompass pivotal ecological functions like climate regulation, water retention, soil protection and more. The location of Caucasus birches as part of the treeline communities determines its vulnerability to anthropogenic as well as natural stressors. Therefore, the natural distribution area of birches has been significantly shrunk. Meanwhile, the two contrasting tendencies are also observable in the Caucasus, the lowering of the natural upper limit of the treeline border as well as the widening of the distribution area towards higher elevations. In this research, we aimed to model the actual distribution areas of Caucasus birches according to the factors and patterns of their present distribution. We used the Maxent (Maximum Entropy Model) model based on WorldClim bioclimatic variables—mean temperature of warmest quarter, mean temperature of coldest quar- ter, precipitation of coldest quarter and precipitation of warmest quarter, and 160 study plots (including 100 field experimental plots). The model demonstrated high predictive power AUC = 0.97. The Maxent algorithm showed the potential distribution areas of Caucasus birches covering the entire Caucasus region and the climatic variables as the main factors contributing to or limiting the distribution of birches in the study region. Understanding the distribution characteristics of birches in the Caucasus can serve as a basis for future research on shifts and changes in treeline forest communities occurring as a result of various impacts, e.g. climate change

    Identifying priority areas for restoring large mammal populations in the Caucasus Ecoregion

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    Large mammals play critical roles in ecosystems, yet their populations are across the globe as a result of habitat loss, overhunting, and human-wildlife conflicts. Some of these threats have lessened considerably in parts of Europe, particularly in mountain regions, and this offers unique opportunities for restoring large mammal populations to ecologically functional levels. However, many species require active conservation planning and management for achieving this goal. We focused on the Caucasus Ecoregion, a global biodiversity hotspot at the crossroads of Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East, with a variety of large carnivore and herbivore species. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 brought about major changes in this region, including armed conflicts, low levels of institutional control, and economic hardship. Altogether this resulted in plummeting populations of many large mammal species that today hold out only in small and fragmented populations. In contrast, the institutional changes in the post-Soviet countries have also led to widespread land-use changes, such as agricultural abandonment and declining livestock numbers, providing opportunities for restoring large mammal populations. We mapped suitable habitat for Bezoar goat (Capra aegagrus), European bison (Bison bonasus), Gmelin’s mouflon (Ovis orientalis) and Goitered gazelle (Gazella subgutturosa), all of which are of conservation concern, across the ecoregion. To do so, we used species distribution models, a range of environmental and human-disturbance-related covariates, and extensive datasets of large mammal occurrence. We then identified areas of high and low risk of human-wildlife conflict (e.g., hunting and/or competition with livestock), and assessed the connectivity among core habitat areas using cost-surface and circuit flow analyses in order to identify priority habitat patches for conservation interventions. Our results highlight widespread areas with suitable habitat for all species, including many areas with potentially low risk for human-wildlife conflicts. Most of these suitable habitat patches, however, are currently unoccupied (e.g., 60 out of 69 for European bison) and are largely outside the current protected area network (e.g., &gt;80%% of priority areas for mouflons and Goitered gazelles). Many habitat patches are also fairly isolated in regards to extant populations, highlighting the need for protecting stepping stones and corridors, and for additional reintroductions. All countries contained several candidate sites for reintroductions, particularly in Russia, Azerbaijan and Georgia for European bison, in Armenia and Iran for mouflon, Azerbaijan and Georgia for Goitered gazelle, and all countries in regards to bezoar goat. Finally, our study highlights that habitat networks and key corridors extended across national borders, emphasizing the need for Ecoregion-wide cooperation, conservation planning and enforcement of wildlife protection laws.peerReviewe

    Leopard conservation in the Caucasus

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    The leopard Panthera pardus is a Critically Endangered flagship species of the Caucasus. In 2007, conservation experts and institutions from all six Caucasian countries joined to develop a Strategy for the Conservation of the Leopard in the Caucasus Ecoregion, based on a review of the status of the leopard population and its prey (Cat News Special Issue 2, 2007). Now, three years later, the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, WWF and NACRES organised a discussion group at the annual conference of the International Bear Association IBA in Tbilisi, Georgia. The meeting was part of the symposium “Large Carnivores in the Caucasus”, organised and supported by the Secretariat of the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern Convention). The leopard is listed as a strictly protected species in Appendix II of the Bern Convention. The aim of the meeting was to discuss the status of the leopard, the implementation of the Strategy and next steps with wildlife conservationists from the Caucasian countries

    Identifying priority areas for restoring mountain ungulates in the Caucasus ecoregion

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    Mountain ungulates around the world have been decimated to small, fragmented populations. Restoring these species often is limited by inadequate information on where suitable habitat is found, and which restoration measures would help to increase and link existing populations. We developed an approach to spatially target threat-specific restoration actions and demonstrate it for bezoar goats (Capra aegagrus) in the Caucasus. Using a large occurrence dataset, we identified suitable habitat patches and evaluate them in terms of connectivity, protection status, and competition with other mountain ungulates. We found extant bezoar goat populations to be highly isolated, yet with widespread areas of suitable, unoccupied habitat between them. Many unoccupied habitat patches were well-connected to extant populations, were at least partly protected, and have low potential for competition with other Capra species. This signals substantial pressure on bezoar goats, likely due to poaching, which currently prevents natural recolonization. Our study shows how restoration planning is possible in the face of multiple threats and scarce data. For bezoar goats in the Caucasus, we pinpoint priority patches for specific restoration measures, including reintroductions and anti-poaching action. We highlight that many patches would benefit from multiple interventions and that transboundary restoration planning is needed, a situation likely similar for many mountain ungulates around the world.Peer Reviewe
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