Reptile & Amphibian Forums

but sometimes not. Seems like all most people talk about are the failures, but there are successes, too. If reintroduction was a doomed venture, we wouldn't need to worry about introduction. Plenty of species have established themselves outside their native range with a little help from H. sapiens (that's another example of an invasive species). Tortoises are problematical, and Indigos. It has been argued to me that reintro programs would stand a better chance with adequate evaluation beforehand, including using reintro stock with the necessary genetic diversity. When our backs are to the wall, as with California Condors and Black-Footed Ferrets, we gotta make do, but even those programs are showing hopeful results. The successes with native fish, wolves, condors, ferrets, bears, and hoofed game seem to indicate that it works better with the coordination of multiple agencies, and the commitment of agencies, governments and the humans involved. Probably, repatriation is not a lost cause, just a large one.

Successes are out there. In 1970 only two pair of peregrine falcons existed wildly in California. With the help of falconers and hawking groups nationwide, there are now approximately 220 pair of peregrine falcons in California, and their numbers continue to grow across the US.

Unfortunately, re-introduction and translocation practices have not been quite as successful regarding reptiles, as they have with their avian and mammalian counterparts. Count the number of mammalian and avian, especially raptor, centers there are nation wide. Now, how many such facilities are you aware of specializing with reptiles?
There are only two projects involving reptiles, which are beginning to show promise in this area, and both are limited to Cyclura Spp.
There are a great many variables, many of which have already been discussed here in the past, but may well need revisiting.
As Chris mentioned earlier, the underlying factors for the demise of a species within a given range must be identified, and addressed. Such a survey can take several years and a great amount of funding. Just because a habitat appears suitable, from our perspective, doesn’t mean the necessary micro-habitat, required to sustain a “viable” population of a given species, is present. When we merely stand back and look at a forest, we see the macro-habitat, not the micro-habitat, which actually is the key in sustaining a given species.
Genetic diversity is another key component when considering re-introduction. As I have mentioned before, a baseline DNA analysis must be established, and any specimens considered for a re-introduction would need to be analyzed to insure genetic diversity and purity. Some may recall, this was a key component regarding the success of Cyclura n collie and C. n lewisi in regards to their individual species survival plan. This is another area for which a healthy amount of financing would have to be infused.
Another expensive undertaking would be the establishment of a facility and staff to rear juvenile specimens for release. There has been much discussion on this board regarding the husbandry of Drymarchon and the problems associated with such. Specimens selected for re-introduction would have to be reared in a manner for which to prepare them for survival within a new range. This would include feeding the specimen prey items taken from the immediate area and offering water from sources which will only be available within the wild. You simply couldn’t take a group of specimens reared in a lab, fed on a diet of lab raised prey and hydrated utilizing reverse osmosis carbon filtered UV sterilized water and expect them to flourish on wild prey and water from outdoor surface sources.
There are many reasons mammalian and avian re-introductions are more successful then identical projects involving reptiles. The reasons range from training given to specimens capable of learned behavior, vaccinations and understanding of microhabitat requirements.
I believe much work remains to be done, and too little funding to do such, in regards to preserving current populations of wild Drymarchon struggling to survive in the wild.

Jeff

O.K., sorry, but here I go again,...

NATIONAL HERP SOCIETY! Fund raising for just such a cause, is just one of the things it could do.

The thing is, that this IS possible. It is not impossible. The formation of a national herp society, or a national indigo society, the raising of funds, the coalition of government agencies, the research, and finaly, the reintroduction project. Would it be easy? No. Is it possible? Yes. Should we do it,...
T.
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"No tree would have branches foolish enough to argue amongst themseleves".