Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada
Delineating conservation units is a fundamental step in recovery planning for endangered species. Yet, challenges remain in the application and validation of scientifically evaluated conservation units in management practice. The Canadian government makes use of Designatable Units (DUs) as the prima...
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Online Access: | http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/ http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2323 |
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ftunivsalford:oai:usir.salford.ac.uk:47933 2023-05-15T18:04:22+02:00 Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada Weckworth, BV Hebblewhite, M Mariani, S Musiani, M 2018-07-23 application/pdf http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/ http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2323 en eng Wiley http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf Weckworth, BV, Hebblewhite, M, Mariani, S orcid:0000-0002-5329-0553 and Musiani, M 2018, 'Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada' , Ecosphere, 9 (7) , e02323. doi:10.1002/ecs2.2323 cc_by_4_0 http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf:public CC-BY Article NonPeerReviewed 2018 ftunivsalford https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2323 2022-03-01T22:15:18Z Delineating conservation units is a fundamental step in recovery planning for endangered species. Yet, challenges remain in the application and validation of scientifically evaluated conservation units in management practice. The Canadian government makes use of Designatable Units (DUs) as the primary conservation unit under their Species‐at‐Risk Act. DUs must be ecologically discrete and have demonstrated evolutionary significance, which, in the case of woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou ), has led to the definition of multiple DUs across Canada. Simultaneously, Environment and Climate Change Canada has released two recovery strategies affecting four DUs, wherein DUs are subdivided into smaller conservation units. However, the two recovery strategies adopt different definitions for the conservation unit. For the Boreal DU, the Local Population is considered the conservation unit for recovery management, whereas for Southern Mountain DU, the conservation unit for recovery is the subpopulation, which may or may not be comprised of several Local Populations. The scientific rationale for the difference between recovery strategies is unclear, not necessarily supported by genetic or demographic evidence, and highlights a policy challenge facing caribou conservation. We argue that the current emphasis on protecting subpopulations within a DU might be inconsistent and unviable for recovery planning. Instead, the recognition and emphasis on maintaining meta‐population dynamics within DUs is essential and currently underutilized in the long‐term recovery of woodland caribou in Canada. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rangifer tarandus University of Salford Institutional Repository Canada Ecosphere 9 7 e02323 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Salford Institutional Repository |
op_collection_id |
ftunivsalford |
language |
English |
description |
Delineating conservation units is a fundamental step in recovery planning for endangered species. Yet, challenges remain in the application and validation of scientifically evaluated conservation units in management practice. The Canadian government makes use of Designatable Units (DUs) as the primary conservation unit under their Species‐at‐Risk Act. DUs must be ecologically discrete and have demonstrated evolutionary significance, which, in the case of woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou ), has led to the definition of multiple DUs across Canada. Simultaneously, Environment and Climate Change Canada has released two recovery strategies affecting four DUs, wherein DUs are subdivided into smaller conservation units. However, the two recovery strategies adopt different definitions for the conservation unit. For the Boreal DU, the Local Population is considered the conservation unit for recovery management, whereas for Southern Mountain DU, the conservation unit for recovery is the subpopulation, which may or may not be comprised of several Local Populations. The scientific rationale for the difference between recovery strategies is unclear, not necessarily supported by genetic or demographic evidence, and highlights a policy challenge facing caribou conservation. We argue that the current emphasis on protecting subpopulations within a DU might be inconsistent and unviable for recovery planning. Instead, the recognition and emphasis on maintaining meta‐population dynamics within DUs is essential and currently underutilized in the long‐term recovery of woodland caribou in Canada. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Weckworth, BV Hebblewhite, M Mariani, S Musiani, M |
spellingShingle |
Weckworth, BV Hebblewhite, M Mariani, S Musiani, M Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
author_facet |
Weckworth, BV Hebblewhite, M Mariani, S Musiani, M |
author_sort |
Weckworth, BV |
title |
Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
title_short |
Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
title_full |
Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
title_fullStr |
Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada |
title_sort |
lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in canada |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/ http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2323 |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
Rangifer tarandus |
op_relation |
http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf Weckworth, BV, Hebblewhite, M, Mariani, S orcid:0000-0002-5329-0553 and Musiani, M 2018, 'Lines on a map : conservation units, meta-population dynamics, and recovery of woodland caribou in Canada' , Ecosphere, 9 (7) , e02323. doi:10.1002/ecs2.2323 |
op_rights |
cc_by_4_0 http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/47933/1/Weckworth_et_al-2018-Ecosphere.pdf:public |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2323 |
container_title |
Ecosphere |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
7 |
container_start_page |
e02323 |
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1766175727560949760 |