Suchergebnisse

Neophobia (fear of new stimuli) is an important component of mammalian
behavioural ecology. In addition, information on neophobia in pest species
could be of great significance in targetting control measures and predicting
changes in responses to them. Novel objects and an auditory stimulus were
presented to individually marked wild rabbits living socially in clumped
warrens in southern British farmland. Avoidance of stimuli was measured by
scan sampling of rabbits' locations, in replicated experiments. Rabbits
avoided a variety of novel objects by staying below ground, and by changing
their activity ranges. Responses to different stimuli were correlated within
individuals. There were non-significant differences in the degree of avoidance
elicited by novel visual stimuli. The most important factors in avoidance were
distance from the stimulus, number of previous presentations, and rabbit
identity. Individual characteristics, including sex, social rank, and
trappability, were less important determinants of neophobia, although dominant
females were significantly more neophobic than were non-dominant ones. Only
one or two presentations were required for attenuation of avoidance, so novel
objects would be of limited application to crop protection. However, equipment
used for delivering control measures should also quickly become accepted by
rabbits. The measured avoidance and its attenuation indicate that rabbits
assessed and responded to their surroundings with high precision, with
significant individual variation consistent over stimuli.

Abstract ContextManaging small, isolated populations requires conservation practitioners to weigh up the risks of inbreeding depression and outbreeding depression when assessing alternative management actions aimed at preventing species extinction. Accordingly, it is important that research intended to guide these management decisions provides the relevant evidence to inform them. AimsTo determine the extent to which studies that use genetic analyses to characterise population units for conservation consider the key theoretical concepts necessary for making sound management recommendations regarding the desirability of gene flow among units, notably the consequences and relative risks of inbreeding depression and outbreeding depression. MethodsA systematic search was conducted of peer-reviewed literature for studies that attempted to identify population units of threatened birds and mammals. Using content analysis, the theoretical framing of these studies was assessed, based on the discussion of key concepts concerning differences among populations. Key resultsThere has been a significant increase over time in the number of published studies that use genetics to identify population units for conservation. Many do not consider theoretical concepts relevant to the effective management of fragmented populations of threatened species. Mammals were more common than birds as focal species of studies, but the number of concepts used in the framing of the studies was similar for these two taxa, despite differences in their ecology and biology that might be expected to affect perceptions of distinctiveness. Nevertheless, species of greater conservation concern tended to have a slightly more comprehensive theoretical framing. ConclusionsThere is great potential for more studies to implement theoretical guidelines and practical decision support tools when considering the best course of action for identifying appropriate population units for conservation management. ImplicationsThe gap in the identified literature is likely to be impacting the ability of conservation practitioners to make evidence-informed decisions about how to manage the genetic health of threatened species; it would be valuable to improve this situation.