Lecture 6a: Species Recovery Flashcards
What is the state of wildlife?
Several populations are declining over time
Species Recovery at the Toronto Zoo
TZ has 3 recovery programs
1900s:
- Adopt-A-Pond - started due to Blanding’s Turtle concern (decline)
- Great Lakes Program - started due to Redside Dace (decline)
Early 2000s:
- Turtle Island conservation to bring in Indigenous perspective to whats going on with reptiles and Amphibians in Ontairo
- They are no longer part of the Species Recovery, they are part of the different branch
2015:
- Native Bat Conservation Program
- fill the knowledge gaps on bat species
Toronto Zoo’s General approach to species
- outreach
- community science
- in situ conservation
The three sphere of species recovery
- government legislation (SAR)
- global biodiversity
- zoological practice
What are the two pieces of government legislation?
- Endangered species legislation
- recovery strategies and action plans
Endangered species legislation
Under these legislations, there are three acts we follow:
- Endangered Species Act (ESA)
- Species at Risk Act (SARA)
- Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act (FWCA)
These are the main permitting agencies
Have to provide a document detailing what we are going to do, how are are doing it, where, and who
And then, receive a permit for it and then can do the work
After the work, then submit a report of the result
Recovery Strategies and Action Plans
- One thing that comes out of the legislation is the recovery strategies and action plans
- mandated by SARA
- a document containing the needs of the species
- Identify recovery goals, knowledge gaps, timelines for actions
Process of how recovery documents come to be
- COSEWIC Assessment and Recommendation
- Listing of SARA schedule 1
- Recovery strategy within 1 to 2 years
- Action plan development
SARO
Government legislation on the provincial level
Government legislation and zoological practice intersection
zoo mission
operations
accrediation (conservation)
this is how zoological practices overlap with government legislation:
- Need permits to do the work
○ Those recovery strategies tell us what work we
should and help direct what we are doing
Help to fulfill zoo’s mission - use conservations science to fight extinction, also connecting people
Outreach - which sphere
Government legislation and zoological practice
How does the Great Lakes Program use the outreach approach
- most don’t know about the redside dace
- outreach can help spread awareness
- classroom learning
- printed materials
- offer videos
In situ conservation - spheres involved
- government legislation
- zoological practice
How is Native Bat Conservation Program involved in in situ conservation
- monitoring and surveys
- learn more about bats
- motus towers :tag and keep track of where they going
- mist net setup: to catch the bats (some fly higher than this though)
- acoustic monitor setup: less invasive, records their sound but can’t fully indicate how much
How is the Adopt-A-Pond Program involved in in-situ conservation?
- Blanding turtles radiotracking
- Blanding turtles headstart monitoring
- milksnake monitoring to learn more about them
How is the Great Lakes Program involved in in-situ conservation
- wasn’t much data on freshwater mussels
- did freshwater mussel sampling
- went out to see what was there and document it
Zoological practice and global biodiversity intersection
IUCN, CITES, Aichi targets
Aichi targets
20 specific targets to address and mitigate biodiversity loss across the globe
Community Science sphere
global biodiversity
How is Adopt-A-Pond engaging in community science?
- Turtle Tally and Frog Watch
- can submit sitings
How is the Great Lakes Program engaging in Community science
- have an app for clam counter
- to submit sightings of muscles
- have to submit a photo of mussels
Native Bat Conservation Program’s Community Science
We give volunteers an acoustic monitor which they set up
Then they give the SD card to obtain data
Did a presentation to show them the results and show why their participation is important
