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Montecristo and Pianosa islands, although approximately equal in surface area (c. 1,000 ha), di?er greatly in substrate, human presence, vegetation and altitude (650 m vs. 30 m asl, respectively). The former island hosts one of the largest yelkouan shearwater (Pu?nus yelkouan) populations in Italy, the latter a depleted remnant of once numerous Scopoli’s shearwaters (Calonectris diomedea). Two consecutive EU-funded LIFE projects have been designed to protect these seabird populations. On Montecristo, rough and inaccessible, aerial delivery of toxic baits in January-February 2012 eradicated black rats (Rattus rattus) and feral rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) (originally a non-target species), with no permanent consequences on a local, ancient population of wild goats (Capra hircus). Eradication on Pianosa, currently underway (started January 2017), is being performed by ground baiting, delivered by 4,750 dispensers placed on a 50 m × 50 m grid throughout the island. The latter operation is included in a multi-species eradication aimed at several other target species, among which was the brown hare (Lepus europaeus), apparently introduced around 1840. Genetic analyses on the ?rst trapped hares showed that this was the last uncontaminated and viable population of L. europaeus subsp. meridiei in existence. Whether of natural origin or introduced, the commencement of eradication of this population has instead created the awareness of a taxon otherwise unavailable for conservation elsewhere. While both projects address the same conservation issues (protection of shearwater colonies and restoration of natural communities), they di?er greatly regarding economic cost, public perception, e? ort needed to maintain results in the long term and e?ects on non-target species. In the present paper, speci?c attention has been paid to the comparison between bait delivering techniques, results obtained, the array of problems originating from the complex regulatory framework and reactions by the general public.

Feral cats have been known to drive numerous extinctions of endemic species on islands. Also, predation by feral cats currently threatens many species listed as critically endangered. Island faunas that have evolved in the absence of predators are particularly susceptible to cat predation. Australian islands, such as Dirk Hartog and Christmas, both formerly known to be high biodiversity islands, are no exception. In this paper we outline the techniques being used in the two eradication campaigns currently underway and provide an update on the status of the programmes on these islands that differ significantly in terms of climate, topography and habitation. Poison baiting and trapping are the methods used on both islands but have been managed differently to suit the local conditions.

The Orkney Islands, o? the north-east coast of Scotland, support highly significant?cant cultural and natural heritage. The combined land area of the 70 islands is 990 km2 (380 sq mi),

A non-native introduced population of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) was targeted for removal from Desecheo Island (117 ha), Puerto Rico. Macaques were introduced in 1966 and contributed to several plant and animal extirpations. Since their release, three eradication campaigns were unsuccessful at removing the population; a fourth campaign that addressed potential causes for previous failures was declared successful in 2017. Key attributes that led to the success of this campaign included a robust partnership, adequate funding, and skilled ?eld sta? with a strong eradication ethic that followed a plan based on eradication theory. Furthermore, the incorporation of modern technology including strategic use of remote camera traps, monitoring of radio-collared Judas animals, night hunting with night vision and thermal ri?e scopes, and the use of high-power semi-automatic ? rearms made eradication feasible due to an increase in the probability of detection and likelihood of removal. Precision shooting and trapping were the primary methods used throughout the campaign. Long-term monitoring using camera traps and observed sign guided a management strategy that adapted over time in response to population density and structure. Lessons learnt include, 1) macaques quickly adjusted their behaviour in response to human presence and removal methods, 2) camera traps and thermal scopes provided high detection likelihood compared to other methods, and 3) the use of Judas animals and night hunting with thermal and night vision ri?e-scopes facilitated removals. The removal of macaques from Desecheo Island appears to be the ?rst introduced non-hominid primate eradication from an island.

Invasive rodent eradications are one of the most effective conservation interventions to restore island ecosystems. However, achievements in the tropics are lagging behind those in temperate regions. Land crab interference in bait uptake has been identified as one of the main causes of rodent eradication failure on tropical islands, but the issue of effective mitigation of bait loss due to land crab consumption is poorly understood. For example, there are over 100 species of land crab and each may behave differently. We reviewed the available literature to answer: (1) which crab species are the most problematic? (2) what mitigation measures have been effective? and (3) how do invasive rodents impact land crab communities? We analysed a systematic dataset from six tropical islands to test two hypotheses: (a) bait uptake is highest when burrowing (Brachyura) land crabs are present; and (b) small land crabs (including juveniles of the larger species) are highly vulnerable to rodent predation. We found that large species (e.g. genera Cardisoma, Johngarthia and Birgus) are the most problematic during rodent eradications. Effective mitigation measures to prevent bait loss include using higher bait application rates and conducting eradications during the driest months. Land crab communities tend to go through significant changes after rodent removal. From our analyses, we confirmed pre-eradication data are valuable for eradication planning, as seasonality and type of crab can influence outcomes. Post- eradication data confirmed small crab species (

Efforts to remove invasive rodents (e.g. Rattus spp. and Mus musculus) from islands often use toxicant-laced baits containing the anticoagulants brodifacoum or diphacinone. Rodenticide baits are generally delivered through aerial- or hand-broadcast, or in bait stations. These baits are not rodent-species and are subject to non-target consumption or secondary exposure (e.g. an individual preying upon another individual that has consumed bait). During rodenticide applications, it is generally unknown which animals are visiting and consuming bait; and to quantify this, we recommend using trail cameras (e.g. Reconyx™ motion-activated infra-red) positioned to monitor individual bait pellets. To demonstrate the importance and effectiveness of using trail cameras during such operations, we report results of target (Rattus rattus, black rat) and non-target (native land crab, lizard, insect) bait-interactions after an aerial-broadcast of Brodifacoum-25D Conservation to eradicate rats from Desecheo Island, Puerto Rico. During the ?rst ?ve days following bait application, trail cameras (n = 15) revealed that there were 40 incidences of animals contacting bait pellets: 50% rat, 32% hermit crab, 13% Ameiva lizard, and 5% insect. Trail cameras provide temporal and spatial information regarding the e?ectiveness of rodent removal, and the last rat pictured by trail cameras on Desecheo was six days after bait application began. Trail cameras revealed 30 incidences of animals contacting bait pellets 6–20 days after bait application began: 47% hermit crab, 37% Ameiva lizard, 13% insect, and 3% black crab. Despite viewing ~69,000 images from trail cameras, lizards were never pictured consuming bait on Desecheo; therefore, any brodifacoum exposure to Desecheo lizards likely occurred via secondary pathways (e.g. consumption of contaminated insects). Scaling up, we estimate that > 75% of the total bait distributed on Desecheo was not consumed by rats. Trail cameras help inform the hazards of rodenticide use and can be easily incorporated into rodent removal operations.

Synopsis - Coral reefs are integral to the cultures and nutrition of many Pacific peoples; this report was developed to assist reef conservation for those peoples.

At the World Conservation Congress, held in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2004, the IUCN Membership requested “a worldwide consultative process to agree a methodology to enable countries to identify Key Biodiversity Areas”.

Critical issues for all meetings will be the global effort in the remaining 18 months to achieve the 2020 Aichi Targets of the CBD. Target 11 is of particular importance to WCPA and indeed we would argue it is the fundamental goal to achieve biodiversity and underpins many other goals.

Rat eradication is a highly effective tool for conserving biodiversity, but one that requires considerable planning eff ort, a high level of precision during implementation and carries no guarantee of success. Overall, rates of success are generally high but lower for tropical islands where most biodiversity is at risk. We completed a qualitative comparative review on four successful and four unsuccessful tropical rat eradication projects to better understand the factors influencing the success of tropical rat eradications and shed light on how the risk of future failures can be minimised. Observations of juvenile rats surviving more than four weeks after bait application on two islands validate the previously considered theoretical risk that unweaned rats can remain isolated from exposure to rodent bait for a period. Juvenile rats emerging after bait was no longer readily available may have been the cause of some or all the project failures. The elevated availability of natural resources (primarily fruiting or seeding plants) generated by rainfall prior to project implementation(documented for three of the unsuccessful projects) may also have contributed to project failure by reducing the likelihood that all rats would consume sufficient rodent bait or compounding other factors such as rodent breeding. Our analysis highlights that rat eradication can be achieved on tropical islands but suggests that events that cannot be predicted with certainty in some tropical regions can act individually or in concert to reduce the likelihood of project success. We recommend research to determine the relative importance of these factors in the fate of future tropical projects and suggest that existing practices be re-evaluated for tropical island rodent eradications.