Ex situ conservation of the Bengal florican 907


TABLE 1 Step 3: evaluation of biological and practical considerations associated with ex situ conservation of the Bengal florican Houbaropsis bengalensis blandini.


Considerations


Required number of founders


Number of individuals to be maintained ex situ


Likely duration of ex situ programme


Relative risk of behavioural adaptation to ex situ conditions


Inbreeding Disease management


Plans for a release/ reintroduction


Egg harvest method


Geographical location of facility


Nature of facility Design of facility Equipment Staff numbers & skills Desired state1 Likely state1


Harvest 5–10 eggs per year for at least 5 years Harvest as many eggs as possible from doomed popula- tions; harvest eggs only from July onwards from popu- lations with a hope of persistence


.20 breeding age females, more if possible


.50 years: under above-average scenario minimum of 30 years needed until ex situ population is established


Moderate, managed through handling protocols & cage design


Moderate, managed through maximizing the number of founders, genetic testing of all indivi- duals&planned mating through use of a studbook


Single species facility with stringent quarantine procedures


Only at such a time that it does not jeopardize the captive population


Close supervision of search teams by ACCB & WCS staff


Proximate to native range (cannot locate inside breeding range because of seasonal flooding) Single species


Large enclosures with ample space for flying replicate wild conditions


State of the art Dedicated Bengal florican staff team


Marking of individuals Colour rings & microchips on all birds, database (Species360, 2020) & stud book kept up to date


Behavioural management Birds handled as infrequently as possible Level of public display


Birds not on public display


58–85% chance that this can be achieved over 50 years under above-average scenario, depending on number of eggs harvested annually


58% chance that this can be achieved under above- average scenario if 5 eggs harvested per year


High; behavioural adaptation to captivity is initially de- sirable to minimize adult mortality; birds bred for release will be managed differently, to minimize adaptation Moderate, managed as in the desired state


Captive facility only keeps species that originate from Cambodia, standard quarantine & disease risk reduction procedures are in place


Unlikely to be possible before 2050, for which it is impossible to predict suitability of wild conditions


Local people asked to report nests to WCS, eggs harvested from nests by ACCB staff Proximate to native range


Multi-species, located at ACCB, an animal rescue, rehabilitation & captive breeding centre managed by Allwetterzoo Münster, Germany


Small enclosures, breeding & non-breeding birds kept separately, birds not encouraged to fly for fear of injury; priority given to minimizing mortality


All necessary equipment, & backup equipment, has been purchased & is ready to use


Dedicated bird keeper & veterinarian, florican staff will not work on husbandry of other bird species, to minimize disease risk


As desired state


Birds for captive breeding will be habituated as chicks, to facilitate easy handling & reduce mortality


Birds not on public display, all visitors to the facility will be escorted by staff


1ACCB, Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity; WCS, Wildlife Conservation Society.


logistical risks (Step 4: Table 2) were populated in advance with issues for consideration, using IUCN/SSC (2014). Participants were also invited to identify additional issues, which were then added to the tables. The whole group as- sessed the biological risks associated with ex situ manage- ment, using the decision tree (Steps 4 and 5) for the population as a whole, and for each of the four remaining subpopulations. Results were summarized by the facilitator. A basic plan for ex situ management was developed based on the outcome and outputs of the meeting (Step 5: Table 3).


Results


Using the decision tree, the group decided to proceed with ex situ management of the Bengal florican, despite the risks, because of rapid, and potentially accelerating, declines in the wild population, the likelihood that threats could not be controlled in the wild before the taxon was rendered extinct, and the relatively high probability of establishing a captive population (Fig. 1). The demographic modelling indicated there is a 58% probability of a captive population persisting for 50 years under the above-average scenario of egg harvest


Oryx, 2021, 55(6), 903–915 © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Fauna & Flora International doi:10.1017/S0030605319001510


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