Rewilding

Chlidonias said:
Your posts always read like you can't separate individuals from concepts, like you think that a person who is interested in X and thinks Y about it therefore means that everybody else interested in X thinks the exact same
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See also the claim that:

"a pretty good-sized chunk of those on paleontology or those into paleontology is in favor of pleistocene rewilding. You'll hear them say it could work. I think the reason they're in favor of it is that deep down, they wish they could live with the ice age giant"

...with a subsequent clarification that he did include professional palaeontologists in this judgement. The phrasing of "on palaeontology" and "into palaeontology" gives massive vibes of dismissing the whole field too, as if it were some recreational drug :p
 
@Chlidonias @TeaLovingDave

Look, all I wanted to do was share concepts created by the rewilding community and talk a little bit about why these wouldn't work. And give my thoughts as to why some in the paleo community like the idea of pleistocene rewilding. I wasn't trying to be dismissive of that field of science and I'm sorry it came across that way.

And by the way Tea, "on paleontology" was simply a typing error. And as for some other stuff I said, this has been a rough week that got me worked up a bit, and thus I wasn't thinking straight.

I'm really sorry for causing this discussion to go down this weird, twisted road. And I'm willing to move forward and move on, and make one last post specifically about introducing lions into North America if you are.
 
Lions in the USA: Are They Good Replacements?

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Alright, one last post on Pleistocene rewilding. For now anyway. So after this discussion took a weird, twisted road, I decided to look into where this idea originally came from. Apparently, the concept of introducing lions and other megafauna into North America was proposed by a group of scientists in 2005 (Lions, Camels and Elephants, Oh My! Wild Kingdom Proposed for U.S.). And this is where the idea of having African lions replace the extinct American lions was born. This was later refuted by Cornell researchers, but since its conception, it's been one of the more popular ideas within the online rewilding community. Not everyone in the community agrees with it obviously, but generally speaking, it's pretty popular in that community.

But now it's time to ask the real question here: Would African Lions (Panthera leo) be a good replacement for American Lions (Panthera atrox)?

The answer to this question is simple: No.

Generally speaking, modern lions prefer more open habitats and it was suggested that the lions be introduced into the great plains and southwest. However, more recent research has confirmed that American lions, along with Smilodon fatalis hunted forest-dwelling prey and thus lived in more wooded areas. (Fossils Reveal Why Coyotes Outlived Saber-Toothed Cats | Smart News| Smithsonian Magazine)

So the truth is, African lions are not a good ecological replacement for American lions based on that alone.

There was, however, another big cat on the continent that did live in mor open areas: Homotherium, the scimitar-toothed cat. Dietary research confirms this animal ate animals that lived in more open areas. (Diet of Homotherium sabertooth cat included baby mammoths, according to new research)

So one might argue for having modern lions replace Scimitar cats. But there's a problem with this.

Scimitar-toothed cats differed from modern felids in that they actually had genomic adaptations for cursorial hunting, and in the past paleontologists have mentioned they had adaptations for running longer distances. (Researchers Sequence Genome of Extinct Scimitar-Toothed Cat | Genetics, Paleontology | Sci-News.com)

So for thousands of years, the native fauna of the southwest and great plains haven't had to deal with an animal with the modern lion's hunting strategy. Meaning if lions were introduced into North America, they'd probably be a really bad invasive species.
 
A project is now underway to determine if black grouse could be reintroduced to Ashdown Forest in Sussex, a 2,500 hectare area of heath and woodland that was the last stronghold for the species in the county. The species persisted here until the early 1900s with the last survivor, a female, last recorded in 1937.

Funding was offered in October 2022 for research to determine if the current habitat and climate could support a population of black grouse in the region.

More information can be found in the link below:
Plans to reintroduce Black Grouse to Sussex - BirdGuides
 
Hi guys,
I just wanted to have your thoughts and opinions on reintroducing wolves, lynx and bears to the UK.
I know that it is really difficult to propose this project but we need them to restore balance to the ecosystem in the uk and limit deer populations.

what do you think?
 
animallover22 said:
Hi guys,
I just wanted to have your thoughts and opinions on reintroducing wolves, lynx and bears to the UK.
I know that it is really difficult to propose this project but we need them to restore balance to the ecosystem in the uk and limit deer populations.

what do you think?
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Lynx is the only one I see being viable short-term and this seems to be one of the proposed reintroductions that is picking up the most steam currently. The main issues are opposition from farmers who are worried about livestock and the lack of woodland habitat. Wolves in Scotland is also possible but I think that the fact they are larger and the stigma around them would make reintroduction more difficult. Bears are something I haven't really seen seriously proposed but maybe in the future?
 
animallover22 said:
Hi guys,
I just wanted to have your thoughts and opinions on reintroducing wolves, lynx and bears to the UK.
I know that it is really difficult to propose this project but we need them to restore balance to the ecosystem in the uk and limit deer populations.

what do you think?
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I think it should be done as soon as possible. If deer overpopulation is anywhere near as bad in the UK as it is in eastern North American you need those predators badly.
 
Question:

A project to reintroduce Dalmatian Pelicans to the Netherlands was floated about 2 years ago. Is there any update to it?
 
Birth of a Kulan in the Tarutino Steppe, in the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta. It's the second birth of this species since the beginning of the reintroduction program, and since the local extinction of this animal in Europe, two centuries ago.
And congratulations to the Rewilding Europe team, within the extremely hard situation of Ukraine in current times.
Rewilding Danube Delta on Instagram: " Fabulous news from the Tarutino steppe! Today a foal was born in the herd of kulan in the steppe enclosure. This is the second kulan born in the Tarutino steppe after the comeback of the species to the area. Last year the herd, released into the wild, saw the first baby kulan birthed here in the few last hundred years (learn more LINK IN BIO). Our team is excited that this year another foal was born, giving hope for the future of the kulan population in the area. After the long absence, a few groups of kulan were released here as part of the program to bring the species back to the Tarutino steppe, supported by The Endangered Landscapes Programme. The animals came from the "Askania-Nova" biosphere reserve that is now under occupation so further releases are postponed. The herd doesn’t allow people to come close so it is not possible to take a picture of the baby. Deli Saavedra #WildlifeComeback #ConservationSuccess #Kulan #NaturalGrazing #LargeHerbivores #TarutiniSteppe #SteppeWildlife #BabyAnimal #WildAss #Foal #BiodiversityMatters #WildlifeConservation"
 
Reintroduction of 2 young Bearded Vultures in the Drôme (SE France). One of them has hatched in the Ostrava Zoo in Czech Republic.
Asters gypaete on Instagram: "Réintroductions dans le milieu naturel, cuvée 2023, c'est parti ! Les premiers gypaètes barbus nés en captivité ont été réintroduits dans la Drome par Vautours en baronnies début mai. Un des poussins baptisé Dromy vient de notre centre d'élevage et le second du @zooostrava en République tchèque. Dans les Alpes, les réintroductions vont se poursuivre au sein du @parcduvercors, dans le sud de l'Allemagne et en Suisse. Longue vie à ces nouveaux venus... Photos : Asters CEN 74 #BeardedVulture #BeardedVultures #Gypaetebarbu #Quebrantahuesos #Gipeto #Bartgeier #reintroduction #wildlifeconsevation #captivebreeding #conservationoptimism #conservationphotography #animalconservation #birdconservation #conservation #birdlovers #birdlife #birdstagram #lpofficiel #vautoursenbaronnies #zooostrawa"
 
A new working group has been created to explore the reintroduction of the European pond turtle to the UK.

The cause and timing of the species' demise is still unknown, but it is suspected they may have been hunted to extinction after a period of cooling drastically reduced their numbers between 5,000 and 8,000 years ago - carbon dating of the only surviving fossils has been refused as the remains are deemed too precious.

The turtles could have an important role in a warming Britain, as they are a large aquatic scavenger that could play a role in removing dead fish killed by heatwaves.

The plan would probably involve fencing off one of the glacial ponds or pingos in the Breckland region of East Anglia, where the turtles were probably last resident. It is thought that climate change could allow the species to live and breed in the country again.

Some conservationists working on the project say the reintroduction should happen regardless of whether recent native status is proved or not, because it will be a valuable trial of assisted colonisation, where a species threatened by climate change in more southerly regions is moved north to a region better suited to its survival.

More information can be found in the article below:
European pond turtle could return to British rivers and lakes
 
DesertRhino150 said:
The cause and timing of the species' demise is still unknown
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Great initiative! However, knowledge of the past fauna of Britain is so patchy, that for most animals, arguing why and when they went extinct, or whether they occurred, is futile.
 
Bactrian Deer said:
Are there any initiatives or ideas about Tapir reintroduction?
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There have been a few reintroductions of lowland tapir in South America (at Ibera Wetlands in Argentina and at the REGUA site in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil):
Ibera Wetlands: The First Wild Tapir is Born in Iberá - Tompkins Conservation News
Atlantic Forest: Brazilian Tapir | Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu

There were also talks of reintroducing the Malayan tapir to Borneo, but I haven't heard anything about since 2019.
 
A herd of ten Przewalski's horses (three males and seven females) have been released in the Iberian Highlands rewilding area in Spain, having been sourced from the Monts d'Azur Biological Reserve in France.

This project is unique in Western Europe in that the horses are completely free-ranging and not constrained by fencing. The nearest unfenced population is in the Chernobyl exclusion zone.

More information can be found in the link below:
Western Europe’s first free-roaming herd of Przewalski’s horses to enhance Iberian Highland rewilding | Rewilding Europe
 
DesertRhino150 said:
A herd of ten Przewalski's horses (three males and seven females) have been released in the Iberian Highlands rewilding area in Spain, having been sourced from the Monts d'Azur Biological Reserve in France.
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I would like to see these released into the United States and Canada. I know the feral Mustang has some cultural value…but I’d love to Przewalski’s Horse reintroduced and the Mustang’s removed.
 
Pleistohorse said:
I would like to see these released into the United States and Canada. I know the feral Mustang has some cultural value…but I’d love to Przewalski’s Horse reintroduced and the Mustang’s removed.
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Why? That is an awful idea.

Horses are a terrible invasive species in North America. Literally the only things going for Mustangs is their cultural value. Yet you'd rather have a species with literally no reason for being here?
 
birdsandbats said:
Why? That is an awful idea.

Horses are a terrible invasive species in North America. Literally the only things going for Mustangs is their cultural value. Yet you'd rather have a species with literally no reason for being here?
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Here I disagree with you. The Horse (not necessarily the Mustang) is a native animal extirpated by over hunting by humans (climate change? Maybe the last populations in Alaska and the Yukon…but the species seems to being doing fine after a 10,000, maybe only a 5,000 to 7,000, year absence).

The Horses present in the Pleistocene and early Holocene were the exact same species.

I’m not really on the invasive species train (at least when it comes to continental environments…islands are a different story). But regarding the Horse (as a species) it’s ecologically (and literally) native to the Americas.

In my opinion. BLM and grazing interests (and 1491 purists) aside.
 
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