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Monitoring post‐release dispersal of reintroduced wildlife informs management strategies to improve outcomes. In previous Swift fox (Vulpes velox) reintroductions, post‐release movements corresponded with survival and have been a metric for success of release strategies, but settlement patterns and resource selection by individuals from different source locations have not been compared. We fit piecewise regression models and resource selection functions to Global Positioning System collar data from Swift fox translocated to the Fort Belknap Reservation from Colorado and Wyoming. We found that 76% of studied Swift fox settled, most within 20 km of their release site. Contrary to our predictions, rates of settlement, distance and time to settlement, and resource selection did not differ by cohort or release strategy. Where Swift fox settled, we observed consistent selection of areas with high percentage cover by grass, low terrain ruggedness, intermediate clay soil content, and high Black‐tailed prairie dog suitability. Collectively, our study suggests that Swift fox are adaptable to a range of conditions within grassland ecosystems when high quality habitat is available and when pre‐release husbandry protocols are followed. However, we observed variability in post‐release behavior unexplained by the factors we assessed, possibly attributable to individual personality differences that are well documented in small canids. Swift fox are the most intensively reintroduced canid in the world, and our study highlights how science‐based advances in reintroduction practices can enhance success over time. These advances are particularly effective on Indigenous Peoples' Land, where high ecological and social suitability is present for large‐scale restoration initiatives.more » « lessFree, publicly-accessible full text available July 7, 2026
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Conservation translocations, intentional movements of species to protect against extinction, have become widespread in recent decades and are projected to increase further as biodiversity loss continues worldwide. The literature abounds with analyses to inform translocations and assess whether they are successful, but the fundamental question of whether they should be initiated at all is rarely addressed formally. We used decision analysis to assess northern leopard frog reintroduction in northern Idaho, with success defined as a population that persists for at least 50 years. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game was the decision maker (i.e., the agency that will use this assessment to inform their decisions). Stakeholders from government, indigenous groups, academia, land management agencies, and conservation organizations also participated. We built an age-structured population model to predict how management alternatives would affect probability of success. In the model, we explicitly represented epistemic uncertainty around a success criterion (probability of persistence) characterized by aleatory uncertainty. For the leading alternative, the mean probability of persistence was 40%. The distribution of the modelling results was bimodal, with most parameter combinations resulting in either very low (<5%) or relatively high (>95%) probabilities of success. Along with other considerations, including cost, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game will use this assessment to inform a decision regarding reintroduction of northern leopard frogs. Conservation translocations may benefit greatly from more widespread use of decision analysis to counter the complexity and uncertainty inherent in these decisions. History: This paper has been accepted for the Decision Analysis Special Issue on Further Environmental Sustainability. Funding: This work was supported by the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [Grant F18AS00095], the NSF Idaho EPSCoR Program and the National Science Foundation [Grant OIA-1757324], and the Hunt Family Foundation. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/deca.2023.0472 .more » « less
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