Wild, Captive, to Wild: Completing the Circle to Recover a Threatened Mammal and Restore Biodiversity

Lagomorphs (rabbits, hares, and pikas) are an important group for the functioning of ecosystems with a high number of species in need of conservation. This project expands upon an ongoing conservation program focused on the vulnerable New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), a rabbit dependent upon young forest in the Northeast United States. The research aims to increase the number of rabbits born in a captive breeding program in zoos and determine the personalities related to their survival and breeding success after being released into the wild at mainland and island sites. Islands provide a relatively safe place to create insurance populations that will become additional sources of rabbits to repopulate dwindling mainland populations. The project will coordinate and integrate the activities of state biologists, federal biologists, zoo professionals, and academics to ensure research results are directly translated into conservation actions that can be sustainable long-term. Preserving biodiversity improves the health of the ecosystem, which has positive benefits to humans and their societies. Educational activities about this work and its impact will be available to the millions of public visitors of the two conservation partner zoos. Over the last century, zoos have greatly increased their involvement in the conservation of wildlife. However, breeding rare species can be extremely difficult in a zoo setting. To improve the productivity of the New England cottontail breeding program, behavioral and molecular mate choice mechanisms will be investigated in the context of animal personality to predict more productive pairings. Minimally-invasive methods for assessing current and historical pregnancy status of females using fur and whiskers will be developed to improve the efficiency of the breeding program and to evaluate post-release success of released individuals. The personality traits of individuals and their physiological correlates will be investigated to determine which behavioral and physiological phenotypes are best suited for release sites with varying risk factors (e.g., mainland or island). Taken together, these data will directly inform the zoos’ breeding programs to screen founders, determine pairings, and produce individuals that will ultimately be better able to survive and reproduce in the wild. These efforts will be critical, as the release of captive-bred animals will be an essential conservation strategy to repopulate managed habitats in this species with limited dispersal abilities. Our project will be a model system for how to populate a difficult to breed species and promote a paradigm shift of islands in North America as a production source of animals for translocations rather than just a refugium. This project is jointly funded by the Divisions of Environmental Biology and Integrative Organismal Systems through the Partnership to Advance Conservation Science and Practice Program. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.