Mounce, Hanna Lee (2015) Recovery of the endangered Maui Parrotbill (Kiwikiu, Pseudonestor xanthophrys). Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) thesis, University of Kent. (KAR id:50697)
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Abstract
Species recovery programs are tasked with reversing the declines of
threatened and endangered species and mitigating the threats to their populations.
These goals must be accomplished in the face of a human dominated global
landscape where habitat destruction and alteration is still increasing at an alarming
rate. Hawaii, as common on many islands, has one of the highest historical
extinction rates in the world. Here I use the Maui Parrotbill (Kiwikiu; Pseudonestor
xanthophrys) to explore population demographics, genetics, population viability,
and recovery options for one of Hawaii’s most critically endangered passerines (Maui
Island endemic, pop. ~500). The accurate estimation of key demographic parameters
is invaluable for making decisions about the management of endangered wildlife.
Due to the challenges of data collection on a rare and cryptic species that inhabits
remote terrain, such estimates are often difficult to obtain and reliable basic
demographic data was not before available for parrotbills. First I look at parrotbill
productivity estimates through both nest success and annual reproductive success
measures. Secondly, I look at annual survival based on an 18 year encounter history.
These studies both suggest population limitations may be coming from fecundity,
and juvenile and female survival. Maui Parrotbill once inhabited a variety of forest
types throughout Maui Nui but are now restricted to a single strip of wet forest 40-50
km2 in size. I quantified the levels of contemporary genetic diversity and structure in
wild and captive Kiwikiu populations, and compared these genetic patterns to those
observed within historical nuclear diversity derived from 100-year old museum
samples enabling the design of a conservation translocation strategy that is tailored
to the patterns of genetic structure across the species’ range. Lastly, I combine
these data into a comprehensive population viability model to assess the risks to this
population and evaluate the impacts of recovery options to the overall viability
trajectory of a species. In planning for a reintroduction of parrotbills to areas of
their former range, this model provides managers with demographic benchmarks
that the new population will need to meet in order for the reintroduction to be
successful.
Item Type: | Thesis (Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)) |
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Thesis advisor: | Groombridge, Jim |
Uncontrolled keywords: | Hawaii avifauna extinction demography conservation genetics |
Subjects: | G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation |
Divisions: | Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation |
Funders: | Organisations -1 not found. |
Depositing User: | Nicola Kerry-Yoxall |
Date Deposited: | 30 Sep 2015 15:00 UTC |
Last Modified: | 09 Dec 2022 18:03 UTC |
Resource URI: | https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/50697 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes) |
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