Population and Habitat Viability Assessment the Stakeholder Workshop
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment The Stakeholder Workshop 5 – 8 February, 2007 Milwaukee County, Wisconsin Workshop Design and Facilitation: IUCN / SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group Workshop Organization: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Bureau of Endangered Resources WORKSHOP REPORT Photos courtesy of Wisconsin Bureau of Endangered Resources. A contribution of the IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources / Bureau of Endangered Resources. Hyde, T., R. Paloski, R. Hay, and P. Miller (eds.) 2007. Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment – The Stakeholder Workshop Report. IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, Apple Valley, MN. IUCN encourage meetings, workshops and other fora for the consideration and analysis of issues related to conservation, and believe that reports of these meetings are most useful when broadly disseminated. The opinions and recommendations expressed in this report reflect the issues discussed and ideas expressed by the participants in the workshop and do not necessarily reflect the formal policies IUCN, its Commissions, its Secretariat or its members. © Copyright CBSG 2007 Additional copies of Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment – The Stakeholder Workshop Report can be ordered through the IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, 12101 Johnny Cake Ridge Road, Apple Valley, MN 55124, USA www.cbsg.org. The CBSG Conservation Council These generous contributors make the work of CBSG possible $50,000 and above Gladys Porter Zoo Knuthenborg Safaripark Great Plains Zoo & Delbridge Museum Lincoln Park Zoo Chicago Zoological Society Hong Kong Zoological and Lisbon Zoo -Chairman Sponsor Botanical Gardens Little Rock Zoo SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Japanese Association of Zoological Naturzoo Rheine Gardens and Aquariums (JAZA) Nordens Ark $20,000 and above Kansas City Zoo Odense Zoo Evenson Design Group Laurie Bingaman Lackey Oregon Zoo Minnesota Zoological Garden Los Angeles Zoo Ouwehands Dierenpark -Office Sponsor Marwell Zoological Park Riverbanks Zoological Park Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo Milwaukee County Zoological Society Rosamond Gifford Zoo Toronto Zoo North Carolina Zoological Park Svenska Djurparksföreningen Oceanpark Conservation Foundation Wellington Zoo $15,000 and above Paignton Zoo Welsh Mountain Zoo Palm Beach Zoo at Dreher Park Wildlife World Zoo Africam Safari Parco Natura Viva - Italy Zoo de Granby Columbus Zoo & Aquarium Perth Zoo Disney’s Animal Kingdom Philadelphia Zoo $250 and above Saint Louis Zoo Phoenix Zoo Wildlife Conservation Society Alice Springs Desert Park Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium World Association of Zoos and Apenheul Zoo Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium Aquariums (WAZA) Arizona - Sonora Desert Museum Prudence P. Perry Zoological Society of London Birmingham Zoo Randers Regnskov Tropical Zoo Bramble Park Zoo Ringling Bros., Barnum & Bailey $7,000 and above Brandywine Zoo Robert Lacy David Traylor Zoo of Emporia Australian Regional Association of Rotterdam Zoo Ed Asper Zoological Parks and Aquariums Royal Zoological Society - Antwerp Edward & Marie Plotka (ARAZPA) Royal Zoological Society - Scotland Lee Richardson Zoo Cleveland Zoological Society Saitama Children’s Zoo Mark Barone Nan Schaffer San Antonio Zoo Montgomery Zoo San Diego Zoo San Francisco Zoo Racine Zoological Gardens White Oak Conservation Center Sedgwick County Zoo Roger Williams Park Zoo Schönbrunner Tiergarten Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure $1,000 and above Taipei Zoo Sacramento Zoo The Living Desert African Safari Wildlife Park Tokyo Zoological Park Society Thrigby Hall Wildlife Gardens Albuquerque Biological Park Topeka Zoological Park Toledo Zoological Society Al Ain Zoo Twycross Zoo Alice D. Andrews $100 and above Union of German Zoo Directors Allwetterzoo Münster Utah’s Hogle Zoo African Safari-France Anne Baker Wassenaar Wildlife Breeding Centre Aquarium of the Bay Association of Zoos and Aquariums Wilhelma Zoo Bighorn Institute (AZA) Woodland Park Zoo Chahinkapa Zoo Audubon Zoological Gardens Zoo Frankfurt Elias Sadalla Filho Bristol Zoo Gardens Zoologischer Garten Köln International Centre for Birds of Prey British and Irish Association of Zoos and Zoologischer Garten Rostock James & Pamela Sebesta Aquariums (BIAZA) Zoo Zurich Lincoln Children's Zoo Calgary Zoological Society Zoos South Australia (Adelaide) Lion Country Safari, Inc. Chester Zoo Miami Metrozoo Cincinnati Zoo $500 and above Miller Park Zoo Colchester Zoo Steinhart Aquarium Copenhagen Zoo Aalborg Zoo Steven J. Olson Cotswold Wildlife Park Akron Zoological Park Tautphaus Park Zoo Detroit Zoological Park Banham Zoo and Sanctuary Dickerson Park Zoo BioSolutions Division of SAIC $50 and above Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden Dutch Federation of Zoos FOTA Wildlife Park Alameda Park Zoo El Paso Zoo Givskud Zoo Darmstadt Zoo Everland Zoo Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens Margie Lindberg Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo Kerzner International North Oglebay's Good Children's Zoo Fort Worth Zoo America, Inc. Safari Parc de Peaugres - France Stiftung Natur-und Artenschutz in den Tropen Touro Parc - France Thank you for your support! April 2007 Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment The Stakeholder Workshop 5 – 8 February, 2007 Milwaukee County, Wisconsin Contents I Executive Summary...........................................................................................3 II Workshop Participants and Preliminary List of Challenges............................11 III Butler’s Gartersnake Population Viability Analysis........................................17 IV Working Group Report: Site Characterization and Prioritization....................51 V Working Group Report: Biological Aspects of Habitat Management.............63 VI Working Group Report: Socio-economic Aspects of Habitat Management ...73 VII Working Group Report: Population Management...........................................85 VIII Working Group Report: Communications and Outreach ................................93 IX Appendices Conservation Target Setting: Post PHVA Workshop Meeting.....................101 Population Viability Analysis and Simulation Modeling ..............................107 IUCN Position Statement on Translocation of Living Organisms ................113 Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment The Stakeholder Workshop 5 – 8 February, 2007 Milwaukee County, Wisconsin I Executive Summary Butler’s Gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin: Population and Habitat Viability Assessment The Stakeholder Workshop Executive Summary Introduction The Butler’s gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) is the smallest of the five species of gartersnake found in Wisconsin. The snake requires both moderately open upland and wetland habitats. In Wisconsin, the species is primarily found in the greater Milwaukee area including parts of Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha Counties; a small population is also located in Fond du Lac and Sheboygan Counties (Figure 1). Wisconsin Butler’s gartersnakes have been confirmed at approximately 51 sites since 1990. These populations are isolated from other Butler’s populations in Indiana, Michigan, northwestern Ohio, and Ontario. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) listed this species as Threatened in 1997, because of extremely high levels of habitat fragmentation and habitat loss within its range. The threat of hybridization at its southern edge with the plains gartersnake (Thamnophis radix) was also a factor in its listing. Although the species can be found in degraded and disturbed sites, the biological problems associated with fragmentation can be sever and often lead to the extinction of local populations. As local extinctions accumulate, the very survival of the species in Wisconsin hangs in the balance. At the same time, the future of this species must be considered in the context of a rapidly expanding human population in the greater Milwaukee area. In this context, it is vitally important to strike a balance between the ecological requirements of the snake and a responsible economic development plan for the region that promotes controlled growth in appropriate sections of the landscape. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources developed the Butler’s Gartersnake Conservation Strategy in 2004 – 2005, that assembled the latest information on its biology and threats. The strategy defines criteria to evaluate a site’s conservation value based on the size and quality of the entire habitat patch. Each site is classified within a 3-tiered system, with protection measures identified for each tier. The agency recognized this document as a “work in progress”. The time has now come to incorporate the most current science into the strategy, in a way that involves stakeholders to a greater extent using a workshop process for decision-making and action planning. Specifically, inclusion of a formal population viability analysis (PVA) for the species and a more formal deliberative process of decision- making and action planning have been seen as priorities for a revised Strategy. Figure 1. Distribution of Butler’s gartersnake (Thamnophis butleri) in Wisconsin. Butler’s Gartersnake Stakeholder Workshop