Variable Barrier Permeability for a Pack of African Wild Dogs (Lycaon pictus) Reintroduced to Eastern Botswana

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Understanding how natural and artificial landscape barriers influence the movement of carnivores is important for conservation planning. Studies have shown that while both fences and rivers significantly influence carnivore movement, rivers are typically more impermeable to carnivores than fences (Blanco, Cortés & Virgós, 2005; Cozzi, Broekhuis, McNutt & Schmid, 2013; Pomilia, McNutt & Jordan, 2015). Nevertheless, the use of fencing to separate human development and wildlife remains a key feature of southern Africa’s land-sparing approach to biodiversity conservation (Bauer et al., 2015; Chapron et al., 2014; Gusset et al., 2008; Hayward & Kerley, 2009; Packer et al., 2013; Woodroffe, Hedges & Durrant, 2014). Securely fenced protected areas have played a fundamental role in ensuring the success of South Africa’s African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) metapopulation management approach through limiting conflict between humans and reintroduced African wild dogs (Davies-Mostert, Mills & Macdonald, 2009; Gusset et al., 2008). Poorly maintained fences have allowed pack breakouts from reintroduction sites and contact with humans, frequently leading to anthropogenic mortality in the form of direct persecution. Without effective human–wild dog conflict mitigation, fences will continue to play a pivotal role in future African wild dog reintroductions (Davies-Mostert et al., 2009; Gusset et al., 2008; Jackson, McNutt & Apps, 2012). It is important to analyse individual reintroduction attempts to inform future African wild dog reintroductions and meet the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s need to understand how barriers impact this species’ movement (Davies-Mostert, Mills & Macdonald, 2015; IUCN, 2012).Here we investigated how rivers and fences impacted the movements of a pack of African wild dogs introduced to a reserve in eastern Botswana.