Control mammalian predators on islands for wildfowl

Overall effectiveness category Awaiting assessment
Number of studies: 1
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

not assessed
Certainty

not assessed
Harms

not assessed

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

The effectiveness assessment of the control of mammalian predators on islands was carried out across all bird species groups.

Key messages

A before-and-after study from Alaska found that cackling geese Branta hutchinsii returned to a total of eight nesting islands between the 1970s and 1991, following the removal of Arctic foxes Alopex lugopus from the islands.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A before-and-after study from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, USA on the cackling goose Branta hutchinsii recovery programme (USFWS 2001) found that geese bred on four islands from 1984 onwards after Arctic foxes Alopex lugopus were eradicated from them. Together with releases of captive-bred individuals, the programme resulted in the population increasing to 6,000 birds by 1991, compared with fewer than 1,000 in the 1970s, and birds were breeding on eight fox-free islands. The effects of different release techniques are discussed in ‘Release captive-bred individuals into the wild to restore or augment wild populations’, ‘Release birds as adults or subadults, not juveniles’ and ‘Clip birds’ wings on release’.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
U.S.F.W.S . (2001) Aleutian Canada goose road to recovery. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service report.

Please cite as:

Williams, D.R., Child, M.F., Dicks, L.V., Ockendon, N., Pople, R.G., Showler, D.A., Walsh, J.C., zu Ermgassen, E.K.H.J. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Bird Conservation. Pages 137-281 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Bird Conservation

Related Actions

Actions	Effectiveness	Studies	Category
Reduce predation by translocating predators Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	3	Synopsis Link
Control mammalian predators on islands for raptors Action Link	Awaiting assessment	1	Synopsis Link
Control predators not on islands for seabirds Action Link	Awaiting assessment	2	Synopsis Link