does the order of invasive species removal matter the case of the eagle and the pig入侵物种的顺序删除重要的鹰和猪.pdfVIP

Does the Order of Invasive Species Removal Matter? The Case of the Eagle and the Pig 1 2 3 Paul W. Collins , Brian C. Latta , Gary W. Roemer * 1 Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America, 2 The Bird Group, Santa Cruz, California, United States of America, 3 Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America Abstract Background: Invasive species are recognized as a primary driver of native species endangerment and their removal is often a key component of a conservation strategy. Removing invasive species is not always a straightforward task, however, especially when they interact with other species in complex ways to negatively influence native species. Because unintended consequences may arise if all invasive species cannot be removed simultaneously, the order of their removal is of paramount importance to ecological restoration. In the mid-1990s, three subspecies of the island fox Urocyon littoralis were driven to near extinction on the northern California Channel Islands owing to heightened predation by golden eagles Aquila chrysaetos. Eagles were lured to the islands by an abundant supply of feral pigs Sus scrofa and through the process of apparent competition pigs indirectly facilitated the decline in foxes. As a consequence, both pigs and eagles had to be removed to recover the critically endangered fox. Complete removal of pigs was problematic: removing pigs first could force eagles to concentrate on the remaining foxes, increasing their probability of extinction. Removing eagles first was difficult: eagles are not easily captured and lethal removal was politically distasteful. Methodology