Abstract
AbstractWe performed 3 experimental reintroductions of the critically endangered Wyoming toad (Anaxyrus baxteri) to study the toad's spatial ecology, behavior, and test the effectiveness of a soft‐release strategy at Mortenson Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Wyoming, USA. We tracked reintroduced, captive‐bred toads (n = 46) and field collected toads that had been in the wild for at least one year (n = 12) using a harmonic tracking system totaling 1,438 toad relocations in 2014 and 2015. We compared the spatial ecology and behavior of soft‐released toads, hard‐released toads, and overwintered toads. Hard‐released toads were transported to the reintroduction site and released. Soft‐released toads were kept in an outdoor enclosure at the release site for 14 days before release. Compared to hard‐released toads, the soft‐release group's average total path distance moved was lower (mean difference = 263.23, CI = 115.37 – 411.05, P = 0.007). Additionally, hard‐released toads in the first 2 days post release moved 380% farther than the soft‐released toads in the same 2‐day period. Our results indicated that soft‐releases are an effective way to improve site fidelity and retain wild‐type spatial ecology and behavior of reintroduced captive‐bred amphibians.
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