Assisted colonization risk assessment-Response.

Abstract

Ricciardi and Simberloff highlight the dangers of some species introductions (which are real) but do not address the concurrent (and also very real) dangers of inaction when it comes to ameliorating the impacts of climate change on biodiversity. We are not proposing what the guidance about assisted colonization should be or endorsing assisted colonization in all cases. We propose just the opposite—that a task force of experts develop guidance and best practice. Assisted colonization is going to be used and has been used ([ 1 ][1]). We agree that there are cases when it would not be appropriate, but maintaining a policy void will not stop people from taking action. Well-constructed policy guidance would assist conservationists and governments in making informed decisions. There are 196 governments that are Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and it is far preferable to develop guidance on translocation decision-making that all of these governments could consult than to have 196 separate approaches. We agree with Ricciardi and Simberloff that predicting when an introduced species will become invasive is difficult. But that is all the more reason to have a structured decision-making protocol for assisted colonization—to ensure that risk is actually considered before action is taken and to take advantage of tools that conservation scientists have available when dealing with uncertain outcomes ([ 2 ][2]). The alternatives to regulated assisted colonization are either more unregulated translocations, which are already being conducted by interest groups in the absence of national or international policies ([ 1 ][1]), or no translocations at all, which locks in species extinction. Not using a conservation tool like assisted colonization is itself an active decision—a choice to do nothing ([ 3 ][3])—that will inevitably have negative consequences in light of the rapid deterioration of Earth's ecosystems and novel threats facing its species. In our view, both alternatives will be more detrimental to conservation outcomes. Ricciardi and Simberloff point to several examples of species that were threatened in their native range becoming invasive when introduced to remote islands or Australia. Notably, all of the releases they mention were made without any motivation or planning for conservation purposes, and all provide excellent examples of why a framework guiding assisted colonization is so important. It is exceedingly unlikely that a formal structured decision-making protocol for assisted colonization would have approved any of these translocations; we know of no serious proposals that would transgress major biogeographical barriers such as oceans or continents, let alone that would bring organisms to remote archipelagos already known to be highly susceptible to invasions. Ricciardi and Simberloff make a fair point that certain uses of the term “neonative” in other contexts have been problematic. But the binary distinction of “native” versus “alien” is arguably even more problematic, as it does not account for the inherently and fundamentally dynamic nature of species distributions and community composition—dynamism that is only increasing in the face of rapid climate change. 1. [↵][4]1. M. W. Schwartz, 2. T. G. Martin , Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 1286, 15 (2013). [OpenUrl][5][CrossRef][6][PubMed][7][Web of Science][8] 2. [↵][9]1. M. A. McCarthy , Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 1322, 77 (2014). [OpenUrl][10] 3. [↵][11]1. R. Phelan et al ., Conserv. Sci. Pract. 3, e371 (2021). [OpenUrl][12] [1]: #ref-1 [2]: #ref-2 [3]: #ref-3 [4]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [5]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DAnn.%2BN.Y.%2BAcad.%2BSci.%26rft.volume%253D1286%26rft.spage%253D15%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1111%252Fnyas.12050%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F23574620%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [6]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1111/nyas.12050&link_type=DOI [7]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=23574620&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fsci%2F372%2F6545%2F925.2.atom [8]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000324894500002&link_type=ISI [9]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2 in text [10]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DAnn.%2BN.Y.%2BAcad.%2BSci.%26rft.volume%253D1322%26rft.spage%253D77%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [11]: #xref-ref-3-1 View reference 3 in text [12]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DConserv.%2BSci.%2BPract.%26rft.volume%253D3%26rft.spage%253D371e%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx