GrowLS: Lion (Panthera leo) Population Growth Simulation for Small Reserve Management Planning

Abstract

Lion (Panthera leo) populations on small reserves (<1000 km2) require more intensive management than those in larger conservation areas. ‘Surplus’ animals are a major management concern, resulting from smaller inter-birth intervals, younger ages of first reproduction and higher survival rates. In the 1990s and early 2000s, this surplus was translocated to newly formed reserves. More recently, the proliferation of new reserves has slowed, often forcing managers to cull surplus animals. The Lion Management Forum has proposed several interventions to reduce the number of surplus lions by mimicking natural processes. These include the use of chemical contraception to increase the age of first reproduction and/or inter-birth intervals to match those found in the Kruger National Park (NP) lions; or ‘tube-tying’ to reduce litter size to match that found in the Serengeti NP. We developed a population simulation model, GrowLS, to evaluate the efficacy of these interventions. GrowLS predicts that alterations to int...