Potential Use of Population Viability Analysis in Assessing Invasive Species Control

Abstract

A significant proportion of effort in wildlife management and ecology is focused on assessing the future size, health, and risk of extinction for various populations of wild organisms (Menges 1990, Nantel et al. 1996, Haines et al. 2006). Although many methods have been developed to aid ecologists in this undertaking, one of the most powerful and pervasive of these has been population viability analysis (PVA; Possingham et al. 1993). Although commonly used to signify a specific analytical tool, the term “population viability analysis” actually refers to a wide variety of quantitative methods used to assess the likelihood that a population will become extinct within a certain amount of time under a specific set of conditions (Morris et al. 1999). These PVA methods have almost exclusively been employed by ecologists to assess the recovery of threatened populations of plants and animals by evaluating their risk of extinction under current and proposed management prescriptions.