Science-based guidelines for defining wildlife population objectives

What is it about?

Together with Central Valley Joint Venture partners, we developed a general framework for setting population objectives based on conservation biology principles and recent research. Population objectives are the specific population sizes a species needs to have to meet conservation goals, such as the minimum number of individuals necessary to avoid concerns about inbreeding or to minimize the risk of extinction. Agreeing on these numbers is difficult, especially without extensive data, but they are necessary to estimating how much habitat is needed and to developing long-term habitat conservation and restoration plans. The framework we developed is based on the best available science and provides a method for setting initial population objectives that are “in the ballpark” of what is needed to achieve conservation goals, even when local species-specific data are lacking.

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Why is it important?

Conservation goals are more likely to be achieved if they can be defined in terms of specific conservation objectives. For example, to meet a goal of a self-sustaining and resilient wildlife population, a specific population size objective should be stated. However, the local, species-specific data needed estimate these population sizes is often lacking. In the absence of science-based population objectives, conservation actions may be delayed and population objectives are likely to be underestimated. Our framework provides an invaluable starting point for setting population objectives, allowing conservation planning to get underway, while still allowing the population objectives to be revised if and when new data become available.