Recalibrating risk: Implications of squirrelpox virus for successful red squirrel translocations within mainland UK

• Published in: Conservation science and practice Vol. 3; no. 2
• Main Authors: Shuttleworth, Craig M., Brady, Deborah, Cross, Paul, Gardner, Laura, Greenwood, Andrew, Jackson, Nick, McKinney, Conor, Robinson, Nikki, Trotter, Stephen, Valle, Simon, Wood, Kim, Hayward, Matt W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.02.2021; John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Animal behavior; Animal diseases; Conflicts of interest; Endangered & extinct species; Epidemics; Extinction; Genetic diversity; Geographical isolation; Infections; Population; Populations; Rodents; Serology; Species extinction; Squirrels; Translocation; Viral diseases; Viruses; United Kingdom > UK
• ISSN: 2578-4854; 2578-4854
• DOI: 10.1111/csp2.321

[...]genetic variation loss occurs in isolated red squirrel populations (O'Meara et al., 2018) and consequently reinforcement translocations have offered the only viable conservation option to prevent extinction, even where grey squirrels threaten (Halliwell & Jenkins, 2019; Ogden, Shuttleworth, McEwing, & Cesarini, 2005). In captive populations, the proportion of animals unaffected also varies (e.g., Carroll et al., 2009; Shuttleworth et al., 2014). [...]we can reasonably conclude such variation will influence population recovery rates to pre‐outbreak levels. In summary, Gurnell and Steele ( 2002) stated, “there is no evidence that grey squirrels were cleared from any part of the study area for any length of time using the control effort applied.”