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Changes of population trends and mortality patterns in response to the reintroduction of large predators: The case study of African ungulates

Large predators have been reintroduced to an increasing number of protected areas in South Africa. However, the conditions allowing both prey and predator populations to be sustained in enclosed areas are still unclear as there is a lack of understanding of the consequences of such reintroductions for ungulate population dynamics. Variation in lion numbers, two decades after their first release, offered a special opportunity to test the effects of predation pressure on the population dynamics of seven ungulate species in

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Estimating Giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardalis) Population Size And Survival Rates In South Luangwa Valley, Zambia

Giraffe populations across their range have declined significantly over the past 40 years. Recent studies of these declines noted that conservation efforts often lack basic population estimates and descriptions of demographic parameters such as sex- and age-specific survival rates. I addressed those research needs for a geographically-isolated population of giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) in South Luangwa Valley, Zambia. During 2016 to 2018, collaborators opportunistically photographed giraffes throughout South Luangwa National Park and adjacent Lupande and Lumimba Game Management Areas. Given that

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Sociability increases survival of adult female giraffes

Studies increasingly show that social connectedness plays a key role in determining survival, in addition to natural and anthropogenic environmental factors. Few studies, however, integrated social, non-social and demographic data to elucidate what components of an animal’s socioecological environment are most important to their survival. Female giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) form structured societies with highly dynamic group membership but stable long-term associations. We examined the relative contributions of sociability (relationship strength, gregariousness and betweenness), together with those of the natural (food

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Does tooth wear influence ageing? A comparative study across large herbivores

We test whether the intensity of tooth wear influences the strength of actuarial senescence across species of large herbivores. We collected from the literature data on tooth wear in the wild (measured as the slope of the regression of log-transformed M1 crown height on age), longevity (measured as the age at which 90% of individuals are dead) and two metrics of actuarial senescence in captive populations (rate of senescence between 6 and 12 years of age and Gompertz rate of

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Higher than expected growth rate of the Endangered West African giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis peralta: a successful human–wildlife cohabitation

The West African giraffe is a genetically unique population represented only by the subspecies Giraffa camelopardalis peralta, categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. These giraffes live outside protected areas, without natural predators and share their habitat with local people and their livestock. This study provides demographic data on this poorly studied megaherbivore and documents its recovery. We analysed the results of photo-identification censuses from 1996 to 1999 (count data) and from 2005 to 2008 (count and demographic data).

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A computer-assisted system for photographic mark–recapture analysis

Photographic mark–recapture is a cost-effective, non-invasive way to study populations. However, to efficiently apply photographic mark–recapture to large populations, computer software is needed for image manipulation and pattern matching. We created an open-source application for the storage, pattern extraction and pattern matching of digital images for the purposes of mark–recapture analysis. The resulting software package is a stand-alone, multiplatform application implemented in Java. Our program employs the Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) operator that extracts distinctive features invariant to image

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