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Rapidly increasing elephant populations are raising concerns, especially within enclosed conservation areas in southern Africa. Elephant immunocontraception is an effective management tool, enabling conservation managers to control elephant population growth rates, but the behavioural consequences of this intervention needs to be studied more intensively and over longer periods of time. This is especially important as the potential risk of disturbance, and the ethical concerns over the welfare of wildlife, can compromise the success of management interventions. We determined the influence of immunocontraception application on behaviour of family groups. The disruption effect of immunocontraception darting on the family groups within the population was minimal, with no significant changes found in the mobility of family groups. Analysis of family group fission and fusion indicated that family groups spent more time alone during the second year of contraception application; this could be a consequence of maturation of the relatively young population. There was no significant relationship between bulls' association with family groups and the number of oestrous females present in the group. With negligible short-term effects on the behaviour of family groups, immunocontraception may be an effective, flexible management tool. Furthermore, this study showed that monitoring and assessment of behavioural assays during active adaptive management is important to determine conservation outcomes and to ensure future management success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The success of efforts to re-establish mammalian carnivores within their former range is dependent on three key factors: methodological considerations, the biological requirements of the target species, and the involvement of local human communities for whom large carnivores pose a threat. We consider the role of these factors in the first 13 years of an effort to re-establish wild lions in northern KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. We employed soft-release methods to mitigate the characteristic problems associated with restoration of large carnivores. A pre-release captivity period facilitated acclimatization of reintroduced lions and promoted long-term bonding of unfamiliar individuals into cohesive groups. All individuals remained in the release area and established enduring, stable home ranges. Reintroduced lions successfully reproduced and raised 78% of their cubs to independence. Human activity was the cause of all post-release mortality. Despite rapid population growth and the re-establishment of the species at Phinda Private Game Reserve, the population is small and isolated with little prospect for re-colonizing additional areas where the species has been extirpated, or for connecting with other isolated lion populations in the region. Accordingly, although we essentially overcame the short-term technical and biological challenges facing lion reintroduction, the long-term value of the Phinda population for addressing the conservation issues facing the species remains equivocal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]