Title

Prospects For Captive Breeding Of Poorly Known Small Cetacean Species

Keywords

Acclimation; Art; Artificial insemination; Assisted reproductive technologies; Breeding program; Conservation threats; Dolphin; Ex situ conservation; Live capture

Abstract

Because of the precarious condition of small cetacean species and subpopulations listed as Endangered or Critically Endangered by the IUCN, use of captive breeding for conservation has been suggested for some of them, and will likely be suggested for others. A successful captive breeding program for a new species cannot be implemented until reliable capture and husbandry techniques have been developed. Techniques for assisted reproduction and reintroduction may also be needed. We review attempts to capture, maintain, and breed poorly known small cetaceans and discuss assisted reproductive technologies (ART) that have been used to enhance captive breeding efforts for other small cetaceans. We conclude that the techniques required for successful captive breeding of most Endangered or Critically Endangered small cetacean species have not been sufficiently developed. Development of these techniques should begin before a species or population is Critically Endangered. In particular, ARTs tend to be species specific, necessitating considerable time, money, and research to develop for each species of concern. Critically Endangered populations cannot afford to lose the individuals needed for technique development. The fairly large captive population sizes necessary (to avoid loss of genetic diversity, inbreeding, and genetic adaptation to captivity), limited space available in aquariums, and high costs of captive breeding and reintroduction programs make it unlikely that captive breeding will play a major role in the conservation of most small cetaceans. The substantive conservation measures needed to prevent extinction of Critically Endangered small cetaceans is reduction or elimination of their primary threats, which are usually by-catch and habitat loss.

Publication Date

1-1-2013

Publication Title

Endangered Species Research

Volume

19

Issue

3

Number of Pages

223-243

Document Type

Review

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00461

Socpus ID

84912012589 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/84912012589

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