Premium
Impacts by feral goats on critically endangered Crepidiastrum grandicollum ( C ompositae) endemic to the O gasawara I slands
Author(s) -
Abe Tetsuto
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plant species biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.419
H-Index - 36
eISSN - 1442-1984
pISSN - 0913-557X
DOI - 10.1111/1442-1984.12314
Subject(s) - exclosure , endangered species , biology , population , critically endangered , ecology , biodiversity , threatened species , extinction (optical mineralogy) , conservation status , habitat , habitat destruction , population decline , herbivore , demography , paleontology , sociology
Oceanic islands are biodiversity hotspots with highly endemic ecosystems that are vulnerable to invasive alien species. Understanding the status of endangered species and identifying threats have the highest priority for insular biodiversity conservation. The two remaining populations of endangered Crepidiastrum grandicollum on Chichi‐jima Island were studied for 5 years to describe their status and evaluate the impacts of feral goats ( Capra hircus ). The main cause of population decline was browsing by goats. The populations protected by the exclosures were stable but declined after an exclosure was removed. Even in the protected population, regeneration was limited outside the exclosures and in 1 year of the survey, a high proportion of feeding damage by moth larvae was observed in one population. These facts indicate that exclosures are not a sufficient conservation measure, and eradication of goats and population restoration in novel habitats are necessary to reduce the extinction risk of C. grandicollum .