Do amphibian conservation breeding programmes target species of immediate and future conservation concern?

Abstract

With amphibians declining globally, conservation breeding and reintroduction programmes are increasingly important management tools. Here we examine whether these conservation initiatives are targeting species at the greatest risk of extinction. We compared conservation needs of species involved in conservation breeding programmes to those of their closest relatives not involved in such programmes, using eight variables related to immediate and future extinction risk. We found that species in breeding programmes were more likely to be threatened and were equally range-restricted and specialized as their closest relatives not being bred for conservation purposes. This suggests that in contrast to patterns reported for zoo holdings more generally, these conservation initiatives target species of conservation priority in the short and medium term.