What is rewilding?
Rewilding and de-extinction are charismatic, often controversial concepts in the spectrum of conservation restoration-based approaches. Portrayed (to some extent) in popular culture by the Jurassic Park franchise of novels and films, rewilding programs aim to introduce living animals to areas in which animals filling similar ecological niches have been driven to extinction (Zimov, 2005; Rubenstein et al. 2006).
In many cases, these proposals have encountered substantial resistance, both from the public and scientists, based largely on the difficulty of predicting ecological outcomes of introducing the target species, and on the larger ethical and legal implications of attempting to patch together ecosystems with both modern and extinct taxa (or their proxies). Think, for example, of the massive difficulties air-travel would face if the often-proposed cloning of the passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) were successful. These birds once flew in flocks capable of blocking the sun for days, and required nesting grounds of 6-80 square miles (Bucher, 1992; Ellsworth and McComb, 2003). Their presence may have had the significant ecological impact of defining forest spread and soil composition in North American temperate regions (Ellsworth and McComb 2003), but where would they fly if brought back today? Where would they roost, and what would feed on them? The Passenger Pigeon is only one such example, and a small bird, no matter how numerous, is more innoccuous to the public than, for example, sustainable populations of woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius) or even the still-living gray wolves (Canis lupus) restored in their original ranges.
In many cases, these proposals have encountered substantial resistance, both from the public and scientists, based largely on the difficulty of predicting ecological outcomes of introducing the target species, and on the larger ethical and legal implications of attempting to patch together ecosystems with both modern and extinct taxa (or their proxies). Think, for example, of the massive difficulties air-travel would face if the often-proposed cloning of the passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) were successful. These birds once flew in flocks capable of blocking the sun for days, and required nesting grounds of 6-80 square miles (Bucher, 1992; Ellsworth and McComb, 2003). Their presence may have had the significant ecological impact of defining forest spread and soil composition in North American temperate regions (Ellsworth and McComb 2003), but where would they fly if brought back today? Where would they roost, and what would feed on them? The Passenger Pigeon is only one such example, and a small bird, no matter how numerous, is more innoccuous to the public than, for example, sustainable populations of woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius) or even the still-living gray wolves (Canis lupus) restored in their original ranges.
Evaluating rewilding programs
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In a comprehensive review of strategies associated with rewilding programs, we highlight the factors modulating success and media attention for major rewilding initiatives. Perhaps unsurprisingly, we find that when target species are charismatic megafauna, more attention is given and more resistance faced, particularly for carnivores. When species are lesser known or simply more difficult to see, as well as when they have occupied an area recently enough to be part of the local cultural memory and identity, the acceptance of proposals is far more likely, as is direct (and occasionally successful) action. The popularity of cloning thylacines (Thylacinus cynocephalus) and the accepted rewilding of the Bolson tortoise (Gopherus flavomarginatus) are strong examples of these discrepancies in attitude, which do not match well with the scientific concerns raised against rewilding (Fulmer and Naro-Maciel 2014).
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(Images are original art by Isaac Woodruff(C))