Project brief identifiers

Annex G. Eradication, Control and Mitigation Pilot Projects

1. There are currently about 785 documented introduced species in the Galapagos of which 25 are vertebrates and the rest invertebrates. Not all of these threaten native and endemic biodiversity but many require immediate control to avoid irreversible losses to native species and habitats. Most of these are found in the larger islands that also have the highest biological diversity and thus require the most immediate action.

2. The high numbers of invasive species, the ways that they compete with native and endemic species and disperse within the archipelago, impede the adoption of one single approach to their overall control. Three main approaches can be identified for existing invasive species. The first, and most ecologically advantageous, is eradication throughout the entire archipelago or from specific islands and islets. This is normally a one-time intervention if re-introduction risk is low. However, given existing institutional capacities, and present levels of scientific knowledge, eradication is not feasible for many invasive species and islands. In these cases a second option is to control populations of invasive species to levels that do not threaten ecosystem integrity. This could be in localised areas, islands or throughout the entire archipelago. When these two options are not possible, mitigation measures provide normally short-term protection to endangered populations whilst more permanent solutions are being developed and tested. These include measures such as fencing endemic species to maintain seed banks or exclude predators; introducing endangered species into invasive free environments to maintain populations levels; and captive reproduction programmes followed by re-introduction into natural habitats (where the survival probability is relatively high).

3. Although these are three clearly different approaches, the complexity of ecological processes rarely permits the adoption of one single option in a given scenario. Effective interventions require the selection of the most appropriate actions from a wide spectrum of management options that range from specific uni-dimensional measures to the simultaneous or sequential application of combinations of one or more approaches. The GEF Alternative will develop this spectrum of invasive species management options through a series of pilot projects. These will target known aggressive invasives for which eradication, control or mitigation methods exist but that require testing or improving, at field scales and under specific conditions, to facilitate more wide-spread application. Target species and populations have been selected to also provide immediate benefits to endangered biodiversity. For example, islands with small populations of the target invasive species have been selected in some pilot projects so that eradication in these localities is achieved, in addition to providing important inputs for control programs in areas with larger populations.

4. At the far end of the management spectrum is the targeted research required to provide new techniques for each approach, and better define causal relationship in complex settings. These targeted research efforts, to be undertaken under Output 2, will focus on those invasive species that are known, or highly probable, aggressive invasives but that do not have available control methods. In these cases management options will be developed through small-scale experimental action under rigorous scientific procedures with adequate replicates and controls. These will form the basis for planning future pilot projects at the field level and for providing a sound scientific basis on which to develop priority-setting tools and a long-term bio-invasion management plan.

5, The following table details each pilot project illustrating the contribution to management, the selection criteria for the target species and locality, the immediate effect on biodiversity and the species and localities to which they may be replicated. They are ordered to illustrate the continuum of the management-option spectrum and combinations, including targeted research elements. Details of the most complex and critical of the pilot projects - the Isabela goat eradication project- are included in the pages following the general table.

Management Option Spectrum	Management Issues to be Addressed in each Demonstration Project	Target Invasive Species and Threat	Criteria for Selecting Target Island	Immediate Effect on Biodiversity	Replicability	Costs,33 SourceUS$
Eradication of mega-populations	- Developing GNPS’ capacity to manage large-scale campaigns (technical & organisational skills) - Applying known methods on a scale not attempted anywhere in the world - Removing the invasive species that is the most damaging to terrestrial biodiversity at a time when populations of endemic species are still viable.	100,000 feral goats on Isabela that are causing intense and widespread habitat degradation on the northern half of the island and threatening large numbers of endemic species.	Isabela is the largest and most biologically diverse island; the north is uninhabited but has Galapagos’ largest goat population; the south is isolated from north by the Perry Isthmus and has much smaller populations that will eventually be eradicated through a longer less intense campaign	Immediate relief to populations of 66% of endemic vertebrates and 40% of endemic vascular plants	- Santiago Is. - Internationally to other large-scale goat pop. - Large scale campaigns for other invasive species such as rats and plants	7.43 million GNPS CDF GEF
Archipelago wide eradication of species with limited distributions	- Illustrating long-term cost-effectiveness of eradication whilst populations are still low - Designing campaigns that require high levels of public participation	Rock doves pop. on 3 islands competing for food and with highly likely effect of transmitting diseases to endemic birds	Santa Cruz, Isabela, San Cristobal are the only islands with rock doves and their populations are small (~100). The islands are geographically isolated and reintroduction risk following eradication is low	Direct protection to 28 endemic bird species on 3 islands. Reducing risk of dispersal	Planning timely eradication of other I.S with low pop. that are closely associated with human settlements e.g. frogs	0.104 million UNF
		Up to 30 selected plant species with low populations at present, but known to be serious invaders in other parts of the world, and thus likely to become seriously damaging in the Galapagos34	Plants to be eradicated on any island on which they occur thus achieving archipelago wide eradication. Species selection criteria include: small populations, known invasive tendencies, availability of eradication technique, not irreplaceable to human population	Removal of dispersal and expansion risk by total eradication.	Techniques will be replicable with other similar species, and will serve as basis for more ambitious eradications of better-established species.	1million GEF CDF GNPS
Eradication of small populations of species with wide distribution	- Removing threat progressively by preventing spread in well-defined geographic areas (individual islands) - Determing costs for total eradication of larger populations	Up to 5 populations of plants known to be aggressive invaders in Galapagos, but that on several islands have small populations that can be eradicated	Inhabited islands. Suitable candidate species include species such as Rubus niveus on Isabela, which threaten to become serious problems, as they have on other islands (e.g. Santa Cruz).	Removal of dispersal and expansion risk by local eradication and relief to the endangered humid highlands on Is.	Provides input to research for bigger pops. and larger eradication efforts ; is replicable to islands with low pop. of other spp.	0.230 million GEF CDF GNPS
	- Undertaking eradication of small populations to test the effectiveness of measures for replication to other eradication programmes or control campaigns.	Biting Black Fly populations in San Cristobal that threaten freshwater fauna through displacement at larval stage	San Cristobal has most of the very few permanent freshwater courses in the Galapagos. Populations of Biting black fly are low enough to make eradication feasible.	> Protection of the majority of freshwater fauna in Galapagos	Temporary control campaigns of Biting black fly in wet season on other islands. Input to other insect control campaigns	0.20 million UNF
Eradication campaigns in scenarios of high risk re-introduction	- Testing the feasibility of eradicating newly introduced species to establish best practices for controlling future introductions to islands before all suitable patches of habitat are colonised - Developing models for rapid response eradication and raising capacity for use of new technologies in IS control (GPS, GIS, strategic hunting)	Smooth billed anis on Fernandina competing with endemic birds for food and space	Fernandina has very few IS. The anis was recently introduced and is the only introduced vertebrate on the island. Populations are still relatively low but there are large areas of potentially permanent habitat and dispersal risks within island are high.	Eliminates main invasive species from most pristine island and potential threat to endemic birds species	- Fernandina post future El Niño events - New anis pop. introduced to Tower and Hood islands following 1999 El Niño	0.41 million UNF
Eradication/ Control	- Evaluating the feasibility of eradication of widespread aggressive plant invasive species limited to one island. - Fast knock down of high density invasive species populations to improve the options of low cost long-term control efforts if eradication is not feasible	In high densities quinine forms closed canopies, altering the structure of natural communities.	Quinine occurs only on Santa Cruz, where it is the most serious invader of highland vegetation. If populations continue to increase there is a high risk of dispersal to other islands.	Protection of endemic plants on Santa Cruz; eliminate dispersal risk to other islands	Design of the full eradication or improved long-term control of Quinine. Application of methods to other well-established species	0.50 million UNF GEF CDF
Eradication/Mitigation	- Eradication of aggressive IS from small areas with low populations - Testing combined management options:- eradicating invasive followed by introduction of endemic species to guarantee survival whilst viable solutions are found to protect endangered pop. in other areas. Monitoring re-colonisation risks following eradication and testing effective rapid response measures.	The islets surrounding Santiago are small enough to achieve full eradication of black rats and they provide suitable habitats for the endemic rice rats from Santiago currently endangered by the black rat	Santiago is the only island with co-existing rice and black rats. The reasons for this are unclear but the risk of local extinctions of the endemic is high. The islets surrounding the islands are different sizes and distances, some are free from black rats. Data on recolonisation rates will be obtained through monitoring	Endemic fauna on the islets will be protected from black rat pressure and numbers of the Santiago rice rat sub-species will be increased.	Insurance policy for long-term survival of other rice rat species Fernandina (2 sp), Santa Fé (1 sp.). Data on black rat recolonisation rates will be used to plan protection of 100 satellite islets	0.16 million UNF
Up-grading control to eradication combined with mitigation and control.	- Testing control methods proven at international level on invasives species with known impacts and up-grading them to the eradication level -Testing combined management options:- eradicating a key invasive predator to protect previously re-introduced endemic prey and, following this, monitoring of inter-specific invasives prey-predator relationships to determine control needs.	Baltra has relatively high densities of cats that prey on land iguanas recently re-introduced following local extinction. The cats also prey on black rats that will be closely monitored and then controlled if required	Baltra is small enough for full eradication & very accessible to facilitate logistics. Successfully re-introduced land iguana populations are still low (100) and need protection. The existence of black rats will provide data on inter-specific prey-predator relationships between invasive species	Increased survival of recently re-introduced land iguanas that had been locally extinct	Cat populations on Isabela, Santa Cruz & San Cristobal to relieve pressure on birds, snakes, land and marine iguanas. Selection of control options in setting with complex I.S relationships	0.100 million UNF
Up-grading small area control to larger areas	- Testing the effectiveness over larger areas of methods known to be successful in small areas. (Nine-fold increase in previous test site areas - 2 hectares to 18 hectares).	Little Red Fire Ant pop. in Marchena that is displacing endemic invertebrates from	Marchena Island is uninhabited and small enough to permit total eradication of this ant, thus increased direct benefits.	> protection of invertebrates in Marchena	Methods will be used for control campaigns in the larger islands	0.120 millionUNF
Control of invasives known to impact endemic species	- Determining most cost-effective methods of control for invasive species populations for which eradication is not considered to be feasible, thus increasing the viability of maintaining permanent control campaigns and reducing the dependency on mitigation measures such as fencing and breeding in captivity programmes	Pigs on S. Isabela that threaten green sea turtle feeding on their eggs and endanger land tortoises through nest depredation	S. Isabela is the most important breeding ground for green sea turtles and currently recruitment rates are very low. It also has 8-10 pop. (possibly sub-species) of the Galapagos Tortoise	Increased survival of green marine turtle and Giant Galapagos tortoise	Within S.Isabela, Santiago, Santa Cruz, San Cristobal and to marine turtle pops. globally	0.164 million UNF
		Black Rat populations that threaten the endemic Galapagos Petrel in 3 islands preying on nestlings.	Santa Cruz, Floreana, San Cristobal have had black rat control programmes in place many years but these are extremely costly and hard to sustain.	Key Galapagos petrel nesting sites freed from rat predation.	Replication to petrels on other islands and other species at risk from the black rat e.g. mangrove finches	0.120 million UNF
Control of IS highly likely to endanger specific endemic	- Improving the cost-effectiveness of overall control efforts by guaranteeing that control campaigns focus on populations proven to have a causal relationship with low survival rates of endemic species. - Strengthening links between targeted research and effective IS management	Black Rats are known to endanger several species and in certain localities of Isabela are thought to be the cause of low endemic mangrove finch reproductive rates	The mangrove finch is endemic to Isabela Island. Black rats are abundant near two large breeding colonies. If causal relationship is confirmed then control measures will be applied	Increased survival rates in breeding colonies of endemic finch & improved long-term protection to species	Mangrove finches elsewhere on Isabela using black rat control methods identified in demo above.	0.110 million UNF
Mitigation/ Control/ Targeted Research	- Detecting least cost protection methods for scenarios with different species pressuring endemics and through combinations of mitigation and control approaches.	Black Rats may affect tortoise reproduction rates. Populations of Giant tortoises on Pinzon are decreasing and are currently protected through effective but costly tortoise captive breeding programmes	In addition to rats Pinzon tortoises are preyed on by the Galapagos hawk. The size of tortoise populations that can survive this pressure following black rat control is unknown. Rat control will protect tortoises and follow up and controlled targeted research will determine if captive breeding programmes are still necessary.	Improved protection of the tortoise populations on Pinzon.	Causal multi- predator model will be used to define viable and cost effective packages of combined management efforts that can be replicated in Isabela and Santiago.	0.090 million UNF
Targeted . Research Programme	Through well planned research at the experimental level, provide data to cover critical gaps in scientific knowledge required for prioritising and implementing invasive species control programmes. This will include: Developing control and eradication methods for invasives that are not aggressive invasives elsewhere. For example, domestic chickens are not considered invasive species in most parts of the world as they rarely survive in the wild. In Galapagos the situation is different. Populations of feral chickens exist on at least two islands and these have declining populations of native birds. Chickens not only compete with native birds for food during periods when food is scarce, but are reservoirs for avian diseases. Research is needed to confirm the casual relationship, identify which diseases are transmitted to what species of Galapagos birds, what effects can be expected and how to combat them. Other species to be targeted in this category are the wasp (Brachygastra lecheguana) and the blackfly (Simulium bipunctatum).				Measures will be tested at field scale in the future & fed into full I.S plan	To be covered through Output 2
Targeted . Research Programme	(cont) Developing control and eradication methods for invasives that are aggressive elsewhere but for which methods do not exist or are not available at the scales required. For example, the little fire ant Wasmania auropunctata. Bait traps cannot be used on a large scale for this ant and no other method has been found to control them at the scale they are found in Galapagos. They are aggressive predators of insects, particularly Lepidoptera larvae. Efforts will include co-operation with specialists from Hawaii where it is also a recent introduction, and other infested areas to find a common solution. This category will also include elephant grass, guava and the blackberry, which has higher rates of regeneration than endemic plants, making extraction based techniques ineffectual. Developing control and eradication methods for invasives for which methods exist elsewhere but that potentially more effective alternatives could exist in the Galapagos. For example, the aggressive wasp Polistes versicolor. Control efforts for these wasps in other places are based on the use of traps, but in Galapagos, a native moth has been found to parasitize the wasp nests. This moth could represent a potential control agent in Galapagos and perhaps elsewhere. Research into the moth's biology is required to determine its effectiveness and potential value as a control agent. Evaluating the effect of recently introduced invasive species on a range of endemic species and hence determine risks and priorities. For example, recently detected introduced stem borers, white flies and scale insects represent a potentially serious threat to native plant species. Research is required to determine which of these introduced insects may cause the most damage to native ecosystems and what is needed to prevent them from doing so. Also the treefrog Scinax quinquefasciata that has recently colonized several Galapagos islands. As this frog has never been introduced outside of its native range before research is required to evaluate its potential impact and discover how it can be eradicated or controlled. Confirming causal relationship in complex ecological settings that do not occur elsewhere. For example, research is needed to confirm the relationship between high mortality rates of Galapagos tortoise populations and a combination of introduced plants and thermal variability specific to Santa Cruz. Abnormal mortality rates of Galapagos tortoises have occurred three times over last thirty in areas heavily forested with the invasive Cedrela tree on Santa Cruz. These have coincided with unusually cool years. Many of the dead individuals have had digestive tracts packed full of the invasive plant maracuya (a type of passion flower). The cedrela casts dense shade and cuts out sunlight. It is thought that tortoises may normally be able to maintain body temperatures warm enough to avoid problems caused by the maracuya, but during cold years the lack of sunlight in Cedela areas could keep the tortoises from attaining these temperatures. Research is needed to confirm the hypothesis that the fruit of the passion flower can be toxic to tortoises when their body temperatures are lower than normal and, if proven, to identify effective ways of eradicating and controlling the invasive plants in tortoise areas.				Measures will be tested at field scale in the future & fed into full I.S plan	To be covered through Output 2