Which AZA TAG Regional Collection Plans are accessible online? I've seen several, but I would really like to see the Cervid and Equid RCP's.
Coraciiformes 2004 http://www.coraciiformestag.com/RCP/RCP_Coraciiformes.pdf Piciformes 2003 http://www.nashvillezoo.org/piciformes/pdf/TAG2003structure_combined.pdf Antelope 2006 & 2001 Antelope & Giraffe TAG: Regional Collection Plan Small Carnivore Small Carnivore TAG Regional Collection Plan Elephant 2003 http://www.elephanttag.org/Professional/Regional Collection Plan.pdf
Pig, Peccary, and Hippo 2005 http://www.glenoakzoo.org/PPHTAG/PPHTAGpdfs/PPHTAGspacesurvey/Final Species Reports.pdf http://www.glenoakzoo.org/PPHTAG/PPHTAGpdfs/PPHTAGspacesurvey/Final Institution Reports.pdf
Pity that not more of these are aviable. Apparently they all exist only in members-only parts of websites.
So I have a hypothetical question for all of you zoo professionals. If a zoo, in the collection planning process were to be deciding on a species to acquire, and there are similar species that meet all the geographical and space needs, but one is an SSP, one is a PMP and one is a DERP, then the preference would be to acquire the SSP species, and then the priority would go to the PMP species, and then the DERP. Is this how the TAG's would interpet this as far as their priorities go? I'm probably not making sense any more I've confused myself.
Each few years or so each TAG is supposed to send out space surveys to all the zoos and aquariums that are AZA and/or members of the programs within the TAG. These surveys are usually responded and sent back to the TAG chair. A space survey result document is prepared from the data collected to determine how much space is currently available for a species or taxa and how much space will there possibly be in the future for these animals. As a committee, I believe, the TAG is supposed to use this data along with data from the various programs and studbooks to determine the status of the species (SSP, PMP, DERP, phase in , phase out) and a population goal. All of this is placed in a rather large document called a Regional Collection Plan...This document helps SSP/PMP coordinators to determine the moves and breeding reccomendations that could occur. The document may also help guide zoos and aquariums to create their own collection plans. Many zoos have a ranking system to determine a new species for their zoo. Factors include availability, husbandry, costs, education value (public), research value, whether the species fits within the zoo's mission, conservation status, staff, etc. The Regional Collection Plan can really become a catalog for zoo's to determine new species and often publish many of these factors within the document. Often TAG may place emphasis on a species with low holding numbers and high conservation value to market for new holders and expand the species numbers. These documents really help make zoos more cooperative and also make it easier for zoos to make cooperation happen. With cooperative breeding programs, it takes the cooperation of zoos another step forward to creating better self sustaining populations.
You are pretty much correct. TAG often elevate species to SSP level, through several factors of course, due to the species conservation and space needs, as along as it can possibly be determined that there is a good chance for the species to maintain a sustaining population level with good/fair genetics.
It would be of interest to me to find out which cervids and caprids have been singled out as "phase-out" populations.
The Caprid TAG has been inoperative for several years now, and so there is really no single direction with these species ... it is mainly based on curatorial whim. With San Diego divesting most of their (extremely extensive) caprid collection, the future of these species is highly questionable ... only takin seem to be expanding right now; markhor are doing not-too-badly, as are bighorn sheep, goral, and serow, but ibex of all sorts (with the possible exception of Nubian ibex) are in decline (lots of questionable genetics among these). With the deer, the big pushes are for increased holding of Bactrian wapiti, and Eld's deer. Other species (hopefully) on the increase are pudu, Barbary red deer, white-lipped deer, Calamian deer, Pere David's deer, and tufted deer. It is important to remember that TAGs are just that - Advisory groups. Ituri's hierarchy is very theoretical, and TAGs would LOVE it if zoos planned their collections this way (the RCPs are, as okapikpr says, almost a marketing tool). However, much (all) of it is left up to the individual zoos. DERP species are included in RCPs principally because there is a lot of institutional interest and/or numbers in zoos. SSP/PMP/DERP programs are assigned based on numerical rankings (based on conservation need, number of founders, exhibit appeal ... listed in the Antelope TAG document), which lends a bit of objectivity to the process.
It would be great if TAGs and zoos were more active in bringing new founders. I know a few zoo directors who have an interest in bringing unusual species and e.g. director of Poznan zoo imported Bawean deer and central american spider monkeys. So bringing new founders and new species is doable.
