Lincoln Park Zoo

Lincoln Park Zoo hosts the Population Management Center (PMC) in partnership with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Established in June 2000, the center provides assistance to zoo professionals across the country by conducting demographic and genetic analyses and preparing breeding and transfer plans for Species Survival Plan® (SSP) and Population Management Plan (PMP) species. Operational support for the center is provided by the AZA, Rice Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Lincoln Park Zoo.

In their management of captive animals, zoos and aquariums focus on the long-term maintenance of healthy populations in conjunction with education and conservation goals. Cooperative, scientific population management is critical to the long-term sustainability of most zoo and some aquarium animal collections.

Science-based population management ensures that zoo and aquarium collections meet the following standards:

* They’re maintained at the sizes necessary to meet the conservation and education missions of each species
* They retain the highest possible levels of genetic diversity
* They will not grow beyond the zoo and aquarium community's ability to care for them.

The PMC employs four full-time staff: Senior Population Biologist Sarah Long directs daily operations and supervises Associate Population Biologists Kristine Schad and Cara Groome and Studbook Analyst Kristin Kovar. Steven D. Thompson, Ph.D., vice president for conservation programs and Emily and John Alexander Chair of Conservation and Science at Lincoln Park Zoo, provides administrative and financial oversight for the center. Former PMC staffers Colleen Lynch and Louise Bier serve as consulting population biologists.

Working closely with staff from the zoo’s Davee Center for Epidemiology and Endocrinology and the Alexander Center for Applied Population Biology, the PMC staff participates in the development and evaluation of population management software, evaluates disease risks and/or reproductive status, and models the impact of potential management strategies on population size and structure.

To schedule planning assistance for an AZA TAG, SSP or PMP, please contact Studbook Analyst Kristin Kovar. For information on PMC financial and administrative oversight, please contact Steven D. Thompson, Ph.D.

Staff changes at the PMC – March 2010

Anne Oiler has left her position in the PMC to complete a teaching degree and eventually become a high school science teacher. The PMC has hired Katelyn Marti to fill the remaining 1 ½ years of the grant-funded Associate Population Biologist position previously filled by Anne. This position is part of an Institute of Museum and Library Sciences (IMLS) grant awarded to Lincoln Park Zoo to create a monitoring system to evaluate the outcomes of management recommendations made in PMP and SSP breeding and transfer plans (“PMCTrack”). Katelyn will serve as an additional population biologist for AZA populations to offset PMC staff time spent on the PMCTrack project. Katelyn holds a Bachelor’s degree in Integrative Biology at University of Illinois in Urbana and recently completed her M.S. at Eastern Illinois University. Best wishes to Anne and a warm welcome to Katelyn!

In the month of March 2010, the PMC will be working with:

26 SSPs (Andean Bear, Angolan Colobus, Arabian Oryx, Asian Small-clawed Otter, Bali Mynah, Black Mangabey, Bongo, Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, Chilean Pudu, Geoffroy’s Marmoset, Guereza Colobus, Japanese Macaque, Keel-billed Toucan, Ocelot, Okapi, Rhinoceros Hornbill, Rodrigues Fruit Bat, Siamang Gibbon, Slender-horned Gazelle, Sloth Bear, Spider Monkeys, Spotted-necked Otter, Sun Bear, Thick-billed Parrot, Toco Toucan, White-handed Gibbon

20 PMPs (Bennett’s Wallaby, Blue-bellied Roller, Blue-crowned Laughingthrush, California Sea Lion, Canadian Lynx, Caracal, Cuvier’s Gazelle, Gentoo Penguin, Golden-breasted Starling, Greater Flamingo, Hooded Crane, Laughing Kookaburra, North American River Otter, Prehensile-tailed Skink, Red Bird-of-Paradise, Soemmerring’s Gazelle, Southern Three-banded Armadillo, Springbok, Steenbok, Tawny Frogmouth)

Planning Meetings in March:

Golden-breasted Starling @ AZA Conference
Blue-crowned Laughingthrush @ AZA Conference
Thick-billed Parrot @ AZA Conference
Okapi @ AZA Conference
Bennett’s Wallaby @ LPZ
Soemmerring’s Gazelle @ LPZ
Cuvier’s Gazelle @ LPZ
Siamang Gibbon @ LPZ
Laughing Kookaburra via Email
Sun Bear @ LPZ
Sloth Bear @ LPZ
Southern Three-banded Armadillo @ LPZ
Geoffroy’s Marmoset via Email
Tawny Frogmouth via Email
Prehensile-tailed Skink @ Fort Worth, TX
Bongo @ LPZ

Currently in review by participating institutions are Draft Breeding and Transfer Plans for
5 SSPs
1 PMPs

Upcoming Planning Meetings:

April: Boat-billed Heron, Virgin Islands Boa, Sunbittern, Clouded Leopard, Fishing Cat, Polar Bear, Lion, Golden Conure, Red-capped Mangabey

May: Blue-faced Honeyeater, Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake, Great/Malayan Argus, Eastern and Western Gray Kangaroo, Snowy Owl

Since the PMC started in June 2000, we have:
Produced Final Breeding and Transfer Plans for:
92 SSP programs - 297 reports
(74% of total AZA SSP species)

145 PMP programs -267 reports
(41% of total AZA PMP species)

Assisted Taxon Advisory Groups (TAGs) with the development of
20 TAGs - 29 RCP analyses
(39% of AZA TAGs)

Validated North American regional studbooks resulting in
449 Validated Studbooks
1068 Total Validations

Distributed reports for a total of
593 Reports (SSPs, PMPs, RCPs, etc.)
257Programs

Involvement with 578 different programs (some analyses not necessarily resulting in a final report)

Last Updated: 1 March 2010

Preparing for Breeding and Transfer Plan
Preparing for Target Size Meeting
Sending and Recieving Studbooks
PMC Planning Diagram and Chart

Lynch, C. 2005. Social behavior of the Guinea baboon. AZA Baboon SSP Husbandry Manual. Wildlife Conservation Society, New York. In press.

Earnhardt, J.M., Thompson, S.D. and Schad, K. 2004. Strategic planning for captive population: projecting changes in genetic diversity. Animal Conservation, 7: 9-16.

Long, S., Lynch, C. and Van Dyke, F. 2003. Designing a captive breeding plan with real world constraints. A workbook in conservation biology: solving practical problems in conservation, 63-67.

Long, S., Lynch, C. and Van Dyke, F. 2003. Implementing alternative captive breeding strategies. A workbook in conservation biology: solving practical problems in conservation, 57-61.

Long, S., Lynch, C. and Van Dyke, F. 2003. Managing gene diversity in captive populations. A workbook in conservatin biology: solving practical problems in conservation, 49-56.

Long, S., Lynch, C. and Van Dyke, F. 2003. Simple pedigree analysis. A workbook in conservation biology: solving practical problems in conservation, 1-47.

Lynch, C. 2000. San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike studbook. Zoological Society of San Diego, San Diego, California.

Lynch, C. 1999. San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike studbook. Zoological Society of San Diego, San Diego, California.

Lynch, C. 1998. San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike studbook. Zoological Society of San Diego, San Diego, California.