Use captive breeding to increase or maintain populations of seabirds

Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)
Number of studies: 1
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

20%
Certainty

4%
Harms

5%

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

Update: Since this action was assessed, we have summarized some additional studies testing this action. See Rosset et al. (2019), Santos de Mendonça et al. (2019), Schweizer et al. (2016), Clark et al. (1994), Douma & Carlson (1994), Gunther (1994), Deeming et al. (1991), Todd (1987), Dunn (1986), Beldegreen & Asper (1980), Gailey-Phipps (1978), Healy (1978), Kojima (1978), Penney (1978), van Bocxstaele (1978), Conway et al. (1977), Wheater (1976), Landowski (1967).

Key messages

A study from Spain over five years found that a single pair of Audouin’s gulls, Larus audouinii, successfully bred in captivity.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A small study in a captive-breeding centre in eastern Spain (Martínez-Abraín et al. 2001) found that a pair of captive Audouin’s gulls Larus audouinii successfully bred in captivity each year between 1996 and 2000. This followed a pair of wild gulls nesting inside the centre but outside the cages. Comparisons with the wild pair are made in ‘Artificially incubate and hand-rear birds in captivity’.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Martínez Abraín A., Viedma C., Ramón N. & Oro D. (2001) A note on the potential role of philopatry and conspecific attraction as conservation tools in Audouin's gull Larus audouinii. Bird Conservation International, 11, 143-147.

Please cite as:

Williams, D.R., Child, M.F., Dicks, L.V., Ockendon, N., Pople, R.G., Showler, D.A., Walsh, J.C., zu Ermgassen, E.K.H.J. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Bird Conservation. Pages 137-281 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Bird Conservation

Related Actions

Actions	Effectiveness	Studies	Category
Can captive breeding have deleterious effects on individual fitness? Action Link	Evidence not assessed	3	Synopsis Link
Artificially incubate and hand-rear parrots in captivity Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	4	Synopsis Link
Use captive breeding to increase or maintain populations of seabirds Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	1	Synopsis Link