~ Spring 2021 Newsletter ~ |
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Webinar featuring Paul Cryer,
African Conservation Trust
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The BIWFC will host a webinar on April 15, 2021 at 11am EDT titled "Providing ecological and social context for elephant immunocontraception: a case study in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa" featuring Paul Cryer, coordinator of the African Conservation Trust’s Applied Ecology Unit. This area of ecology has included working with local communities to co-create innovative solutions to the socio-economic and environmental issues facing people and the environment. To mitigate human-elephant conflict, he has developed and led training in elephant behavior, specifically for conservation staff and community members encountering elephants on foot.
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Cryer's presentation will review the setting in which elephant immunocontraception has been applied within Ithala Game Reserve, a community-owned provincial protected area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Ithala Game Reserve provides a test-case where human-elephant conflict is being addressed through a suite of approaches. Within those approaches, a reduced elephant population growth rate provides an essential platform for shifting human consciousness toward a more holistic perception of sustainability, one that may be valid at local and global levels. Approaching human-elephant conflict from multiple approaches, including immunocontraception and range expansion, may point to expanded protected areas, benefitting all species, and increased socio-economic security for the human community members.
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Click here to register to attend.
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Webinar: BIWFC Film Premiere |
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The Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control is excited to share with you the film, “An Overview of Wildlife Fertility Control,” which will be available for viewing on April 20, 2021 at 1pm EDT. We are proud of our results, and we hope that you enjoy viewing it. A preview can be viewed here.
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This film was created with the intention of educating the public and creating connections between wildlife managers, researchers and advocates. It also tells the story of ongoing research and projects in the United States related to wildlife fertility control. The goal is to inform someone who may not know much at all about wildlife fertility control (or perhaps has misconceptions) by giving them a full informative overview of the field. |
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All past webinars can be found on our website.
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Interview with Elizabeth Leitzell,
BIWFC Multimedia Production Specialist
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Q: Tell us about your background in video production and what you do for the BIWFC?
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I trained as a photographer beginning with photographing football, portraits and other stories for my college's daily paper (University of Southern California), but I started learning how to work with video in 2008 when DSLR cameras incorporated video technology into a still camera for the first time. Since then, I have worked on photography and video projects for non-profits and private clients, and now the work I do is an even split between the two types of work. I began working with the Dietrich W. Botstiber Foundation in 2018 when I moved from Brooklyn to Pennsylvania, and Monique Principi and I immediately sat down to discuss what BIWFC needed. She already had the seed of an idea about a video that could help more people understand what wildlife fertility control is. We were interested in this educational video idea, but Monique also wanted to make sure that seminars and panels could be recorded and shared, so we also work on more practical video applications like recording speakers at conferences. |
Q: The film, “An Overview of Wildlife Fertility Control,” is about to be released. Tell us about what it was like working on this project. |
Working on this project was great fun and a significant challenge! We did not have a film crew, so I was working as a one-woman band with a significant kit of gear in some very interesting locations. Thankfully, the BIWFC team (Rose Lombardo and Rachel Soroka) was very hands-on and I always had someone with me to help solve any logistical issues. Rose and the majority of her family works in media, so she came in with a strong understanding of conducting interviews and the flow of production. So, with that support and with Stephanie Boyles Griffin's incredible wildlife knowledge and connections through her work with HSUS, and Monique's fantastic directing and coordinating work, we had a great team. And of course, we had the full support of the Botstiber Foundation (Valerie Arapis, Terrance Kline, Carolyn Rauch and Bianca Robinson), which was pivotal in being able to produce such a lengthy project. |
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One challenge we encountered was having limited time to work with for the location filming. I am still very surprised that we did obtain all the footage we hoped for. When you are working with wild animals, you can go out to the places you know they hang out, but, you can't guarantee that they will be there at the time you hope. That's why most nature photographers and cinematographers are out in the field for days at a time, waiting for that perfect moment and learning all about the animals' habits. I think we were probably benefiting by proxy of working with Stephanie... she has built up a lot of good animal karma because she is always on the lookout for animals that need help. I'm only half joking... I think the animals must just feel safe to come out when she's around. As Ginger Kathrens said during her interview, "... the horses know when friends are nearby." |
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Another big challenge, as with any story, is that there are many points of view in the growing field of wildlife fertility control. How do you collate all this into one cohesive narrative? We wanted to find a way to present many points of view without endorsing any particular method. And we wanted both the general public to understand, and to also create a video that would be received well and help the field. Each person who is presented in the video has a different role to play and a different story around the work, and editing their interviews down to brief segments that anyone could understand (without diluting the complexity of their comments) was an incredible editing challenge. |
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Q: Will you tell us more about what is like making educational videos and what recommendations you may have for others who seek to do similar projects?
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Wildlife Fertility Control Repository |
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The BIWFC Repository aims to be the resource for all research related to wildlife fertility control. Recent additions to the repository include:
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"Permanent contraception by laparoscopic tubectomy with ovarian conservation in Hong Kong macaques" (2020)
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"IgG4/7 responses correlate with contraception in mares vaccinated with SpayVac" (2018)
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"Long-term fertility control reduces overabundant koala populations and mitigates their impacts on food trees" (2021)
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"Twenty years of SpayVac research: Potential implications for regulating feral horse and burro populations in the United States" (2018)
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Click here to view the collection of papers.
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If you authored or co-authored a peer-reviewed article related to wildlife fertility control and would like your work to be included, please forward the PDF articles to biwfc@botstiber.org. We will archive your work after reviewing the publishers' policy and guidelines.
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BIWFC Joins Animal Grantmakers |
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The Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control is pleased to announce that it is now a member of Animal Grantmakers, a voluntary association of nearly 40 foundations and organizations that provide grants to benefit animals. BIWFC will help to elevate awareness around the importance of wildlife fertility control among a dedicated group of animal funders. While Animal Grantmakers itself does not make grants, BIWFC’s participation in this group will enable us to collaborate with fellow animal funders as we seek to elevate our support of wildlife fertility control projects. Please click here to learn more about Animal Grantmakers.
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Fertility Control Fact Sheets |
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Downloadable fact sheets containing information on various fertility control agents are accessible on the BIWFC website. Recently added are fact sheets explaining OvoControl and PZP-22.
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Virtual International Urban Wildlife Conference, May 25-27 |
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The BIWFC will attend the virtual International Urban Wildlife Conference. Hosted by the Urban Wildlife Working Group of The Wildlife Society, this conference plans to bring together scientists, urban planners, city officials, and educators to discuss wildlife and natural resources in urban environments.
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Pathways: Human Dimensions of Wildlife Conference, Sept. 19-21 |
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The BIWFC plans to attend Pathways: Human Dimensions of Wildlife Conference in Bremerton, WA September 19-22, 2021. Hosted by Colorado State University Department of Human Dimensions of Wildlife, this conference series aims to address the myriad of issues that arise as people and wildlife struggle to coexist in a sustainable and healthy manner. Its mission is to increase professionalism and effectiveness in the Human Dimensions of Wildlife Management field.
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The Wildlife Society's 28th Annual Conference, November 1-5 |
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The BIWFC will sponsor and attend The Wildlife Society's 28th Annual Conference held virtually November 1-5, 2021. The virtual format aims to easily bring together North America's largest gathering of wildlife researchers and managers, and offer over 1000 educational, training and networking opportunities.
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International Conference on Human-Wildlife Conflict and Coexistence, March 2022 |
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The BIWFC plans to attend and present at the International Conference on Human-Wildlife Conflict and Coexistence, hosted by the IUCN Species Survival Commission Human-Wildlife Conflict Task Force in Oxford, UK. Dr. Giovanna Massei, BIWFC Advisory Board Member, will present on "The Other Side of Human-Wildlife Conflicts: A Global Perspective on Fertility Control to Manage Overabundant Wildlife."
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Local Fertility Control Efforts for a Better Solution |
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The Sierra Nevada Ally reported on the Senate Joint Resolution 3, which would urge Congress to provide short-term & long-term funding to reduce the horse and burro populations in Nevada. Read more here about this complicated issue.
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NYC Parks Department Releases Virtual Deer Map |
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Grey Squirrel Management in the United Kingdom |
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The Conversation explains the detrimental ecological and economical effect grey squirrels have on the United Kingdom. Decades of ineffective culls have led the government to support oral contraception of grey squirrels to manage their populations humanely. Click here to read more about the advantages and disadvantages of oral contraceptives, and other potential options for management.
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Wild Horse Management in Arizona |
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Fox 10 Phoenix reports that the Salt River Wild Horse Management Group, with its partnership with the Arizona Department of Agriculture, is managing the Salt River wild horses with PZP. In 2020, only 16 foals were born, compared to 100 in 2019.
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The Augusta Free Press outlines the process of implementing a contraception project for birds, starting with which species fall under the pest category and ending with long-term expectations.
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Philadelphia Magazine discusses the complicated issue of deer management and human-deer conflict, particularly in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where we have "perfected" deer habitat with forest edge and gardens. Although sharpshooting and sport hunters are implemented for management, locals have raised concerns over safety and other issues. John Griffin, senior director of urban wildlife programs for the HSUS, discusses immunocontraception as a non-lethal alternative. Read the whole article here.
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Click here to view more articles
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Stephanie Boyles Griffin - Science and Policy Director
Monique Principi - Managing Director
Rachel Soroka - Program Assistant
Rosalie Lombardo - Communications Officer
Lawrence Green - Outreach Coordinator
Elizabeth Leitzell - Multimedia Production Specialist
Carolyn Rauch - Manager, Meetings and Events
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For more information, please visit our website
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