BOOTS FOR DOGS APPEAL
Boots for dogs?
You may be wondering why dogs should need boots - especially dogs in Galapagos. These are special dogs and special boots.
Project Isabela needs dogs to help eradicate the goats from Isabela. These dogs are used to help find the goats that are doing so much of the damage to the north of the island.
One of the reasons why eradicating the goats is so difficult is that the terrain is very rough. The dogs need to wear boots to protect their feet. The terrain is so harsh that the boots only last two weeks. The cost of the boots is high - as is the cost of keeping the dogs healthy and free from pests. This is vitally important - any dogs used in Project Isabela mustn't be allowed spread diseases. It costs approximately £27,000 a month to run just this operation.
Project Isabela is a long-term ecological restoration initiative being carried out on northern Isabela Island - it is the largest island in the Galapagos archipelago and contains the greatest diversity of endemic plants and animals.
Approximately 80% of surviving Galapagos giant tortoises live on northern Isabela - protecting their habitat is the best way to ensure the long-term survival of this species. The northern half of the island has remained in relatively undisturbed conditions until fairly recently (as opposed to southern half of Isabela Island and other more populated islands). For this reason, Isabela Island's ecosystems, though unusually intact compared to those of other large islands in the Galapagos, face the greatest threats over the next ten to fifteen years, as the introduced goats establish themselves.
If nothing is done, the goats will increase to a maximum estimated population size of about 500,000. They will spread to all parts of Northern Isabela and will continue to transform species rich old-growth forests into relatively barren grasslands. The loss of forest cover over the steep volcanic slopes is expected to cause unprecedented levels of erosion, as large herds move up and down the bare land, further removing the protective grasses. Precious soil, hundreds of thousands of years in the making, will be permanently lost in a matter of decades as heavy El Niño rains wash them away. A hike up to the rim of Alcedo volcano, the best known of the islands four volcanoes, already reveals tremendous erosion gullies created by the continuous movement of goats over their preferred trails. Soils that have taken hundreds of thousands of years to develop are suffering serious erosion problems for the first time. Male goats also tend to rub their horns along the bark of trees. As a result of this behaviour, they have turned what once was a dense forest of Cyathea (tree fern) into what looks like a grassland today.
The dogs are trained and looked after by the local technicians themselves. Building a bond between master and dog is essential. Interestingly the commands are taught in English as these are shorter and more authoratative than in Spanish.
As part of the training, it is hoped to use the dogs in helping to eradicate the goats on Santiago. It is calculated that Santiago may be goat free by the end of 2003 if we raise the £34,000 needed to pay for the costs of the project. Each European Friends of Galapagos organisation has agreed to raise £6,000 towards the cost. GCT has raised £4,000 so far - we want to raise a further £2,000 to make our agreed match.
However, Project Isabela is more than a programme to eradicate feral goats. The lessons learned in carrying out the project are expected to contribute to future restoration work on other Galapagos Islands, and may even be applicable to restoration work on islands throughout the world. In addition to scientific and technological advances expected, people involved in Project Isabela will acquire valuable skills. It is providing training programs in:
- radio-telemetry
- use of global positioning systems
- first-aid
- wildlife management principles
- training and use of hunting dogs
- project planning
- other related skills to Galapagos residents
The project will allow local people to learn new skills and consider other employment opportunities rather than fishing.
Isabela has other problems that will need to be dealt with - black rats, feral cats and feral donkeys are other introduced species that exist on the island. Black rats prey upon native wildlife and out compete the endemic rice rat for territory, driving it closer to extinction. Cats are thought to have a tremendous impact on native birds, and young iguanas, while donkeys, though much less numerous, have impacts similar to those of goats. While donkeys will be targeted also during the goat work, cats and rats are controlled using different strategies.
We need to deal with this now. The goat population on northern Isabela has not reached its maximum level yet. Many parts of the island are still relatively unaffected, as goats have only recently arrived. Their population has not had the chance to reach the area's maximum carrying capacity. By acting as soon as possible, we will be ensuring the protection of relatively undisturbed parts of the island. Also, as numbers are increasingly rapidly, the sooner we begin, the easier it will be to complete the project.
This brings us to the dog boots. Goats will be hunted from the ground using teams of experienced hunters assisted by specially trained dogs. The hunters will use rifles that are very effective and precise at long ranges, and are powerful enough to ensure a quick and humane means of dispatching the goats. The dogs, trained using techniques developed in New Zealand, will learn to find goats and herd them until the hunter arrives on the scene. Dogs will be specifically trained not to attack goats.
These specific techniques have been used in over 80 island based goat eradication projects and numerous goat control projects in Australia, New Zealand, France and the United States over the past few decades. Techniques have been refined and made more efficient and more humane ensuring that the hunt is completed as quickly as possible.
We need funds now to cover the costs of training, feeding and working with the dogs. Funds are also required for the training of local people and for the equipment for them to carry out the job.
- £10 would feed a dog for a week
- £50 would provide enough vaccines and medicine for all the dogs for a month
- £75 would pay the salary of a dog keeper for a week
- £100 would provide one dog with dog boots for a year
If the goats can be removed before the seed bank in the soil is depleted, then the area will recover by itself quite well. Some trees may need to be planted in areas where the seed bank has been destroyed already. As funds become available, further control and eradication work targeting other introduced species will take place. Eventually, we expect Northern Isabela Island to return to a state close to what it was before the arrival of humans, though this may take several decades.
Your donation will make a difference - please help us to save Northern Isabela.
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