Day 1: August 24

DAily Agenda

Day 2: August 25
Day 3: August 26

Day 1: August 24, 2026

  • Dr. Andrew Tilker, Re:wild
    Dr. Barney Long, Re:wild

    C2S2’s mission is to save species through collaboration, science, and managed care. Given the comparative advantages of the C2S2 network it is well placed to deliver this mission. The C2S2 model has proven successful with the scimitar-horned oryx project being the flagship example of this. The scale of impact that the C2S2 partnership can reach, however, will depend on how it prioritizes and how it creates efficiencies of scale through strategic partnerships. The benefits of building multi-species programs with demonstrable species recovery and rewilding outcomes will be discussed along with how this could act as an effective model for AZA and other zoo associations to follow.

    Options for developing a framework for identifying species for which C2S2 can leverage its unique skill sets and facilities to recover will be discussed. Mechanisms for designing scalable, cost-efficient programs that drive the recovery of multiple species will be investigated to demonstrate the potential of the C2S2 network for both species recovery and rewilding. Indicative concepts for scaled impact, drawing on examples from Asia, Africa, and the US will be presented as a possible blueprint for C2S2 to consider.

  • Kristen Wolfe, Partnership for Species

    An update on the PFS program and how the species are trending and expanding.

  • Dr. Monica Stoops
    Dr. Jessye Wojtusik, Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium
    Dr. Budhan Pukazhenthi, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
    Dr. Molly Corder, Conservation Centers for Species Survival (C2S2)

    By leveraging partnerships and a consortium-based management approach, the Rhino Resilience Project is uniting stakeholders and science to secure a sustainable future for rhinos through four pillars:

    • Cutting-edge genetic research

    • Advanced fertility preservation and assisted reproductive technologies

    • Exploration of immune health as a resilience meter

    • NextGen biobanking

    This session will include an overview of the Rhino Resilience Project pillars and a panel discussion.

  • Tim Thier, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park
    Martha Fischer, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park

    As global pressures on natural habitats mount, the Saint Louis Zoo is advancing the future of wildlife conservation, offering immersive guest experience and driving regional economic growth. This presentation explores the development of the 425-acre Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park, located in Spanish Lake, Missouri and slated to open in 2027. At its core, the project features the Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center, a 60-acre facility dedicated to the breeding, care, and sustainability of critically endangered ungulates and threatened species. This presentation will provide insight into the ecological restoration of the site, including the conversion of former golf course turf to native grasses, and the ongoing biodiversity studies shaping the park’s habitat management.

    Furthermore, this session will detail the development of the park’s expansive public safari experiences, which will allow visitors to traverse native meadows and woodlands. Highlights include the drive-through Savanna Safari and Woodland Safari, a walk-through Australian experience, an 11-story observation tower offering 360-degree views, and “glamping” accommodations.

    Finally, the presentation will address the broader community impact, including the park’s projected $660+ million economic boost to the St. Louis region and the initiative to provide free admission to all St. Louis County residents.

  • S. Lovin, Utah State University & Wolf Conservation Center

    Captive breeding of endangered red wolves (Canis rufus) is an important aspect of the Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) American Red Wolf program, but fewer than half of all managed pairs successfully reproduce each year. Because red wolves are socially monogamous, variation in pair-bond strength may play a role in reproductive success. However, the role of behavior in shaping mate compatibility and reproductive outcomes has yet to be systematically examined.

    Working in collaboration with SAFE facilities, we evaluated the relationship between reproductive success and pair-bond strength and individual behavior. We coded daily behavioral footage of red wolf pairs throughout the 2025 and 2026 breeding seasons (January-March) to quantify pair-bond strength, construct individual behavioral profiles for each wolf, and identify if either metric correlated with reproductive outcomes, including offspring production and survival. We also looked at the role of husbandry practices on reproductive success.

    Our results suggest that acquiescent males who do not retaliate or resist when subjected to female dominance reproduce at higher rates than dominant or retaliatory males. We also found that behavioral markers of compatibility, such as mutual territorial trailing, over marking, and female solicitation, already evident by the start of the breeding season may correlate with reproductive success metrics. Our findings have the potential to directly inform captive management decisions and future breeding recommendations for red wolves. Insights gained from this work may be applicable to the conservation and management of other threatened and endangered canid species held in captivity.

  • Dr. Tania Gilbert, Marwell Wildlife, UK
    Marie Petretto, Marwell Wildlife, UK
    Sophie Whitemore, Marwell Wildlife, UK
    Sahbi Bedief, Direction Générale des Forêts, Tunisia
    Commissariats Régionaux de Développement Agricole, Sfax
    Commissariats Régionaux de Développement Agricole, Medenine

    The slender-horned gazelle Gazella leptoceros is an Endangered desert-adapted gazelle with a wild population of 300-600 mature individuals. They inhabit the dunes of the Grand Erg Oriental (Great Eastern Sand Sea) of the Sahara Desert that stretches between Algeria and Tunisia. Marwell’s surveys in the Grand Erg Oriental revealed that whilst gazelles are still present, very few now remain in the wild.

    Tunisia established a small ex situ population of slender-horned gazelles over 25-years ago in Sidi Toui National Park (NP) founded with confiscated gazelles from illegal wild captures and supplemented with two individuals from Planckendael Zoo. Since 2020, gazelles have been translocated to a facility in El Gonna National Reserve to establish a second ex situ centre for the species. However, substantial improvements to the facilities, husbandry, and population management were required to ensure the long-term sustainability and welfare of the gazelle population and engagement from park and reserve staff. Since that time, Marwell Wildlife has been working with Tunisia’s Direction Générale des Forêts and the Commissariats Régionaux de Développement Agricole for Sfax and Medenine, Planckendael Zoo, Belgium, Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, C2S2 and Partnership for Species to improve the facilities, husbandry, veterinary care, and to deliver training to ensure a sustainable population of slender-horned gazelles in Tunisia for future potential reintroduction to the vast sand sea of the Sahara Desert.

    Here we summarize progress and the impact of the project to date and set out the next steps for the recovery of this important conservation population.

  • Dr. Holly Haefele, Fossil Rim Wildlife Center

    An update on the SHO, addax, dama gazelle reintroduction to Chad.

  • Dr. Parker Pennington, Colossal Science Foundation

    Development and use of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) in non-domestic species provides novel tools for species conservation. As a first step towards in vitro embryo production, we developed an OPU technique for two antelope species, scimitar horned oryx (Oryx dammah) and roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus) utilizing a custom-made needle guide and existing OPU equipment utilized by livestock and human practitioners. Females were anesthetized and placed in sternal recumbency for transvaginal OPUs.

    Prior to OPUs (36 - 45 hours), SHO and roan were either hormonally stimulated with follicle stimulating hormone (FSH, 140 or 250IU) as a single injection or not. A total of 32 and 26 OPUs were completed in SHO (n=10) and roan (n=7), respectively, representing one to four OPUs per animal at monthly intervals. A total of 141 oocytes were recovered from 215 follicles in SHO and 31 oocytes from 58 follicles in roan. FSH dose (250IU) increased (P<0.05) the number of follicles aspirated and the number of oocytes recovered in SHO. No effects of FSH were observed in roan (P>0.05).

    Good quality oocytes were recovered from all females and procedures were conducted in four consecutive months with no evidence of scar tissue buildup or reduced capacity to recover quality oocytes. These ARTs can be used to develop in vitro embryo production tools for population management and the preservation of female genetics; bolstering genetic diversity and guarding against extinction.

  • Cara Martel, Re:wild

    Amid a biodiversity and climate crisis, a growing number of species are lost to nature and surviving only under human care as Extinct in the Wild (EW). Zoos and conservation centers have become a last refuge for these species, safeguarding irreplaceable genetic diversity while working to prevent further loss. Meeting the complex challenges facing EW species requires a coordinated global approach that integrates ex situ breeding, habitat protection, and the full suite of biological and socio-economic facets of conservation translocation from release of individuals to long-term maintenance of viable wild populations.

    The IUCN SSC Extinct in the Wild Action Partnership (EWAP) represents a global initiative making a significant contribution toward rescuing species on the brink of extinction, revitalizing ex situ populations of EW species, recovering wild populations of these species via first release, and promoting subsequent reinforcement for establishing wild populations (the 4Rs). Toward these four goals, this session will provide strategic thinking to highlight opportunities in delivering the 4Rs for EW species, identifying current EW recovery efforts, and discussing how to catalyze action where needed.

    Critical conversations surrounding disruptive conservation initiatives and opportunities for scaling impact in long-term implementation efforts will be analyzed, with suggestions and situational questions being offered for determining when progressive change is needed and promoting the evolution of best pathways toward greatest impact in species recovery. We will explore the opportunities and challenges of integrating EW strategies into large-landscape conservation and long-term recovery efforts, alongside the importance of close collaboration with conservation leadership teams.

  • Cara Martel, Re:wild
    Megan Joyce, Reverse the Red

    Ex situ conservation has evolved from safeguarding species in managed care to becoming a critical component of wild population recovery. Yet many institutions continue to communicate their conservation impact through activities rather than measurable recovery outcomes. This session will explore how organizations can strengthen engagement by reframing ex situ conservation as a direct contributor to species recovery in the wild.

    Drawing on lessons from Reverse the Red—a global action partnership uniting organizations around the shared goal of species recovery—the session will demonstrate how ex situ institutions can inspire greater participation by connecting their work to tangible recovery outcomes. Through examples from the Reverse the Red network, participants will explore practical approaches for linking ex situ and in situ conservation through collaborative planning, species-focused partnerships, shared recovery goals aligned with Target 4 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and compelling storytelling that celebrates conservation success.

    The presentation will also introduce the Reverse the Red Species Pledge as a simple but powerful mechanism for organizations to identify their contributions to species recovery, align actions with global biodiversity targets, connect with recovery partners, and communicate measurable conservation impact.

    Participants will leave with practical strategies to communicate recovery outcomes, strengthen cross-sector partnerships, engage staff, donors, and the public around shared conservation goals, and position ex situ conservation as an essential driver of resilient landscapes and thriving wild populations

  • Austin Leeds, Disney’s Animal Kingdom

    The challenges of maintaining ungulates in naturalistic social systems and environments include the potential for negative interactions with onset of puberty, resource competition, and sharing space with different taxa. These factors may increase the risk that an individual animal’s welfare status could be compromised at any given time, and also may increase the risk of incurring citations from regulatory agencies.

    However, maintaining animals in less complex social and environmental conditions to minimize these risks may also have negative influences on long-term welfare by reducing the ability to engage in species-typical behavior and/or develop an appropriate level of resilience necessary for survival. Understanding the benefits and tradeoffs of these different management strategies is necessary to advance our field.

    Here we will share a study currently underway that is examining behavior and health in bongo, Grevy’s zebra and scimitar-horned oryx that seeks to address some of the questions surrounding ungulate management best practices. Additionally, future research opportunities will be discussed with the goal of generating feedback on how this research should evolve to meet our industry’s needs.

  • Nicolette Canzoneri, Practically Eco

    face it - conservation problems are people problems. In order to effectively address conservation issues, incorporating the “science of people” is a necessity, not a nice-to-have. I will discuss the fundamentals of social science in conservation, practical approaches to behavior change in this context, and demonstrate the clarity that comes from social science integration through case studies of zoo-based conservation programs. This presentation will provide a clear path forward for when to include social science and actionable strategies you can use with your own projects. If the complexities of conservation have you spinning your wheels and your programs don’t show the impact you hoped for, social science is probably the answer! Bring your project challenges to discuss during the Q&A and I’ll help problem solve.

  • Kick off the C2S2 Annual Meeting with old friends and new connections at our Welcome Reception, held in the Santiago Courtyard at Rancho Bernardo Inn. Join us for heavy hors d'oeuvres and drinks as we settle in for a great few days of conservation collaboration. A special thank you to American Bird Bands for sponsoring the first $1,000 of the bar tab—cheers to them! (Bar will remain open on a cash basis the remainder of the evening.)

    Location: Santiago Courtyard, Rancho Bernardo Inn

Day 2: August 25, 2026

  • Jaelean Carrero, SDZWA
    Sarah Sheldon, SDZWA

    Since 1991, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) has been a part of the San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike Recovery Program. Our role within the partnership is to: provide birds for annual release to augment the wild population via conservation breeding, act as a species reservoir against catastrophic loss, and care for injured or abandoned birds or eggs. To accomplish these goals, we rely on well-established and thorough protocols that have been refined over time, while also innovating and adapting new techniques to address the novel challenges and changes that arise yearly.

    These new tools in our toolbox, include: fostering eggs and chicks, developing pre-release training regimes, adapting our annual efforts and targets based on predicted conditions in the wild post-release, modifying pair selection to incorporate mate choice, double clutching both inter- and intra-pair, developing new release types, re-establishing historic release types, and implementing post-release weight monitoring. Our in-depth knowledge of shrike breeding and behavior coupled with our track record of sound decision-making are direct consequences of SDZWA’s dedication to recovery efforts on San Clemente Island (SCI).

    As of 2025, we have successfully reared 1278 and released 898 shrikes to the wilds of SCI using these techniques. Both our historic practices and our ongoing additions to them have shaped our role within the larger partnership over the course of the program, allowing us to build and leverage trust, guide our own efforts and those of other collaborators, accomplish our programmatic goals, and expand our efforts to advance shrike recovery.

  • Dr. Annie Newell-Fugate, Texas A&M University

    The wild population of the critically endangered Visayan warty pig consists of only a few hundred individuals. An imminent threat to Visayan warty pigs in the Philippines is African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). Indeed, a 2022 ASFV outbreak in the Philippines killed 25% of the warty pigs at the Talarak breeding center. Prior to 2022, Talarak produced many warty pigs that were released into the wild.

    However, since biosecurity measures began, Talarak has had only two litters. In contrast, the CenTrop conservation center has separated its warty pigs for management purposes. Unfortunately, the U.S. captive-managed population of this critically endangered species is aging, and only a subset of individuals at a single zoo are reproducing. Although ex situ populations of the warty pig could serve as a source for reintroduction into the wild, none of the aforementioned populations are breeding well. ASFV and current management practices impacting reproductive capacity put the warty pig's survival at risk.

    Moreover, despite the need for improved breeding success, information on the species' normal reproductive biology remains scarce. We are assessing the effects of season and latitude on reproductive endocrine patterns in U.S. captive-managed warty pigs and propose extending this study to warty pigs at breeding centers in the Philippines. We are also working to assess the sexual transmission of ASFV in swine. Information on normal hormone levels and fluctuations will help develop reproductive technologies for the Visayan warty pig. Additionally, this research will provide foundational knowledge on reproductive transmission and treatment of ASFV.

  • Hollyanne Villa, SDZWA

    Training animals in mixed-species field habitats presents unique challenges that require creativity, flexibility, innovation, and a commitment to safety. This presentation will explore our approach to training SW rhinoceros, GOH rhinos, and giraffe in dynamic mixed-species environments, highlighting how training evolves in response to both intended trainees and unexpected animal participants. Through real-world examples, attendees will learn how we adapt our methods, overcome obstacles, and leverage animal behavior to achieve training goals while maintaining animal and keeper safety. Key takeaways will include practical strategies for problem-solving, maintaining progress in complex habitats, and building safe successful training programs in mixed-species settings.

  • Jon Rolfs, SDZSP

    This presentation will cover how the San Diego Zoo Safari Park manages Ungulate housing when challenges arise such as social dynamics, parasite management, native predator prevention and increasing neonatal survival rates. The Safari Park can utilize multiple on and off exhibit housing options to create successful management outcomes for challenging ungulate species. Highlighted species examples include small to medium ungulates including sensitive taxa that greatly depend on C2S2/PFS management and collaboration for sustainability.

  • Beatrice Steck, Zoo Basel, Switzerland

    Equus africanus is the wild ancestor of the domestic donkey and the most threatened equid species in the world. The known in situ population is fewer than 100 individuals, but there could be a few hundred left at maximum. They live in volcanic landscape in Eritrea and Ethiopia. There exact numbers are not known because conservation work in these countries is difficult and their habitat is very hot, fast and access is difficult. They are threatened by competition with livestock for food and water, poaching and droughts. Due to the precarious situation in the wild, the captive population plays an important insurance role. The captive population is fewer than 300 individuals.

    There are two coordinated breeding programs, one in Europe (EEP) with fewer than 200 animals and one in the USA with fewer than 100 animals. The captive population is aging and there is a lack of births because of lack of space for the offspring. But we must increase breeding to maintain the reproductive potential of these animals. It is therefore vital that the two programmes collaborate and that new holders can be found, ideally with huge lands where Equus africanus can be used as grazers.

    In zoos, Equus africanus are perfect for explaining the conservation and education roles. They can be kept in mixed species exhibits. They need shelters (heated in cold climates) and coarse substrate in some parts of the enclosures. It is important to build up more breeding groups, but bachelor groups are also vital for the breeding programmes. Lets collaborate and save this beautiful species together.

  • Marty Sawin, SDZSP

    This presentation will go over the many uses and benefits of adding a drone program to any facility. It will cover everything from animal observations to security monitoring to mapping out future projects.

  • Dr. Amy Chabot, African Lion Safari

    Effective population management relies on accurate, up-to-date studbooks but fully resolved pedigrees are rarely available. Incomplete or outdated pedigree records are common and can lead to bad management decisions. Genomic and genetic tools can help resolve uncertain pedigrees and provide additional information relevant to population management, but their value depends on the quality of available data, the management questions, and the resources needed to apply them effectively.

    Here, we present a decision-making framework for population managers navigating different data realities, from no pedigree or genomic data to partial pedigrees, to genomic data alone, to combinations of both. For each scenario, we outline what management decisions can be supported with the available data, the level of confidence that can be placed in those decisions, and whether additional genomic data would improve decision-making. We also compare reduced-representation (e.g., RADseq) and whole-genome sequencing approaches, both of which can help resolve uncertain pedigrees but differ in the additional information they provide.

    We use C2S2 populations of sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) as a case study to illustrate how this framework can be applied. Finally, we finish with a short card game used to demonstrate concepts of maintaining genetic diversity with and without full information on the population. Overall, we aim to provide a broadly applicable framework that offers clear guidance for species management decisions.

  • Dr. Budhan Pukazhethi, SNZCBI

  • Matt Gelvin, SDZWA
    Anthony Cerreta, SDZWA

    Contraception of non-domestic hoofstock is performed to prevent pregnancy of animals with low genetic value, high relatedness to the herd, or a medical condition that might be

    exacerbated by the physiologic and metabolic demands of pregnancy, parturition, and lactation. In large, mixed-species field exhibits, selectively feeding an individual animal or repeated

    darting for administration of a contraceptive or porcine zona pellucida (PZP) vaccine booster is challenging.

    The authors have performed minimally invasive laparoscopic ovariectomies

    in a number of non-domestic hoofstock species of diverse size and taxonomy that offer reliable, permanent sterilization. Significant modifications from single-incision laparoscopic ovariectomy procedure described in domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) were needed to facilitate laparoscopic surgical success in non-domestic hoofstock, including caudal abdominal port placement, intra-abdominal pressure adjustments, pronounced initial Trendelenburg positioning, and anticipation of physiologic anesthetic complications.

    The presence of a rumen, caudally positioned reproductive tract, and mobile ovarian pedicles resulted in the need for adaptation of the traditional technique described in the domestic dog and cat. These laparoscopic surgical techniques, refined over multiple procedures, have resulted in rapid recovery and hospital discharge with no morbidity or mortality. Single-port laparoscopic ovariectomy should be considered in non-domestic hoofstock as a feasible option for permanent sterilization when indicated. This procedure is permanent, minimally invasive, and allows for rapid return of the patient to the herd.

  • Dr. Elena Ruggeri, SDZWA

    Ex situ populations of threatened equid species are typically small and demographically fragmented, leaving them vulnerable to genetic drift, inbreeding depression, and diminished adaptive potential. Studbooks are the primary data infrastructure for managing these risks, recording parentage, birth, and mortality data used to reconstruct population pedigrees. Population management software, notably PMx, applies pedigree data to calculate mean kinship (MK) coefficients and individual inbreeding coefficients (F), identifying individuals whose genetic contribution is underrepresented in the current gene pool. Prioritizing low-MK individuals for breeding minimizes the population’s mean kinship over time, maximizing heterozygosity and founder representation.

    Pedigree-based prioritization, combined with assisted reproductive technologies (ART)—including semen and cell-line cryopreservation, artificial insemination, ovum pick-up, in vitro maturation and fertilization, embryo transfer, and somatic cell nuclear transfer (cloning)—allows recovery of genetic variation identified as valuable but inaccessible through natural breeding. Cryopreserved sperm serves as a long-term conservation tool, functioning as a genetic safety net: once frozen in liquid nitrogen, it remains viable for decades, effectively pausing an individual's genetic contribution to the population. The Frozen Zoo holds cryopreserved cells from over a thousand species, a resource for genetic rescue extending beyond any single breeding cycle.

    This integrated pipeline—pedigree data, kinship analysis, and ART-based recovery of banked genetic material—depends on pedigree structure and cell viability rather than species-specific traits, making it transferable across equid species with managed breeding programs. We present this as a standardized framework linking computational population genetics to reproductive biotechnology for restoring genetic diversity in depauperate populations.

  • Meredith M. Clancy, SDZWA

    Macronutrients include vitamins and minerals essential for life. Despite the wide variety of ruminants, the requirements for species appear to be relatively conserved. The detection and management of macronutrient imbalance can be challenging. Secondary copper (Cu) deficiency has been tracked at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park (SDZSP) for decades, with a range of clinical signs: unthriftiness, poor reproductive success, muted coat color, ataxia, or blood vessel fragility. Diagnosis of secondary copper deficiency initially was reliant in living animals on serum levels to guide individual case intervention and postmortem liver concentrations to guide population level interventions. Deficiencies in iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) have also been documented at SDZSP.

    While there is more reliable correlation seen in iron in serum and liver concentrations, previous research has demonstrated the poor correlation between serum and hepatic measurements for copper, making serum concentration an unreliable indicator of true macronutrient status. Individual therapy should be guided by hepatic concentrations, obtained via percutaneous liver biopsy which can be obtained in most ruminants relatively non-invasively and is standard of care in domestic ruminant medicine.

    Diet supplementation is the hallmark of population treatment, with individual bolus used to treat deficient individuals. High copper diets are expensive and not always palatable or well-accepted, and copper oxide wire particle bolus administration often requires handling, but COWP bolus may be required when deficiency is diagnosed. The SDZSP protocol for copper supplementation and monitoring, especially as it pertains to high-risk species and breeding females, will be discussed

  • Kristen Wolfe, C2S2 Board Observer.

  • Kristen Wolfe, C2S2 Board Observer

Day 3: August 26, 2026

  • Dr. Robert Aruho, Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy

    Kenya’s National Recovery and Action Plan for the Mountain Bongo (2026–2030) outlines the strategic priorities for conserving one of the world’s most endangered antelope species over the next five years. The plan focuses on securing remaining wild populations, strengthening long-term monitoring, supporting population recovery, and ensuring coordinated action among all conservation partners towards shared national objectives.

    As the lead for mountain bongo reintroduction at Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy, working in partnership with Kenya Wildlife Service, I have contributed to both the development and implementation of this recovery plan. In my role as Co-Chair of the IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group, I also collaborate with conservation experts to advance science-based conservation, species recovery, and inclusive partnerships for threatened antelope species.

    This presentation will highlight significant recent developments in mountain bongo conservation in Kenya and the unprecedented level of collaboration emerging across the sector. Updates will include ongoing efforts to secure and restore critical mountain bongo habitat, including the recently confirmed population in the Masai Mau ecosystem, as well as progress in breeding, and rewilding programs aimed at rebuilding viable populations for reintroduction.

    The presentation will also highlight the growing role of evidence-based conservation through the application of innovative technologies and enhanced data analysis and management. These tools are improving our understanding of population trends, habitat use, and conservation threats, providing critical information to guide adaptive management and recovery interventions. Together, these initiatives demonstrate a coordinated national effort to secure the long-term survival and recovery of the mountain bongo in Kenya.

  • Dr. Budhan Pukazhenthi, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

    The mountain bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci) is one of Africa’s most endangered antelope species, with fewer than 100 individuals remaining in fragmented wild populations in Kenya. To support conservation, mountain bongos have been maintained in zoos, conservation breeding centers, and private ranches in the United States since the 1980s. Today, the U.S. population is managed by three primary groups: AZA-accredited zoos, conservation breeding centers, and private ranches. Because these groups have followed different breeding and management strategies, they may vary in their genetic diversity, an important factor for population health and future reintroduction efforts.

    To evaluate these differences, we generated the first chromosome-length reference genome assembly for the mountain bongo and analyzed genome-wide DNA variation across the U.S. population. We also included samples from wild-caught founders and their early descendants, enabling comparisons between contemporary populations and the genetic diversity present in the original founders. Our analyses revealed small but measurable genetic differentiation among management groups, although overall levels of genetic diversity were broadly similar. However, populations differed in levels of inbreeding and in their retention of founder genetic contributions. Some ranch populations showed evidence of genetic isolation, likely reflecting limited animal exchange with other groups. These patterns are consistent with the challenges of managing a population established from a relatively small number of founders.

    The study demonstrates the value of integrating genomic data with traditional pedigree records to guide conservation breeding decisions. No single management group retains all the genetic diversity present in the founders. Increased collaboration and strategic animal exchanges among zoos, conservation centers, and private ranches could help maintain genetic diversity, reduce inbreeding, and strengthen efforts to support future restoration of mountain bongos in Kenya.