Gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) are among the most commonly translocated reptiles. Waif tortoises are animals frequently of unknown origin that have been displaced from the wild and often held in human possession for various reasons and durations. Although there are risks associated with any translocation, waif tortoises are generally excluded from translocation projects because of heightened concerns of introducing pathogens and uncertainty about the post‐release survival of these individuals. If these risks could be managed, waif tortoises could have conservation value because they can provide the needed numbers to stabilize populations. In the early 1990s, the discovery of an isolated population of gopher tortoises (≤15 individuals) near Aiken, South Carolina, USA, prioritized establishment of the Aiken Gopher Tortoise Heritage Preserve (AGTHP). Because of the population's need for augmentation and the site's isolation from other tortoise populations, the AGTHP provided the opportunity to evaluate the post‐release survival of translocated waif tortoises without compromising a viable population. Since 2006, >260 waif tortoises have been introduced to the preserve. Using a Cormack‐Jolly‐Seber modeling framework to analyze release records and capture histories from trapping efforts in 2017 and 2018, we estimated the long‐term apparent survival and site fidelity of this population composed largely of waif tortoises. We estimated annual apparent survival probabilities to be high (≥0.90) for subadult, adult male, and adult female tortoises, and these rates were similar to those reported for wild‐to‐wild translocated gopher tortoises and those from unmanipulated populations. Of the tortoises recaptured within the boundaries of the preserve, 75% were located within 400 m of their release location. These results suggest that waif tortoises could be an important resource in reducing the extirpation risk of isolated populations. © 2021 The Wildlife Society.

中文翻译：

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易位后的Waif Gopher乌龟生存率和部位保真度

地鼠龟（Gopherus polyphemus）是最常见的易位爬行动物之一。f龟是动物，通常来源不明，已经从野外转移，由于各种原因和持续时间，经常被人类占有。尽管存在与任何易位相关的风险，但由于对引入病原体的担忧日益加重，以及这些人的释放后存活情况存在不确定性，所以通常将不合格的陆龟排除在易位项目之外。如果可以管理这些风险，海龟可能会具有保护价值，因为它们可以提供稳定种群所需的数量。在1990年代初期，在美国南卡罗来纳州艾肯附近发现了孤立的地鼠龟（≤15个），优先建立了艾肯地鼠龟文化遗产保护区（AGTHP）。由于该种群需要增加种群，并且该地点与其他陆龟种群隔离，因此AGTHP提供了一个机会，可以在不损害可行种群的情况下评估易位的陆龟的释放后存活率。自2006年以来，已将超过260只海龟陆龟引入了保护区。我们使用Cormack-Jolly-Seber建模框架来分析释放记录并捕获2017年和2018年诱捕工作的历史记录，我们估算了该种群的主要由龟组成的长期表观存活率和场地逼真度。我们估计亚成年，成年男性和成年女性乌龟的年表观生存概率很高（≥0.90），这些比率与报道的野生到野生易位地鼠陆龟和未受操纵种群的陆龟相似。在保护区范围内重新捕获的乌龟中，有75％位于释放位置的400 m以内。这些结果表明，陆龟可能是减少孤立人群灭绝风险的重要资源。©2021野生动物协会。