Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Tropical Ecology https://doi.org/10.1007/s42965-020-00099-1 RESEARCH ARTICLE Spatial patterns of the frst groups of collared peccaries (Pecari tajacu) reintroduced in South America Cindy M. Hurtado 1,3  · Harald Beck 1,4  · Paporn Thebpanya 1  · Mariana Altrichter 2,4 Received: 1 November 2019 / Revised: 27 June 2020 / Accepted: 30 July 2020 © International Society for Tropical Ecology 2020 Abstract The collared peccary (Pecari tajacu) is distributed from southwestern USA to northern Argentina; however, in some Argen- tinean localities it went extinct over 50 years ago. As part of a rewilding project, two peccary groups (one captive-bred family group and one mixed group formed by not genetically related individuals) were reintroduced to the Ibera National Park. Following the release, we monitored the movements of 16 individuals to obtain GPS locations every 100 min, for 6 months. We evaluated the individual’s spatial patterns by assessing site fdelity, home range changes, and habitat selection. Most members of the family group survived and established a home range whereas almost all members of the mixed group dispersed and did not survive. Using the Autocorrelated Kernel Density Estimator, the groups’ home range was 8.9 ± 1.7 km 2 for the entire study period. In addition, individuals showed high fdelity to release site and a stable home range a few months after release. At larger scales (second order of selection), peccaries selected forested habitat and proximity to release site while at a smaller scale (third order of selection), they avoided grasslands. We highlight the importance of familiarity of individuals prior to release and provide recommendations for future reintroductions. Three years later, by September 2019, nine groups were established in the Ibera National Park and the abundance was over 45 individuals. This is the frst post- release assessment of the movement patterns of collared peccaries in South America. Keywords Argentina · Habitat selection · Home range · Post-release · Reintroduction biology · Site-fdelity Introduction The reintroduction of species is a conservation approach to mitigate the negative efects of defaunation (Brown et al. 2011; Seddon et al. 2014). Planning is a crucial component of reintroduction and translocation success, and a large num- ber of factors need to be considered prior, during, and after reintroduction (IUCN 2013; Batson et al. 2015). Some of the factors that afect post-release survival, and therefore reintroduction success include: intra-specifc conficts (Lin- klater et al. 2011; Shier and Swaisgood 2012), long-distance dispersal from the release site (Stamps and Swaisgood 2007; Shier and Swaisgood 2012), high predation levels due to predator naïvity (Shier and Owings 2006; Frair et al. 2007; Zidon et al. 2009), and post-release stress (Teixeira et al. 2007; Dickens et al. 2010; Linklater et al. 2011). In order to determine which factors infuence post-release success, intensive post-release monitoring is required (IUCN 2013; Batson et al. 2015; Germano et al. 2015). From an adaptive management approach, this information is vital to make nec- essary adjustments to increase likelihood of success, as well as for future reintroduction projects (Armstrong et al. 2007). The spatial patterns of individuals’ movements can help determine reintroduction progress as well as improve man- agement of future releases (Stamps and Swaisgood 2007; Berger-Tal and Saltz 2014). One measure that can be used to study the establishment of released individuals is site fdelity, which is inferred when individual’s movements are limited to a specifc area rather than expected random move- ment (Munger 1984). This measure indicates that the indi- vidual or group has a constant home range. Establishment in the release site is a good indicator of initial reintroduction International Society for Tropical Ecology * Cindy M. Hurtado cindymeliza@gmail.com 1 Towson University, 8000 York Road, Towson, MD 21252, USA 2 Prescott College, 220 Grove Ave, Prescott, AZ 86303, USA 3 University of British Columbia, 2424 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z4, Canada 4 Co-Chair IUCN Peccary Specialist Group, Towson, USA