Editing Species reintroduction (section)

{{Short description|Wildlife conservation technique}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
[[File:Návrat divokých koní 2013 10.jpg|thumb|A [[Przewalski's horse]] being released into the wild in [[Mongolia]], as part of the [[Return of the Wild Horses]] project.]]
'''Species reintroduction''' is the deliberate release of a [[species]] into the wild, from captivity or other areas where the organism is capable of survival.<ref name="Campbell-Palmer 2010">{{cite journal | last1 = Campbell-Palmer | first1 = R. | last2 = Rosell | first2 = F. | year = 2010 | title = Conservation of the Eurasian beaver Castor fiber: an olfactory perspective | journal = Mammal Review | volume = 40 | issue = 4| pages = 293–312 | doi = 10.1111/j.1365-2907.2010.00165.x }}</ref> The goal of species reintroduction is to establish a healthy, [[Genetic diversity|genetically diverse]], self-sustaining population to an area where it has been extirpated, or to augment an existing [[population]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Introduction to Conservation Genetics|last1=Frankham|first1=Richard|last2=Ballou|first2=Jon|last3=Briscoe|first3=David|date=2004-01-01|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-70271-3|location=United Kingdom|pages=419–470|oclc=965796229}}</ref> Species that may be eligible for reintroduction are typically [[Threatened species|threatened or endangered]] in the wild. However, reintroduction of a species can also be for [[pest control]]; for example, wolves being reintroduced to a wild area to curb an [[overpopulation]] of deer. Because reintroduction may involve returning native species to localities where they had been extirpated, some prefer the term "'''reestablishment'''".<ref name="Campbell-Palmer 2010"/>

Humans have been reintroducing species for food and pest control for thousands of years. However, the practice of reintroducing for conservation is much younger, starting in the 20th century.<ref name="Seddon 2007">{{cite journal | last1 = Seddon | year = 2007 | title =   Developing the Science of Reintroduction Biology | journal = Conservation Biology | volume = 21 | issue = 2| pages = 303–312 | doi = 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2006.00627.x | pmid = 17391180 | last2 = Armstrong | first2 = DP | last3 = Maloney | first3 = RF | bibcode = 2007ConBi..21..303S | s2cid = 10434140 }}</ref>