Toward a New Framework for Restoring Lost Wildlife Migrations

Global declines in wildlife migrations have prompted new initiatives to conserve remaining migratory behaviors. However, many migrations have already been lost. Important attempts have been made to recover extirpated migrations, and our understanding of restoration remains narrowly confined to these particular species and landscapes. Here, we examine diverse restoration efforts through the unifying lens of behavioral ecology to draw broader inferences regarding the feasibility and effectiveness of restoring lost migrations. First, we synthesize recent research advances that illuminate key roles of exploration, learning, and adaptation in migratory behavior. Then, we review case studies to identify common themes of restoration success across four major vertebrate groups: fish, birds, mammals, and herpetofauna. We describe three broad strategies to effectively restore lost migrations: reestablishing migratory populations, recovering migratory habitats, and reviving migratory behavior itself. To guide conservation and research efforts, we link these strategies with specific management techniques, and we explore the biological mechanisms underpinning the success of each. Our work reveals a previously underappreciated potential for restoring lost migrations in terrestrial and freshwater vertebrates, and it provides guidance on whether and how conservation practitioners, researchers, and policymakers can work to restore the valuable migrations we have lost.