Assisted colonization

Assisted colonization, also known as assisted migration or managed relocation, is the act of deliberately helping plant and animal species colonize new habitats when driven out of their historical habitats due to rapid environmental change, especially climate change. All species have some natural capacity to disperse into new habitats and adapt to change, but ongoing climate change is so rapid that many species are unable to keep pace naturally. In order to prevent extinctions, some scientists and practitioners are considering assisting the dispersal of species that have poor natural dispersal ability. This idea has sparked intense debate over the potential benefits of assisted colonization, which include avoiding many species extinctions, and the risks, which include accidentally introducing new invasive species. Although the debate remains primarily conceptual with few real-world applications, scientists and land managers have already begun to consider several specific assisted colonization projects.