Wildlife value orientation of landowners from five states in the upper midwest, USA

Larry M. Gigliotti; Lily A. Sweikert

doi:10.1080/10871209.2019.1632991

Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · 70223130

Wildlife value orientation of landowners from five states in the upper midwest, USA

Larry M. Gigliotti·Lily A. Sweikert

View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Five Upper Midwest states (Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa) participated in a Plains and Prairie Landscape Conservation Cooperative (PPP-LCC) funded survey of landowners. All five surveys included a 13-item wildlife value orientation (WVO) scale to provide insight into how landowners in this region make land use decisions that affect wildlife habitat. Most landowners were utilitarian (59%), 11% were identified as mutualists, and pluralists and distanced landowners were 15% each. Pluralist and mutualist landowners placed more importance on wildlife considerations when making land use decisions compared to utilitarian and distanced landowners. However, landowners’ WVO was not related to their participation in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Bill conservation programs. The proportion of WVO types among landowners varied considerably by age cohort. The proportion of utilitarians was highest for landowners born during the 1970s age cohorts and has since declined.

Explore related subjects

Human Dimensions of Wildlife Article

Source-reported bounding extent: 40.375659° to 49.383079° latitude; -116.049193° to -89.489226° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Larry M. Gigliotti, Lily A. Sweikert. 2019-06-19. Wildlife value orientation of landowners from five states in the upper midwest, USA. https://doi.org/10.1080/10871209.2019.1632991

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2026

Engaging adult R3 outdoor educational program design to strengthen participation in hunting and fishing

Declining participation in hunting and fishing has been slowed by women who are learning numerous outdoor skills through recruitment, retention, and reactivation [R3] programs. R3 programs are hosted by state agencies, non-governmental organizations, and businesses that take a variety of approaches to develop participant skills and confidence. To understand how R3 program design influences hunting and fishing participation, we conducted 11 focus group interviews with 72 participants at women’s R3 programs to identify program design components that women appreciate when learning to hunt and fish. Well-designed programs offered customized educational approaches to align with participants’ needs, created a supportive environment to foster a sense of belonging, and streamlined participation through event logistics. Programs that incorporated these design components promoted skill development, boosted self-confidence, and helped participants build a supportive network to independently hunt and fish. Program leaders can apply these findings to bolster participation in hunting and fishing.

Human Dimensions of Wildlife↗

USGS2026

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) knowledge, risk perception, and management acceptance are influenced by media engagement and trust among deer hunters in Massachusetts

Prior to wildlife disease emergence, public outreach campaigns can improve disease-related knowledge and increase the likelihood that stakeholders accept potential management actions. One wildlife disease of particular interest is chronic wasting disease (CWD), which is spreading across the United States but has not been detected in Massachusetts. We conducted a survey of deer hunters ( n = 7,419) in Massachusetts to: (1) explore media channel usage and source trust, and (2) assess the relationship among CWD knowledge, risk perception, management acceptability, and state wildlife agency trust. We found that channel usage and source trust varied by socio-demographic factors. We also found that engagement with popular channels and trust in accurate sources were positively correlated with CWD knowledge. CWD risk perception mediated the relationship between knowledge and management acceptance, and trust was positively associated with management acceptance. Collectively, our results indicate a mixed-media campaign by state wildlife agencies could improve CWD management acceptance.

Massachusetts↗

USGS2024

Valuing wildlife sightings at the species-wide and individual animal levels: An approach and application to bear viewing in Yellowstone National Park

Wildlife viewing is a popular recreation activity in parks and protected areas around the world, yet information on the nonmarket value that visitors derive from viewing specific species, and how that value is affected by small-scale population changes, is lacking. We devised an approach to fill the gap. First, we applied the travel cost method to obtain the value of a wildlife viewing trip. Next, we estimated a value per animal sighting, which we aggregated by the number of visitors who experienced and valued a sighting. Finally, we incorporated the probability of viewing an animal to determine an individual animal’s contribution to sighting value, which varies by species type, visibility, and seasonality. We examined bear viewing in Yellowstone National Park. For grizzly and black bears, respectively, per-sighting values are $16 and $14, aggregate annual sighting values are $6.9 and $9.7 million, and annual per-bear viewing values are $46,000 and $15,000.

Idaho, Montana, Wyoming↗