Motivations of Female Black Hills Deer Hunters

State fish and wildlife agencies are particularly interested in attracting female participation because of the potential to offset declining participation in hunting. Understanding female hunters’ motivations will be critical for designing effective recruitment and retention programs for women hunters. Although female participation in hunting is increasing, males still outnumber females by about tenfold. Gender differences in deer hunters were explored by comparing ratings of eight motivations (social, nature, excitement, meat, challenge, trophy, extra hunting opportunity, and solitude). Hunter types were defined by hunters’ selection of the most important motivation for why they like Black Hills deer hunting. Overall, females and males were relatively similar in their ratings of the eight motivations, and we found 85% gender similarity in the selection of the most important motivation. Women were slightly more motivated by the food aspect of the hunt while men placed slightly more value on the hunt as a sporting activity.     

Bases of Support Differ for Deer Reduction Versus Behavior Change Options to Manage Deer Impacts

Research on urban deer management has used bivariate analysis of public support for options. Multiple regression analyses tested predictors of support for deer reduction options (hunting; contraception; removal; no action or “letting nature take its course”) and willingness to change one's own behavior (self-protection; yard re-planting; planting native plants). Deer reduction support correlated with wanting fewer deer and opinions about hunting's and no-action's effects; behavior-change support correlated with distrust of government, general environmental attitudes, and beliefs about deer impacts. Variations occurred for specific options (e.g., belief in no action increased with beliefs that nature lacked negative effects and reduced deer numbers; seeing global extinction as a problem and political liberalism favored native-species planting). Controlling for other variables, women supported hunting more and no action less than men, reversing prior bivariate findings. Multivariate analysis thus showed hitherto unobserved differences in the basis of support for deer reduction versus behavior change.     

Factors impacting hunter access to private lands in southeast Minnesota

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have important socioeconomic and ecological impacts in the United States. Hunting is considered to be important for the effective management of deer and relies on access to privately owned lands. In 2013, we surveyed nonindustrial private landowners in southeast Minnesota and created two logit models to examine factors that impact landowners’ decision to (a) allow public hunting access and (b) post private property. Parcel characteristics were found to impact landowner decisions to allow hunting access, particularly the size of the property and whether it was posted. Hunting access to small properties was more likely to be restricted to family, friends, and neighbors (83%) compared to medium (74%) or large properties (60%). Hunter concerns (e.g., liability) and knowledge about deer management was significant in both models, suggesting there are opportunities to educate landowners about the importance of allowing public hunting access and available liability protections.     

Identifying Wildlife Species Believed to be Deserving of Protection From Hunting by U.S. Residents

This article examines the perceptions of individuals toward protecting animals from hunting. Researchers surveyed 825 U.S. residents in an online survey about their views of whether 17 species of mammals should be protected from hunting. Over 85% of respondents believed elephant, white rhino, black rhino, hippo, leopard, lion, and polar bear species should be protected from hunting. Conversely, only 55% of respondents believed mountain lion and coyote should be protected. Cross tabulations and logit analysis were employed to explore relationships between believing an animal species should be protected from hunting and demographics. Older and female respondents more often agreed that species should be protected from hunting. Those who hunted or knew a hunter less frequently agreed that the species surveyed should be protected from hunting. Demographics and previous exposure to hunting appear to influence beliefs about what species should be protected from hunting.     

A Hedonic Analysis of Big Game Hunting Club Dues in Georgia,USA

Hunting lease revenue can be a reliable supplemental income for forest landowners. Although studies have examined factors influencing per acre lease rates, little is known about how various characteristics are capitalized in hunting club dues. The objective of this study was to conduct a hedonic analysis of big game hunting club dues in Georgia, USA using a variety of club-, site-, and location-specific characteristics. To accomplish this objective, multivariate regression analysis was applied to explain variation in hunters’ self-reported big game hunting club dues in 2012. Implicit price was then calculated for each significant covariate. Club size, presence of food plots, and game quality had positive effects on club dues, whereas membership number had a negative effect. These results should be useful for landowners and club lease managers interested in enhancing the marketability of their hunting sites and understanding the effect of management actions.     

How Wildlife Management Agencies and Hunting Organizations Frame Ethical Hunting in the United States

Given that many wildlife management agencies consider hunting to be central to wildlife conservation, a growing body of research describes ethical hunting using characterization framing (created by outsiders). This article describes an identity frame (created by insiders) of ethical hunting in the United States, based on analysis of hunter education manuals and official statements of hunting nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Similar themes permeated texts from both sources (e.g., obeying law, fair chase). NGOs, however, placed significantly more emphasis on being skilled (15% vs. 6%) and being motivated by experiencing nature (10% vs. 2%), whereas government agencies placed significantly more emphasis on respecting landowners (28% vs. 15%). Agencies may frame ethical hunting as more socially interdependent and rule abiding because they perceive a need to prioritize government authority (law) and property owner interests. These findings highlight a need for identity frames focusing on how hunting impacts biodiversity and humane treatment of animals.     

The impact of modernization on hunting ethics: Emerging taboos among contemporary Swedish hunters

This study examines how processes of modernization affect hunting ethics, including commodification, cosmopolitanism, demographic shifts, technological innovation, and invasive species. The impact of such change processes has been documented in indigenous hunting societies, but not in postindustrial Western hunting communities. Instead, wildlife ethics are often seen as a private matter or a static inheritance from past generations, and not as researchable from a perspective of change. The underexposure of research on ethics in this context is explained as taking place within a framework of ethical subjectivism to the detriment of opening up ethics to a needed conversation as the context for hunting changes in modernity. This study uncovers the hunting ethics of contemporary Swedish hunters in response to modernization and reveals new lines of moral demarcation and emerging taboos for right and wrong hunting. It concludes by considering the virtue of hunting taboos for wildlife conservation.     

What Predicts Support for Antler Point Restrictions?

Although considerable research has focused on satisfaction with recreation experiences, limited work has examined factors related to regulatory support. In 2005, an antler point restriction (APR) regulation was introduced for hunting white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in Minnesota’s Itasca State Park. Hunter surveys were conducted following the 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2009 seasons. We modeled how (a) satisfaction with the deer seen, (b) type of deer pursued, (c) agency trust, and (d) years of deer-hunting experience, influenced support for the APR, and compared the model over the four survey years. Type of deer pursued and agency trust were the strongest predictors of APR support, followed by satisfaction with deer seen, and years of hunting experience. Hunters who targeted big bucks, had more trust in the agency, and expressed more satisfaction with deer seen in the field, were more supportive of the APR. Hunters who had more deer-hunting experience were less supportive.     

世界狩猎现状

中国现代狩猎起步较晚,2006年,中国狩猎限额的拍卖被中断,同时2011年,外国人到中国申请狩猎,又被中止,狩猎活动接连2次被禁止,引起了社会的广泛关注。通过对世界狩猎现状的叙述,包括各国猎人的数量、消费金额、相关法律法规以及狩猎管理等信息,并进行各国之间的对比,找出我国在狩猎管理中的不足,增加对世界狩猎现状的了解,从而发现狩猎发展中所存在的问题,为中国的狩猎发展提供参考。     

Exploring the Social Habitat for Hunting: Toward a Comprehensive Framework for Understanding Hunter Recruitment and Retention

Decades of decline in the number of hunters in the United States have made hunter recruitment and retention (HRR) a high priority within the North American wildlife management community. Sociodemographic changes (e.g., urbanization, shifting racial/ethnic composition, parcelization of rural properties) suggest a need to re-examine conventional knowledge of HRR processes and develop insight that reflects contemporary contexts. In this article, we emphasize the “social habitat” for hunting and adopt a social–ecological model of hunting behavior to explore the myriad factors that interact to influence HRR at multiple scales. We examine the dynamic, hierarchical social structures that influence HRR, including forces that operate at the individual, micro (e.g., family), meso (e.g., community), and macro (e.g., society) levels. The review suggests that future research addressing HRR could expand to account for a broader, more diverse social habitat for hunting that includes these multiple scales.     

The Economic Significance of Hunting Tourism in East Lapland,Finland

Uses of game resources are under constant debate. One such debate focuses on hunting tourism and its contributions to rural economics. To prioritize future investment and inform policy decisions, it is necessary to identify the full economic consequences of the operation of hunting tourism companies in rural areas. However, the true economic significance of these typically small-scale companies is not apparent when examined on an industrial scale. These companies may nevertheless serve as a sustainable solution to local-scale rural challenges. In this article, the regional economic significance of hunting tourism is estimated for the East Lapland sub-region of northern Finland through the use of Computable General Equilibrium simulation models. Although these models are known to effectively evaluate short- and long-term regional economic effects of industries such as tourism, they have not previously been applied to evaluate hunting tourism.     

Mixed models applied to the study of variation of grower-finisher mortality and culling rates of a large swine production system

Large scale production systems for swine are frequently organized in a hierarchical structure. Consequently, important production parameters, such as mortality and culling, can be analyzed at different levels. The major aims of this study were to assess variance components (VC) of mortality and culling rates attributed to sites and to barns within a site, and subsequently to investigate the impact of average entry weight, days on feed (length of the production turn), and season on the magnitude of the VC. Then, data from a large farm with 3 sites were collected during 5 y. In total, 1720040 pigs distributed in 1502 all-in/all-out grower-finisher groups were included. Linear mixed models were fitted for mortality and culling rates. The barn was modeled as the residual component (barn-to-barn variations) with production turn and site nested within production turn as random intercept variance components. Barn-to-barn pig group variation was the largest VC for mortality (63.08%), when no predictors were included in the models. Predictors, such as pigs placed on quarters 2 and 3, low average entry weight, and shorter production turn length, were associated together with higher mortality. The explained proportion of variance due to these predictors was about 12.05% and the VC for barn, site, and production turn were 67.6%, 17.6%, and 14.8%, respectively. Barn-to-barn variation was also the largest VC for culling rate (46.2%), but the same predictor mentioned above explained only about 1.4% of the variation. The VC for barn, site, and production turn were 46.8%, 21.3%, and 31.8%, respectively. Since the variability among barns far exceeded the variability among sites, the barn should be used as experimental unit in studies with grower-finisher mortality, culling rate, or both, as outcome variables.     

An epidemiological investigation of an idiopathic myopathy in hunting dogs in New Zealand

AIM: To conduct an epidemiological investigation of an idiopathic myopathy, known as “Go Slow” (GSM), which was initially recognised in dogs used for pig hunting. A secondary aim was to describe the hunting activities, diet and health of dogs used for pig hunting in New Zealand.

METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted between June 2014–June 2017. Cases of GSM in dogs were diagnosed by veterinarians using a combination of clinical history, physical examination findings, serum biochemistry and/or skeletal muscle histology. A telephone interview was conducted with the owner or primary veterinarian to provide information regarding the dog’s diet and exercise over the 7 days preceding the onset of clinical signs. In August 2015, a separate online survey of owners of dogs used for pig hunting was conducted to characterise the normal hunting activities, diet and health of these dogs.

RESULTS: A total of 86 cases of GSM were recruited, of which 58 (67%) were pig hunting dogs, 16 (19%) pet dogs and 12 (14%) working farm dogs. Cases were most commonly reported in the upper North Island, and 65 (76 (95% CI=67–85)%) were from the Northland region. Processed commercial dog food had been fed to 93 (95% CI=88–98)% of affected dogs. Ingestion of raw, frozen or cooked wild pig in the preceding week was reported for 76 (88 (95% CI=82–95)%) dogs with the myopathy. In the survey of owners of healthy pig hunting dogs, 203 eligible responses were received; pig hunting was reported to most commonly occur in Northland (20.2%), Waikato (22.3%) and Bay of Plenty (23.2%) regions. Commercial dog food was fed to 172 (85 (95% CI=80–90)%) of the dogs included in this survey, and 55 (27 (95% CI=20–33)%) had eaten wild pig in the preceding week. The most common reported health problem in pig hunting dogs was traumatic wounds.

CONCLUSIONS: Cases of GSM were most commonly recognised in dogs used for pig hunting, but also occurred in pet and working farm dogs. The disease was most frequently reported in the upper North Island of New Zealand and ingestion of wild pig was a consistent feature in cases of this myopathy.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: To minimise the risk of dogs developing this myopathy, it would seem prudent to avoid feeding any tissues from wild pigs to dogs in areas where the disease is known to occur.     

Household Dynamics of Wildlife Value Orientations

Wildlife value orientations (WVOs) shape attitudes and behavior toward wildlife. Although demographic correlates of WVOs are well established, these relationships are largely unknown among children and within family units. The only previous study addressing these topics used fathers’ perceptions as proxies for family member WVOs. We surveyed North Carolina households (n = 136) to test hypotheses regarding whether individuals can assess household WVOs and what variables shape WVOs within households. Fathers and mothers accurately assessed WVOs of their children. Membership in a household was the most important predictor of an individual’s WVOs (accounting for 37% [ρ = .37] of the variance predicted by the model). Younger age, being female, and lack of participation in hunting were associated with more protectionist WVOs. These results provide the first household level support for divergence between generations from utilitarian toward protectionist WVOs. Our results suggest that household unit may be a critical element to consider in WVO research.     

Comparative foraging behaviour of three species of shrike in southern Africa

Utilisation of food resources in migrant and resident birds living sympatrically often leads to differences in feeding strategy. For sit-and-wait hunters such as shrikes, it is connected with competition for food and hunting places. In this study, foraging behaviour of three shrike species was studied in savanna-like habitat in southern Africa. The fieldwork was carried out in December 2017 during wintering season of Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor and Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio and breeding season of Common Fiscal Lanius collaris. Details of the bird's behaviour were recorded during 30 min observations of each bird. A general linear mixed model with logit link function and binomial error variance was used to compare the species’ behaviour. Although the type of perch-site and perching time did not differ between species, Red-backed Shrike used places situated significantly lower than other shrikes. This species also more often used bushes and attacked from lower perch-sites than Lesser Grey Shrike. This may possibly be due to interspecific competition and antipredator behaviour of Red-backed Shrike. No differences in foraging behaviour between Common Fiscal and Lesser Grey Shrike were observed. All three species utilised the same category of prey. Hunting success (the ratio of successful to all attacks) was low and similar in all three species (47%–57%). The lack of statistically significant differences in behaviour, hunting success and size of prey items among shrike species may be a consequence of the relatively short observation time and small sample sizes.     

The Applicability of Wildlife Value Orientations Scales to a Muslim Student Sample in Malaysia

This article addresses the applicability of quantitative wildlife value orientation scales in Muslim students in Malaysia. As Malaysian culture is deeply influenced by Islam ideology, this article presents a case for addressing the cross-cultural applicability of the scales. The current wildlife value orientation scales were reliable—all Cronbach’s alphas ≥ .65—and had predictive validity—8 to 14% of variance of acceptability of lethal control was explained. Yet, both reliability and predictive validity were of lesser magnitude than figures in previous Western studies. Especially the hunting beliefs scale did not reflect basic thinking about wildlife in our sample, and our data suggest two different hunting dimensions—consequences of hunting for wildlife and human opportunities for hunting. For future cross-cultural comparisons of wildlife value orientations, amendment of the scales to better reflect salient beliefs in non-Western nations is recommended.     

Exploring Nontraditional Pathways Into Hunting in New York State: Implications for Recruitment and Retention

Anecdotal evidence suggests that adults lacking previous hunting experience and family support for hunting comprise a growing proportion of new hunters. Empirical evidence of such a trend is lacking. Furthermore, hunting motivations and constraints for these “nontraditional path hunters” (NTPHs) have not been well documented. We articulate a strategy for identifying potential NTPHs in New York, describe socialization mechanisms initiating NTPHs into hunting, and explore motivations and constraints of these hunters. Data were collected using a Web-based survey of 3,605 NTPHs identified among 2014 Sportsman Education course graduates in New York. We found that many NTPHs were initiated by friends and co-workers, and their motivations and constraints were similar to traditional hunters. These findings suggest that NTPHs are not a panacea to the trend of declining numbers of hunters in New York.     

To what extent do variabilities in hormones,metabolites and energy intake explain variability in milk yield?

The objective of the present paper is to describe the extent to which variability in milk yield can be explained by variability in plasma hormones, metabolites and DE intake. Results from a study including 317 cows and 634 lactations were used. Detailed registration of performance was carried out on these cows and 10,809 plasma samples analyzed for selected hormones and metabolites. Univariate analysis was carried out on energy-corrected milk yield and concentrations of selected plasma hormones (insulin, growth hormone (GH) and triiodothyronine (T3)), metabolites (non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA)), glucose, beta-hydroxybutyrate (BOHB) and urea nitrogen (BUN), and digestible energy intake (DE intake) to estimate between-cow variation through lactations. Partial least square (PLS) models were subsequently run to estimate the extent to which between-cow differences in energy-corrected milk yield could be explained by between-cow differences in hormone concentrations, metabolite concentration or DE intake. The between-cow variability in energy-corrected milk yield and the hormones and metabolites were generally found to be considerable and total variance changed through lactation, particularly for GH, T3, NEFA and BOHB. In this study, the total variance was highest in third lactation cows. When analyzed separately using partial least square models, hormones, metabolites and DE intake accounted for 24, 25 and 26% of the variability in ECM, respectively. Insulin and glucose were the single most important predictors among the selected hormones and metabolites. When including both the hormones and metabolites, the model explained 36% of the between-cow variability in ECM and this figure was increased to 53% if DE intake was also included. The lack of additivity in the variability explained shows that hormones, metabolites and DE intake were correlated illustrating the integration and orchestration of metabolism and intake. Perspectives of the analysis for use in prevention of diseases and reproduction are briefly discussed.     

A Norwegian Penthrite Granade for Minke Whales: Hunting Trials with Prototypes and Results from the Hunt in 1984,1985 and 1986

A penthrite grenade to replace cold harpoons in the Norwegian minke whale hunt was developed in 1983–1985. Data on survival times for 259 minke whales were collected from the trials in the 1984–86 hunting seasons, when 3 different prototypes were used. About 45% of the whales were killed instantaneously. The median survival time was 72 s. A substantially higher percentage of instantaneous deaths was recorded for penthrite grenades than for cold harpoons. The criteria for death were cessation of flipper movement, relaxation of the mandible, or sinking without any active movement. Some animals dived before the criteria could be controlled. If the central nervous system, heart, lungs or main vessels were damaged, a high percentage of the animals died instantaneously. In most cases, hits and detonations outside the thorax and central nervous system resulted in longer survival times than hits in the thorax. Survival time increased with whale size and range for animals not killed instantaneously. Marksmanship, technical and functional reliability of equipment and hunting techniques were all crucial to a good result. Better training of gunners, improved weapons and hunting equipment and more rapid reshooting of wounded animals would reduce the proportion of long survival times.     

Weaning,yearling, and preharvest ultrasound measures of fat and muscle area in steers,bulls, and heifers

Longissimus muscle area and fat thickness were measured following weaning, at yearling, and prior to harvest using real-time ultrasound, and corresponding carcass measurements were recorded 3 to 7 d following the preharvest scan in composite steers (n = 116, 447 +/- 19 d), bulls (n = 224, 521 +/- 11 d), and heifers (n = 257,532 +/- 12 d). Although fat deposition was limited in bulls and heifers from weaning to yearling, coefficients of variation ranged from 8.46 to 13.46% for muscle area, and from 27.55 to 38.95% for fat thickness, indicating that significant phenotypic variance exists across genders. Residual correlations, adjusted for the effects of year of birth, gender, and age at measurement, were high and ranged from 0.79 to 0.87 among ultrasound and carcass measures of muscle area. Residual correlations among ultrasound and carcass measures of fat thickness were also high, ranging from 0.64 to 0.86. Weaning and/or yearling ultrasound muscle area yielded similarly accurate predictions of carcass muscle area. Yearling ultrasound fat thickness accounted for 13% more of the observed variance in carcass fat thickness than the weaning ultrasound measure in single-trait prediction models. When both weaning and yearling ultrasound measures were used to predict carcass fat thickness, partial R2 values were 0.15 and 0.61 for weaning and yearling ultrasound fat thickness, respectively. The difference between predicted and carcass measures with respect to muscle area (fat thickness) was less than 6.45 cm2 (2.5 mm) for 80.2 to 88.9% (90.3 to 95%) of animals. Preharvest ultrasound measures yielded standard errors of prediction of less than 4.95 cm2 for muscle area and 1.51 mm or less for fat thickness. These results indicate that ultrasound measures taken between weaning and yearling provide accurate predictors of corresponding carcass traits in steers, bulls, and heifers.