Managers’ perspectives on the human dimensions of human-wildlife habituation in National Parks: Report from a survey of National Park Service Managers
Hudenko HW and Connery B. 2013. Managers’ perspectives on the human dimensions of human-wildlife habituation in National Parks: Report from a survey of National Park Service Managers. Natural Resource Report. NPS/BRMD/NRR—2013/629. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
In 2008 the Biological Resource Management Division of the National Park Service (NPS) launched a multi-faceted inquiry to inform management of human‐wildlife habituation across the National Park system. As part of the inquiry, a survey about human-wildlife habituation was conducted with NPS managers and staff. The goal of the survey was to inform a situation analysis and needs assessment about management of habituation in national parks. The survey was designed to elicit broad and descriptive information about human-wildlife habituation. The instrument contained a series of open-ended questions on the following topics: extent and nature of habituation in parks; causes and effects of habituation; habituation-related management strategies, priorities, and needs; visitor attitudes and behaviors associated with habituation. The questionnaire was distributed via email to natural resource managers in parks throughout the United States for completion online. The overarching theme of park managers’ responses was the interplay of visitor attitudes and behavior with NPS management actions that result in negative human-wildlife interactions. In particular, issues with food conditioning seem to be pervasive and distinguishing this from habituation in an applied context appears to be challenging. Managers described visitor attitudes that lead to problematic behaviors, and the lack of management response to prevent or address such behaviors, as the primary issues associated with the management of habituation. Findings suggest that park managers believe managing habituation in park areas is important and that increased support for research investigations is key to understanding habituation and to identifying successful human and wildlife management strategies.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Hudenko, Heather; Connery, B
- Date of Issue
- 2013-02
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- BRD , NRSS
- Keywords
- food conditioning, Habituation, Human Dimensions, human-wildlife, Visitor Impact, Wildlife, Wildlife viewing