The influence of personal experience on tolerance for wildlife and support for management in New Jersey ...

• Main Author: Paulin, Joseph B.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: No Publisher Supplied 2023
• Subjects: Canada; Branta canadensis; Canada Goose
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.7282/t3-aa9v-2x79; https://rucore.libraries.rutgers.edu/rutgers-lib/70456

In the early 2000s, increases in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Canada goose (Branta canadensis), and black bear (Ursus americanus) populations led to the establishment of these species in suburban areas throughout New Jersey, USA. As a result, the state’s wildlife and human populations were coming into contact and conflict more than ever before. The economic impacts from unwanted deer-human interactions in New Jersey were conservatively estimated at $69,000,000 annually. Canada geese negatively impacted agricultural crops and raised concerns about human health and safety issues. As the black bear population expanded, bear-human conflicts rose from 285 in 1995 to over 3,000 by 2003. We initiated mail surveys to determine the factors that led to support for lethal and non-lethal management techniques. Surveys were sent to (N=3,000) single-family residences with high and low population densities of deer, geese, and bear. A primary objective of the surveys was to determine the thresholds at which ...