Farmer attitudes toward wolves: Implications for the role of predators in managing disease

Astrid V. Stronen; Ryan K. Brook; Paul C. Paquet; Stéphane Mclachlan

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2006.09.012

Farmer attitudes toward wolves: Implications for the role of predators in managing disease

Astrid V. Stronen^*, Ryan K. Brook, Paul C. Paquet, Stéphane Mclachlan

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

34 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The potential for disease transmission between wild and domestic animals may interfere with wildlife and habitat conservation on lands surrounding protected areas. Recently, possible transmission of bovine tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) from wild ungulates to domestic livestock has affected the Riding Mountain National Park region in Manitoba, Canada. Wolf (Canis lupus) predation on ungulate populations may help lessen the risk of disease transmission to livestock. We conducted an exploratory analysis of causal factors associated with farmer attitudes toward observing wolves on their farms. A survey to 4 220 farms within 50 km of the Park resulted in an adjusted response rate of 25%. We constructed several logistic regression models with factors hypothesized to influence whether farmers agreed with the statement "I enjoy seeing wolves on my land", and three candidate models received reasonable support. Factors most affecting attitudes were, in order of importance, perceived wolf population size, frequency of seeing wolves, perceived seriousness of wolf damage, distance to Park boundary and number of beef cattle (Bos taurus) owned. The factors least influential on attitudes were education and age. Concern over bovine tuberculosis in wild elk also had minimal influence. Of respondents who perceived the wolf population as "too high", 60% were extremely concerned about bovine tuberculosis in wild elk. Although the role of wolf predation as a potential natural regulator of disease in wild ungulates might not be widely recognized in many areas, we believe this provides a unique opportunity to re-examine the significance of maintaining viable wolf populations.

Original language	English
Journal	Biological Conservation
Volume	135
Issue number	1
Pages (from-to)	1-10
Number of pages	10
ISSN	0006-3207
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2006.09.012
Publication status	Published - Feb 2007

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
We wish to thank all the farmers who participated in this survey, as well as Parks staff and farmers who helped design the questions. Funding for this project was provided by Manitoba Agriculture and Food and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Additional support for our research is provided by Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba Conservation, Riding Mountain Biosphere Reserve, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Eastlands Wildlife Association, Prendiville Industries Ltd., Shur-Gro Farm Services Ltd., Earth Rhythms Inc., and Seven Oaks Game and Fish. Special thanks to N. Lavalee for helping to get the surveys delivered, to A. Thorgilsson, A. Jays, R. Watson, and J. Preston for assisting with data entry. K. Kingdon, D. Bergeson, G. Goulet and three anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on earlier versions of the manuscript. Also, thank you to T. Sallows, J. Whitaker, R. Armbruster, the Task Group for Bovine Tuberculosis and the Environmental Conservation Lab at the University of Manitoba.

Keywords

Bovine Tuberculosis
Canis lupus
Cervus elaphus manitobensis
Elk
Logistic regression
Mycobacterium bovis
Transboundary

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title = "Farmer attitudes toward wolves: Implications for the role of predators in managing disease",

abstract = "The potential for disease transmission between wild and domestic animals may interfere with wildlife and habitat conservation on lands surrounding protected areas. Recently, possible transmission of bovine tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) from wild ungulates to domestic livestock has affected the Riding Mountain National Park region in Manitoba, Canada. Wolf (Canis lupus) predation on ungulate populations may help lessen the risk of disease transmission to livestock. We conducted an exploratory analysis of causal factors associated with farmer attitudes toward observing wolves on their farms. A survey to 4 220 farms within 50 km of the Park resulted in an adjusted response rate of 25%. We constructed several logistic regression models with factors hypothesized to influence whether farmers agreed with the statement {"}I enjoy seeing wolves on my land{"}, and three candidate models received reasonable support. Factors most affecting attitudes were, in order of importance, perceived wolf population size, frequency of seeing wolves, perceived seriousness of wolf damage, distance to Park boundary and number of beef cattle (Bos taurus) owned. The factors least influential on attitudes were education and age. Concern over bovine tuberculosis in wild elk also had minimal influence. Of respondents who perceived the wolf population as {"}too high{"}, 60% were extremely concerned about bovine tuberculosis in wild elk. Although the role of wolf predation as a potential natural regulator of disease in wild ungulates might not be widely recognized in many areas, we believe this provides a unique opportunity to re-examine the significance of maintaining viable wolf populations.",

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author = "Stronen, {Astrid V.} and Brook, {Ryan K.} and Paquet, {Paul C.} and St{\'e}phane Mclachlan",

note = "Funding Information: We wish to thank all the farmers who participated in this survey, as well as Parks staff and farmers who helped design the questions. Funding for this project was provided by Manitoba Agriculture and Food and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Additional support for our research is provided by Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba Conservation, Riding Mountain Biosphere Reserve, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Eastlands Wildlife Association, Prendiville Industries Ltd., Shur-Gro Farm Services Ltd., Earth Rhythms Inc., and Seven Oaks Game and Fish. Special thanks to N. Lavalee for helping to get the surveys delivered, to A. Thorgilsson, A. Jays, R. Watson, and J. Preston for assisting with data entry. K. Kingdon, D. Bergeson, G. Goulet and three anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on earlier versions of the manuscript. Also, thank you to T. Sallows, J. Whitaker, R. Armbruster, the Task Group for Bovine Tuberculosis and the Environmental Conservation Lab at the University of Manitoba. ",

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Farmer attitudes toward wolves: Implications for the role of predators in managing disease

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

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