Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Warner College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University, 1480 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA; National Wildlife Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services, Fort Collins, CO, 80521, USA.
Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Warner College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University, 1480 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA.
J Environ Manage. 2021 May 1;285:112143. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112143. Epub 2021 Feb 22.
Invasive species and their establishment in new areas have significant impacts on the ecological, economic, and social well-being of our planet. Wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are one of the world's most formidable invasive species, particularly in the United States. They cause significant damage to agriculture and ecosystems, and can transmit diseases to livestock, wildlife, and people. There is an inherent social dimension to the issue of wild pigs due in part to the fact that people hunt them. Hunting contributes to both the control and spread of this species. The objectives of this study were to: 1) determine hunters' overall tolerance for wild pigs; and 2) identify what factors predict hunters' tolerance. Results obtained from a survey of Texas hunters in 2019 indicated that 83% of hunters had a low level of tolerance for wild pigs, with approximately 63% preferring to see the population reduced and 20% preferring to see the population completely removed. Fourteen percent preferred that wild pig numbers remain the same, and 2% preferred to see numbers increase. Results from regression analysis indicated that approximately 53% of the variance in tolerance for wild pigs was explained by motivations and preferences for hunting wild pigs, level of concern for wild pig damage, and overall attitudes toward wild pigs. Results of this research are useful in expanding current knowledge about human tolerance for wildlife, including those species that are non-native and invasive, and in identifying important factors affecting how hunters perceive and interact with wild pigs. Study findings are also helpful in informing the development of effective and socially acceptable management plans for wild pigs, as well as communication efforts aimed at influencing hunters' attitudes and behaviors in the wild pig management context.
入侵物种及其在新地区的定居对我们星球的生态、经济和社会福祉有重大影响。野猪（Sus scrofa）是世界上最具威胁性的入侵物种之一，尤其在美国。它们对农业和生态系统造成了重大破坏，并可将疾病传播给牲畜、野生动物和人类。由于人们捕猎野猪，这个问题还存在内在的社会层面。狩猎既有助于控制也有助于传播这个物种。本研究的目的是：1）确定猎人对野猪的总体容忍度；2）确定哪些因素可以预测猎人的容忍度。2019 年对德克萨斯州猎人进行的一项调查结果表明，83%的猎人对野猪的容忍度较低，约 63%的猎人希望看到野猪数量减少，20%的猎人希望看到野猪完全被消灭。14%的猎人希望野猪数量保持不变，2%的猎人希望看到野猪数量增加。回归分析的结果表明，对野猪容忍度的差异约有 53%可以由猎捕野猪的动机和偏好、对野猪破坏的关注程度以及对野猪的总体态度来解释。本研究的结果有助于扩展人类对野生动物容忍度的现有知识，包括那些非本地和入侵的物种，并确定影响猎人如何看待和与野猪互动的重要因素。研究结果还有助于为野猪的有效和社会可接受的管理计划的制定提供信息，并为旨在影响猎人在野猪管理背景下的态度和行为的沟通工作提供信息。
