Biological Context of Wildlife, Fish, and Recreation Interactions

Are Recreation and Conservation Compatible?

• Recreation may:– Harm, harass, or kill wildlife– Subsidize predators– Change the balance

of a community– Reduce and degrade natural

habitat– Fragment, isolate, perforate

remaining habitat– Increase edge– Provide an entry point for

invasives

(Czech and Krausman 1997)

(Czech and Krausman 1997)

27% of federal endangered, threatened, or proposed listed species are harmed by outdoor recreation, including ORVs

Only Agriculture, Water development, and Commercial land conversion

harm more (Wilcove et al. 1998)

Outline for Today

• Review research evidence about the observable effects of recreation on wildlife

• Identify general features of recreation and attributes of wildlife that determine the outcome of the interaction

• Introduce a host of management options that may promote coexistence among recreationists and wildlife

• Suggest sources of additional information

Relationship between

recreation and wildlife(Knight & Cole 1995)

Immediate Effects on Individuals are often Subtle

• Changes in heart rate depend on type and direction of approach (MacArthur et al. 1982)

Immediate Responses are Often Graded to Magnitude of Disturbance

(Brown 1990)

(Sharkbay.org)

(Richardson et al. 1985)

Closer Approaches Command Greater Responses

(Richardson et al. 1985)

Bigger and Noisier is Not Always More

Disruptive

(Grubb and King 1991)

(Papouchis et al. 2001)

Confusion of Deer during Orienteering Events

Immediate Responses are Costly and Often Depend on Previous Interactions with People

(Liddle 1997)

Habituation

Reduced Response Distance by Habituated Marmots

(Neuhaus and Mainini 1998)

Longer Term Effects on a Population

(Robert and Ralph 1975)

Increased Mortality in Manatees

Speed RestrictionsEducation Campaign

(O’Shea 1995)

Displacement of Ducks by Anglers

(Bell and Austin 1985)

Upsetting Community Interactions

(Skagen et al. 1991)

Allcampgrounds_line.shp

Contours_Kernel(84)Mora_predators.txt10203040506070809095

Mora_campground.shp

0.5 0 0.5 1 Miles

N

EW

S

View1Campground Influences on

Predator Prey Dynamics

Yellow Warblers in Yellowstone(Hansen et al. 2001)

•Campgrounds are mostly in lowland, riparian areas of highest productivity

•High predator loads may reduce prey population viability

•Accentuates general findings that parks rarely protect the most productive lowlands

Changing Predator-Prey Dynamics May Accentuate the “Rocks and Ice” Bias in Parks

(lightshedder.com)(Tomback and Taylor 1987)

Ecosystem Ramifications?

Essence of the Interaction

Type of Recreation•Hunting•Fishing•Nature Viewing•Hiking•Skiing•Horseback Riding•Rock Climbing•Spelunking•Pets•Swimming•Boating/Personal Watercraft•Snowmobiling•ORVs•Mountain Biking•Aircraft•Recreational Site Development

Essence of the Interaction

Type of Recreation

PredictabilityFrequency and MagnitudeTiming Relative to Annual CycleLocationSeason (weather)

Essence of the Interaction

Type of Recreation

PredictabilityFrequency and MagnitudeTiming relative to Annual CycleLocationSeason (weather)

Properties of the AnimalBody SizeLife History StrategyPrevious Experience / LearningGroup SizeAgeSex

Essence of the Interaction

Type of Recreation

PredictabilityFrequency and MagnitudeTiming relative to Annual CycleLocationSeason (weather)

Properties of the Animal

Ability to Adapt or Habituate

Individual Response

Essence of the Interaction

Type of Recreation

PredictabilityFrequency and MagnitudeTiming relative to Annual CycleLocationSeason (weather)

Properties of the Animal

Ability to Adapt or Habituate

Individual Response

Population ResponseCommunity Response

Ecosystem Response

Strategies to Enhance Coexistence of Wildlife and Recreationists

Closures• Least popular, but

needed in some cases, especially for sensitive species– Breeding season

campground closures– Game pockets during

orienteering– Nursery or roost caves

for bats

Well-intentioned Closures can Backfire

(Humphrey 1978)

Strategies for Coexistence

• Spatial Restrictions– Temporary buffers based on flushing

distances• Likely modified with acclimation or habituation

• Temporal Restrictions– Closures at critical times

• Hours, days, weeks, months

Strategies for Coexistence

• Managing Human Behavior– Restrict type, location, intensity of use

• Bus rather than individual cars• Limit pets• Encourage indirect, predictable, slow

approaches

– Provide interpretive signage

• Provide visual and auditory barriers– Escape cover and vegetative

screening

Design forCoexistence

(Creachbaum et al. 1998)

Coexistence Ultimately Depends on Our Values and Ethics

• Recreation can foster awareness of impacts and possible changes in attitudes, values, and ethics

•Recreation is a way to rekindle our connection to the land, which may then foster a biocentric (as opposed to simply anthropocentric) ethic (Oelschlaeger 1995)

•This reconstruction of our land ethic may supercede, but certainly will enhance, our ability to conserve natural resources simply on economic grounds

Learning More

Effects of Recreation on Rocky Mountain Wildlife, www.montanatws.orgMy Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Class notes and references, www.courses.washington.edu/vseminar