For nuisance animals, the general public perceives translocation to be a humane alternative to lethal control measures, but survival of translocated wildlife is often quite low due in part to increased movement post-release. Thus, for common species whose relocation generally serves a social ratherthan conservation purpose, translocation might not be correctly characterized when presented as nonlethal. We quantified release site fidelity and survival of coyotes (Canis latrans) fitted with very high frequency radio-collars and translocated within the Chicago Metropolitan Area, Illinois, USA, from 2000 to 2006. We also compared survival for 14 weeks post-collaring for our translocated animals to that of 143 unmoved, control coyotes in the same region and used Cox proportional-hazards (CPH) models to evaluate the influence of translocation status, sex, age class, and collar season on survival. Of the 9 translocated coyotes, all animals vacated the site of release, 6 died within 14 weeks of collaring, and 3 animals were lost. Consequently, survival over the monitoring period was 0.00, relative to 0.88 for the unmoved coyotes. According to our CPH models, translocation status was the only factor contributing to reduced survival of the translocated animals (P <0.001). These results indicate that translocation does not provide for a more successful outcome for nuisance individuals than an approved euthanasia. If the risk to people and property is low and animal welfare is a local concern, nonlethal methods of reducing conflict, including education and behavior modification of humans, should be considered before translocation.
Economic pressures on rural livelihoods in Botswana are ever-increasing, especially for peripheral areas where resources harnessed for tourism purposes are prevalent. One of the avenues to achieve this balancing act is the Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) program of Botswana, which devolved management of resources to local communities to incentivise conservation through hunting tourism. However, due to questions over hunting sustainability as a conservation tool by conservation non-governmental organizations and animal rights groups, trophy hunting was banned in Botswana in 2014. The resultant impacts were felt not only by the hunting industry but also by communities through the loss of income and employment. For this research, we selected 2 villages impacted by the ban, namely Sankuyo and Mmadinare, based on their geographic separation, which gives an added dimension to the investigation of the phenomena. We conducted our research from June to August 2018. We interviewed 53 participants using semi-structured and structured interviews, consisting of 46 community members, 3 community trust leaders, and 4 former hunting employees. The results revealed that the ban had a more significant impact on Sankuyo village respondents, which has a smaller population than Mmadinare, also not closely situated to major conservation areas such as Mmadinare. Benefits lost by the community in Sankuyo include employment contributions, the sale of meat, and financial contributions to community development, which were significant for the small community. However, both communities experienced similar challenges due to the ban on trophy hunting, such as increased wildlife numbers, which escalated human-wildlife conflicts (HWCs). Our research furthermore revealed first that communities with a greater dependence on one single economic activity (hunting) lead to vulnerability, especially in small communities; secondly, attitudes changed toward wildlife in both communities due to an increase in HWCs; and thirdly, the communities had limited involvement in decision-making by the government in natural resource management by communities due to over-arching government powers despite the CBNRM. It is recommended that Botswana should re-examine the policy approach in implementing the CBNRM framework by the government by incorporating local control governance to maximize its effect on communities and conservation.
The increased global frequency of human-wildlife conflict with large, wild carnivores and omnivores negatively impacts human, wildlife, and ecosystem health. The goal ofthis study was to determine what landscape characteristics best predicted where human-black bear (Ursus americanus) interactions occurred in Nova Scotia, Canada, to support management efforts. We compared the location of 3,278 human-bear conflict reports and 867 non-conflict reports collected between 2017 and 2021 to 12,000 randomly generated locations. Data were analyzed using logistic additive mixed models. We found that interactions (conflict and non-conflict reports) occurred near roads and farther from forests and surface water features. These events were more likely in areas with higher forest edge density and with moderate housing density characteristic of fragmented and shared landscapes with humans and bears. These results can be used to better allocate limited resources and to target bear management efforts and approaches in this region based on the likelihood of human-bear interactions.
Social tolerance of carnivores can be improved by preventing conflicts through nonlethal predator deterrents (e.g., livestock protection dogs [Canis lupus familiaris] and human presence) that have been used for centuries. However, many livestock producers feel the existing preventative methods are inadequate for extensive production systems where livestock can be spread widely and have less human supervision. To address this issue, we developed and tested a new nonlethal tool called FlashTags to reduce livestock predation. FlashTags are eartags worn by livestock that flash a random-light pattern at night when motion-triggered. In the first year, we tested the devices on domestic ewes (Ovis aries) and found no effect on sheep behavior. In the second year, we fit FlashTags on livestock at 13 operations in North America to test their efficacy at reducing domestic livestock predation to determine if further development of the FlashTags was warranted. All sites were previously affected by chronic predation by coyotes (C. latrans), gray wolves (C. lupus), and/or grizzly bears (Ursus arctos). We observed a significant reduction in reported predation by coyotes and wolves at 2 operations where rigorous data were collected, and at all but 1 site, livestock producers reported lower or no livestock depredation with FlashTags. However, we encountered a design flaw in our prototype that resulted in the majority of FlashTags breaking before the grazing season ended. These results suggest FlashTags offer a novel, low-maintenance, low-cost, nonlethal deterrent that producers would use if design improvements are made.
European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) cause damage (including structural damage) on dairies, eat cattle feed, and can potentially spread disease through their fecal matter. Deterring starlings from dairies without affecting cow (Bos taurus) welfare is vital, and lasers have been effective starling deterrence tools in urban roosts and in some crops. To evaluate if the use of lasers on dairies would affect starling use of freestall barns as night roosts, or lactating cow behavior, 1 laser was installed in each of the 2 freestall barns at the Knott Dairy Center at Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA. Lasers were turned on or off in both barns once a week on a set schedule. Starling counts occurred twice a week at sunset for a baseline week and 2 subsequent 4-week periods, in November 2022 and January 2023. CowManager Sensor activity monitoring ear tags were used to monitor lactating cow behavior during the entire study. Pen 1 and pen 2 had more birds in the final week of the study (1,108 birds and 325 birds, respectively) than during the baseline week (783 birds and 181 birds, respectively). No meaningful patterns emerged from the cow behavior data, so we concluded that the lasers did not have an effect on cow behavior. From this study, we were not able to conclude that the lasers were effective at deterring starlings from roosting in the freestall barns overnight, but a few simple adjustments to the laser may improve its efficacy in future studies.
To address the challenge that is posed to the use of fertility control to mitigate human-deer (Cervidae) conflicts by the need to regularly re-inoculate free-roaming animals, we captured, ear-tagged, and hand-injected 68 individual adult female white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) with the PZP-22 immunocontraceptive vaccine from February through April, 2014 to 2017, in the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, USA. Approximately 2.5 years after initial treatments, we booster-darted 29 of the previously treated females with either PZP-22 or native PZP (ZonaStat-D). We observed fawn production between 2014 and 2021. The combination of initial PZP-22 hand-treatments followed by single dart-delivered PZP boosters reduced fawning by >80% relative to pre-treatment fawning rates over at least 5 years, with no difference in efficacy between the 2 booster preparations. This PZP-based protocol should significantly expand the potential for practical application of deer fertility control in urban and suburban environments.
Wildlife-aircraft collisions (wildlife strikes) pose a serious risk to civil and military aircraft. Each year, Laysan albatrosses (Phoebastria immutabilis) attempt to establish a breeding colony on the airfield at the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) located on the island of Kaua'i, Hawai'i, USA, resulting in a hazard to safe military aircraft operations at this facility. A long-term management program, with an emphasis on mitigation translocation (e.g., live-capture and translocation away from the area) of problematic individuals, has been conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services. However, the efficacy of mitigation translocation as a nonlethal management tool is unknown, especially in island ecosystems and with seabirds. During 2018 to 2020, we radio-tagged adult Laysan albatrosses and released individuals at locations either 4 km or 45 km from the PMRF airfield during 2 time periods (early and late) within the Laysan albatross breeding season (November to April). We monitored for returns of radio-tagged Laysan albatrosses to PMRF using automated tracking units placed around the PMRF airfield, by hand tracking, and by examining all Laysan albatrosses that were live-captured on the airfield during the same breeding season. Findings from our study suggest mitigation translocation, by itself, has minimal value as a management method to reduce the risk of Laysan albatross-aircraft collisions at PMRF and other military airfields. Future research is needed to evaluate integrated wildlife hazard management programs (with and without mitigation translocation) in regard to their efficacy for reducing the risk of collisions between aircraft and Laysan albatrosses (and other seabirds).
In many cases, urban environments create high-quality habitat for wildlife that may allow species to form commensal relationships with humans. Positive impacts of urban environments (e.g., high-quality nesting habitat) may enhance survival and/or increased fecundity. One species that has shown the ability to form commensal relationships with humans in urban environments is Canada geese (Branta canadensis). Canada goose populations have continued to rebound in Kansas, USA, and across the Great Plains, such that the estimated resident population in Wichita, Kansas, grew from 0 to >5,000 resident geese and the over-winter population increased from 1,600 in 1997 to >18,000 by 2003. Due to the increase in the urban Canada goose population, the number of complaints concerning geese has steadily increased through time. In response to complaints, the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks implemented an egg-oiling program in 2002, to assist in reducing the resident goose population. Previous studies have suggested effective goose population control programs must include reducing adult survival through efforts such as hunting and that egg-oiling programs alone may not be successful in reducing urban Canada geese populations. We examined the effects of a citizen-involved egg-oiling program from 2002 to 2020 to reduce the resident Canada goose population in Wichita, Kansas. We assumed every female Canada goose survived to age 20 and using survival estimates from the literature for different life stages, we developed program impact models to demonstrate effectiveness of the Kansas Special Canada Goose Permit program. We estimated a mean 128,676 (range: 89,749-167,663) potential adult, resident geese being removed from the population in the Wichita, Kansas, area from 2003 projected out to 2040. Our results suggested that egg-oiling programs conducted at large spatial and temporal scales and at low cost by citizens may limit population growth of urban geese.
Interactions between humans and American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis), often resulting in negative outcomes for both participants, have occurred for centuries in the United States. As both populations increased over time, contact and conflict with one another became inevitable. Although human-alligator conflicts have been well documented, there has been no detailed classification of risk factors associated with human activities immediately preceding, and in most cases precipitating, an encounter. Herein, we provide a ranking system to categorize different human activities, based on risk levels, immediately preceding an encounter with an alligator. To complete our review in 2021, we initially gleaned data regarding alligator attacks on humans from the CrocBITE website between the years 1734 and 2021. We augmented the details of each incident with additional information obtained by an internet search (e.g., Google) and then cross-referenced all information with existing literature (e.g., books detailing specific human-alligator interactions) and by communicating via email and/ or telephone with state fish and wildlife agencies. Our ranking system indicated that 96% (26% low risk, 48% moderate risk, 22% high risk) of the recorded human-alligator incidents reviewed were caused by some level of human inattention in the form of risky behaviors, often while participating in recreational water activities. These results highlight the need for increased and targeted public education concerning safe and responsible human activities in areas inhabited by alligators. By making a conscious effort to implement proactive and preventative safety measures, human injury and death as well as the needless destruction of alligators can be reduced.
Managing human-wildlife incidents dominates the attention and resources of many wildlife management programs. National parks in the United States have a long history with human-wildlife interactions and conflicts. Improvements in communication with visitors, food-storage infrastructure, regulation enforcement, and the management of habituated and food-conditioned animals have decreased human-wildlife conflicts. Yosemite National Park, California, USA, is well known for its history of human-bear (Ursus spp.) conflicts. However, in the Yosemite Valley portion of Yosemite National Park, conflicts with raccoons (Procyon lotor) now outnumber those with black bears (U. americanus). Like bears, raccoons pose a risk of property damage and injury to humans, but they also pose a risk ofzoonotic disease transmission and a risk of predation to species of conservation concern. To better understand the behavior and ecology of Yosemite Valley raccoons and to inform future management efforts aimed at reducing these potential negative outcomes, we evaluated the influence of anthropogenic food availability on raccoon space use using Global Positioning System tracking collars. We collected a mean (SD) of 555 (349) locations on 11 raccoons (7M, 4F) between December 2016 and May 2018 and developed a resource selection model to evaluate selection by raccoons within their home ranges in Yosemite Valley. Raccoons were located more frequently in developed areas (i.e., areas with buildings, roads and parking areas, picnic areas, campgrounds, and other human-made structures) of Yosemite Valley compared to undeveloped areas and showed a stronger selection pattern for developed areas where people gathered for consuming food (e.g., picnic areas, campgrounds). Our results indicate that anthropogenic food sources may be a driving force on raccoon space use in Yosemite Valley. We encourage managers to leverage the successful strategies for managing human-bear interactions and adapt management to accommodate the ecology and behaviors of raccoons.
With the rapid expansion of human development and associated changes in landscape use, opportunities for human land sharing with large mammalian carnivores, such as those belong to the family Ursidae is increasing, especially in human-dominated landscapes. Consequently, this increased coexistence has also led to an increase in human-bear (Ursus spp.) interactions. It is important to understand the spatial and temporal reactions (e.g., interactions between cover, time, and humans) of bears to mitigate human-bear conflicts and facilitate coexistence. However, managers often need better information regarding bear microsite habitat selection in areas with higher levels of human-bear encounter risks. We explored the characteristics (cover and time of day used) of the microsites used by the Asiatic black bear (U. thibetanus; bear) living in the vicinity of human-dominated lands by monitoring 9 Asiatic black bears equipped with global positioning system transmitters during the summer of 2021 in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Our study area is considered to have high human and bear population densities, with a high risk of human encounters. We observed that radio-marked bears increased their nocturnal activity and tended to use extremely low visibility areas as resting sites, especially during daytime. Moreover, bears selected sites with relatively lower visibility than bears inhabiting areas with low human encounter risk, irrespective of day or night. Our findings provide important insight into measures to prevent bears from entering high-density human-dominated landscapes. These measures included the development and maintenance of vegetation covered buffer zones.
Policy termination is a tool to ensure that antiquated or underperforming policies are updated or replaced. Understanding how terminating a policy might be received by core wildlife constituencies, such as hunters, is a critical insight to provide agencies and managers with the tools to make wildlife policy changes a more seamless process. However, this critical but negative policy approach is often overlooked in favor of investigating positive policy preferences (i.e., preferences for new policy). To help fill this gap, we applied the potential for conflict index (PCI2) to data from a survey of 318 spring American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) hunters in Texas, USA, conducted in 2020 and 2022. We determined the level of consensus about the potential to terminate the spring alligator hunting season and how aspects of social habitat, freedomto hunt, deference to science, and hunter attributes influence consensus. Results from 111 completed surveys indicated that hunters strongly opposed the removal of the spring season, and we noted the least consensus/most conflict among hunters relating to implementation of a statewide fall alligator hunting season. Consensus about hunter unacceptability of removing the spring season was strongest among hunters whose freedom to exercise alligator hunting privileges is moored to micro-level access points and held less deference for scientific management. There was no difference in unacceptability of terminating the spring season based on strength of beliefs about the nuisance nature of alligators. These findings were compounded by more experienced hunters demonstrating stronger opposition to policy termination and less within-group conflict. This research highlights the limitations of simplistic large carnivore policy-making that uses a support-oppose binary and results in high-intensity conflict. This study also highlights a need for proactive policy experimentation within the large carnivore domain to minimize deviations in policy positions and, thereby, conflict intensity.
Wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are an invasive species in the mainland United States, where they are responsible for a wide range of negative impacts including damage to crops, livestock depredation as well as disease transmission, destruction of property and ecosystems, and depredation of wildlife. This manuscript summarizes a recent survey-based effort to estimate wild pig damage and control costs incurred by livestock producers by state and livestock type. The survey was distributed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistical Service in the summer of 2021 to a sample of livestock producers in the 13-state region. Findings indicated that predation and disease-related damage can be substantial in certain states and for certain types of livestock. In particular, damage to livestock operations, specifically cattle (Bos taurus) operations, in Texas, USA, was substantially higher than damage in other states and types of livestock operations. However, these amounts are dwarfed by the expenditure incurred by damage to property and the rooting of pasture. When aggregating across the entire 13-state region, we estimated that damage and control costs to livestock producers summed in 2020 to an annual amount of >$650 million USD, driven by damage to property ($375.5 million USD) and the rooting of pasture ($192.9 million USD). The findings from this survey provide valuable information to estimate the full scope of the economic impact of wild pigs in the United States.
In the absence of verification, historical aspects of wildlife management or conservation sometimes have become established in the literature and persisted therein for decades; in other situations, serendipitous discoveries have corrected information that earlier had been treated as factual. In some cases, efforts to vet historical accounts have been ongoing for many years; such is the case involving William Franklin Frakes, an American rancher, naturalist, adventurer, and author, who captured and translocated bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) in California, USA, near the turn of the twentieth century. In this review, we provide information that substantiates the majority of Frakes's activities, including newfound evidence that he attempted to capture bighorn sheep in heretofore undisclosed locations. We relied on his articles that appeared in turn-of-the-century sporting magazines, his extensive correspondence with respected individuals and organizations active in wildlife conservation at that time, information published in the scientific and popular literature, interviews with local historians or authorities, and our personal knowledge of the geographic areas traversed by Frakes. We provide strong evidence that he captured bighorn sheep in the Avawatz Mountains and substantial support for the notion that he released at least some of those animals, and possibly hybrids between them and domestic sheep, near the west end of the Bullion Mountains, a location that heretofore has escaped critical scrutiny. We further discuss the implications of his activities in the context of the potential for disease transmission, the subsequent dynamics of bighorn sheep inhabiting the Bullion Mountains and surrounding ranges, metapopulation function, and the possibility that the genetic structure of bighorn sheep occupying that range was altered by Frakes's actions. All of these have implications for understanding the historical influence of anthropogenic activities on bighorn sheep >100 years ago. We also include an appendix comprising information discovered during our research, but that we have been unable to substantiate or that otherwise is of interest.
Collisions with overhead power lines represent a significant cause of mortality for a number of large bird species worldwide. Certain threatened species are severely impacted by power line collisions, particularly those for which there are no other known significant threats. In South Africa, bird collisions with overhead power line cables, including collisions with phase conductors and shield wires, contribute significantly to annual threatened bird species mortalities associated with Eskom power lines. The most practical mitigation measure is to attach bird anticollision devices as markers on the cables. Current marking methods involve installations by hand, where linemen are hoisted up to the cables via a bucket truck or helicopter. In 2016, we initiated a project to develop an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) that is able to mark live power lines as a safe, cost-effective alternative to the above-mentioned methods. To achieve this, we first tested the performance of the UAS flying near strong electromagnetic fields generated by high-voltage power lines at the National Electrical Test Facility in Gauteng, South Africa. Then, in 2021, following some refinements to the design of the marking mechanism, the system was tested in the field at 2 sites in the North West Province. Based on the results of marking 22-kV distribution line conductors, a comparison was made to the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the UAS compared to a bucket truck. The UAS proved more cost-effective and more efficient; we estimate that Eskom could save >$16,000 USD per annum on marking power lines if the UAS method were used instead of a bucket truck. Moreover, the biggest advantage of the UAS method is that human safety risks involved in power line marking field operations can be significantly reduced.
Rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2 (RHDV2) is a highly contagious virus that primarily infects wild and domestic rabbits and hares (lagomorphs). In the United States, state wildlife agencies rely on stakeholders to report RHDV2-related mortalities and engage in voluntary biosecurity actions to prevent the spread of RHDV2. However, stakeholder perceptions of RHDV2 and relevant biosecurity actions have not been evaluated. We conducted the first study in the United States on how falconers' risk perceptions, knowledge, trust in state wildlife agencies to manage RHDV2, hunting behaviors, and demographic characteristics influenced their willingness to engage in voluntary biosecurity actions and support potential government-mandated biosecurity measures. To complete our study, we surveyed 480 falconers in 45 states using an online questionnaire from April 2021 to March 2022. Most respondents were aware of RHDV2 but did not know about the multiple vectors for RHDV2 transmission or that infected lagomorphs are unlikely to show signs of disease. Most respondents were willing to engage in all voluntary biosecurity actions (52.9-89.8%) and supported 3 of the 4 RHDV2 management strategies (56.0-62.5%). Respondents' willingness to engage in or support biosecurity measures depended on the importance they placed on biosecurity, their risk perceptions, and their trust in state wildlife agencies to manage RHDV2. Consistent, up-to-date outreach efforts should communicate the economic and hunting risks associated with RHDV2 and how falconer adoption of biosecurity behaviors may lower the risk of human-mediated RHDV2 spread. State wildlife agencies may build trust with falconry groups by actively engaging falconers in lagomorph and RHDV2 monitoring efforts and working with falconers to implement biosecurity measures that are safe for raptors while also lowering the risk of human-mediated RHDV2 spread.
One possible contributor to the unusually high number of conflicts between coyotes (Canis latrans) and people in urban southern California, USA, may be the abundance of freeroaming domestic cats (Felis catus; cats) subsidized by feeding and augmented by trap -neuterreturn (TNR) programs. To determine if coyotes regularly prey on and consume cats, we combined visual and molecular -genetic approaches to identify prey items in stomachs of 311 coyotes from Los Angeles County and Orange County, provided to the South Coast Research and Extension Center, in Irvine, California, between June 2015 and December 2018. We detected cat remains in 35% of the stomachs of 245 coyotes with identifiable meals, making cats the most common mammalian prey item consumed and more common than reported previously. Using a geographic information systems approach, we then compared landscape characteristics associated with locations of coyotes that ate cats to public shelter records for TNR cat colonies. Cat -eating coyotes were associated with areas that were more intensively developed, had little natural or altered open space, and had higher building densities than coyotes that did not eat cats. Locations of TNR colonies had similar landscape characteristics. Coyotes associated with TNR colonies, and those that were euthanized (vs. road -killed), were also more likely to have consumed cats. The high frequency of cat remains in coyote diets and landscape characteristics associated with TNR colonies and cat -eating coyotes support the argument that high cat densities and associated supplemental feeding attracted coyotes. Effective mitigation of human -coyote conflicts may require prohibitions on outdoor feeding of free -roaming cats and wildlife and the elimination of TNR colonies.
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are threatened by sea -ice loss due to climate change, which is concurrently opening the Arctic to natural resource extraction and a broader scope of national security responsibilities. Mitigating the risk of human-bear conflicts is an emerging challenge as many polar bears spend longer ice -free summers on land where they have limited access to food and come into more frequent contact with people. We investigated a suite of physical and ecological variables that influence the timing of polar bear arrival on, and departure from, land using remote -sensing data on sea -ice extent and satellite telemetry data from 72 radio -collared adult female polar bears from 1986 to 2015. Analyses encompassed the coastline of the Southern Beaufort Sea north of Alaska, USA, and focused on zones within a 35 -km radius (mean daily travel distance of a polar bear) of 5 military installations. Sea ice in the Southern Beaufort Sea retreated approximately 1 month earlier in spring, and reformed 1 month later in fall, in 2015 compared to 1979. In generalized linear mixed models, the most important predictors of polar bear arrival and departure were the dates of sea -ice breakup and formation, respectively, in localized marine areas surrounding each military zone. Regionwide sea -ice conditions also influenced land use, although to a lesser extent. We found that polar bears spent longer periods on land in the military zones compared to outside the zones, which may reflect increased land use in areas with human activity and potential attractants (noting that some military installations were in proximity to other human settlements). Our results demonstrate that the timing of polar bear land use in northern Alaska is influenced by sea -ice conditions on multiple spatial scales. This information can be used to predict and manage the presence of polar bears around military installations and other places of interest.
Although reported to be rare, human fatalities resulting from wild pig (Sus scrofa) attacks do occur. Toward a better understanding of patterns in fatal wild pig attacks, we synthesized worldwide reports of wild pig attacks on humans between 2000 and 2019. We documented 163 separate reports of fatal wild pig attacks that resulted in 172 human deaths. On average, 8.6 human deaths occurred annually due to wild pig attacks during those 2 decades. The majority of fatal attacks resulted in a single human death; however, there were 6 cases in which an individual fatal attack resulted in 2-4 human deaths. These fatal wild pig attacks occurred in 29 countries, mostly within the wild pig's native global range. Fatal attacks primarily occurred under non -hunting circumstances and involved seemingly unprovoked wild pigs. Under hunting circumstances, fatal attacks primarily involved provoked or wounded wild pigs. Fatal attacks typically involved a solitary wild pig, with 12% involving multiple pigs. Solitary pigs involved in fatal attacks were typically large boars that in most attacks exhibited defensive behaviors, although we discovered 7 attacks during which the pig's behaviors appeared to be predatory. Three fatal attacks were initially investigated as homicides. Overall, victims of fatal wild pig attacks were between 3 and 85 years old and were traveling on foot when the attack occurred. The majority of victims of fatal attacks were adult (20-59 years old), male, traveling on foot, and working in isolation. Among all fatal attacks, 50% identified the cause of death, which included exsanguination/hemorrhagic shock, severe injury, heart attack, craniocerebral injury, severe injury/disembowelment/intestinal prolapse, and toxemia/septicemia. Fatal wild pig attacks occurred primarily in rural areas, with fatal attacks 390% more likely to occur in rural areas with large populations and at least 45% forested and agricultural cover. The greater the rural human population size within a country is, the greater the number of fatal wild pig attacks.
Wildlife professionals in urban areas face many challenges balancing wildlife conservation and managing human-wildlife conflicts. The urban public is often more influenced by news and social media of wildlife than they are by firsthand experiences. The information they hear is typically about high-density urban species in conflict situations. Therefore, it is important to find ways to engage the public through these outlets about wildlife conservation. Recently, Cleveland Metroparks (Ohio, USA) highlighted the return of extirpated wildlife species through news and social media. This offered opportunities to capture media and public attention and share information about wildlife conservation, the value of wildlife, and the importance of natural areas.
