Sustaining the public’s positive feelings towards ungulates at the local level
2024 (English)In: Society & Natural Resources, ISSN 0894-1920, E-ISSN 1521-0723, Vol. 37, no 9, p. 1273-1293Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
In Europe, spatial distributions and densities of ungulates have been increasing, triggering both negative and positive feelings. Ecosystem-based and collaborative approaches to wildlife management have been introduced to, among other things, consider the perspectives of the local public. Consequently, it becomes necessary to understand the public’s emotional appraisals and feelings toward the presence of moose and other ungulates. We studied four socio-ecological contexts in Sweden. Statistical analyses of a postal questionnaire (N = 1111) showed that negative feelings were weak and positive feelings were modest across all settings. In particular, wildlife value orientation of mutualism and perceptions of moose and other ungulates as supporting recreation opportunities sustained positive feelings. Currently there seems to be little need among the public to cope with negative implications of ungulates. Management may benefit from informing about adequate strategies and building social trust if negative impacts of ungulates were to become salient to the public.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Routledge, 2024. Vol. 37, no 9, p. 1273-1293
Keywords [en]
Emotional appraisals, feelings, moose, motivation, ungulates, wildlife management
National Category
Fish and Wildlife Management Ecology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-224097DOI: 10.1080/08941920.2024.2344212ISI: 001208218300001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85191319888OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-224097DiVA, id: diva2:1858215
Funder
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 802-0161-152024-05-162024-05-162024-10-29Bibliographically approved