Geology topics

Howard W. Harshaw

Publications and source records attributed to Howard W. Harshaw.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2024

What waterfowl hunters want: Exploring heterogeneity in hunting trip preferences

Canadian and American waterfowl hunters were surveyed to identify their hunting trip preferences. Respondents were individuals that were now participating or had participated in waterfowl hunting, and most had hunted the majority of the last five years. We identified four latent classes of waterfowl hunters that varied in their preferences for harvest, access effort, length of travel, quantity of waterfowl seen, and the potential for interference/competition. We found a diminishing return associated with the number of waterfowl harvested, and that ‘devoted’ and ‘local’ hunters did not perceive appreciable benefit from harvesting more birds beyond harvesting a single bird. Results highlight the importance of not only considering population size, but also the location of habitat for people and waterfowl. Our results provide waterfowl managers important insights into the heterogeneity of North American waterfowl hunters by highlighting differences in priorities for waterfowl hunting trips. Notably, to address this heterogeneity, managers could consider the balance of objectives, actions and resources designed to satisfy current waterfowl hunters. Managing access to improve the likelihood that hunters will see and have opportunities to harvest some waterfowl has benefit to hunters.

Wetlands↗

USGS2024

Duck hunters and difficulty complying with harvest regulations

Due to the steady decline of duck hunter participation, several studies have investigated means to bolster the duck hunter population. Researchers and wildlife professionals have assumed that simpler regulations would attract new and unconfident hunters to participate in duck hunting. In light of this, we sought to identify what portion of the duck-hunting population had difficulty understanding species-specific bag limits or complying with species-specific bag limits in the field. We also sought to describe hunters who had difficulty complying with specific bag limits and how their difficulties were associated with elements related to demography, attitude, and behavior. We found most hunters had no difficulty understanding (82%) or complying with (74%) species specific bag limits, but flyway (χ 2 = 35.06, P < 0.01), number of ducks harvested (χ 2 = 9.76, P < 0.01), number of years hunted (χ 2 = 9.20, P < 0.01), and gender (χ 2 = 4.14, P < 0.05), were important to predicting hunter difficulty with compliance. Hunters who can overcome their difficulties understanding and complying with species-specific bag limits may be more likely to be integrated into the duck hunting culture, and more likely to continue duck hunting in the future. More species identification tools and fewer species-specific bag limits may be appropriate for the 18% of the duck hunter population who indicated that bag-specific regulations were difficult to understand and the 26% who indicated that it was difficult to comply with species-specific bag limits in the field. A closer look may be warranted for how the trade-offs associated with the combination of species-specific bag limits in combination with the variety of duck season zone and split options states employ, license/stamp requirements, area-specific regulations, and trespass laws may influence duck hunter experiences.

Wildlife Society Bulletin↗

USGS2021

Racial, ethnic, and social patterns in the recreation specialization of birdwatchers: An analysis of United States eBird registrants

Although birdwatchers comprise a large and growing proportion of the American public, there is a lack of racial and ethnic diversity in the birdwatching community. Previous research suggests that this homogeneity is self-perpetuating, as ethno-racial minorities are less likely to pursue activities in which no one they know participates. However, it is unclear whether this trend in birdwatching participation also applies to degree of subsequent participant involvement. Using a national online survey of US birdwatchers, we measured the degree of recreation specialization among birdwatchers along affective, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions. We also determined whether respondents had social connections (acquaintances, close friends, or relatives) who birdwatch. We then used logistic regression to determine which ethno-racial groups were more likely to have birdwatcher social connections, and multiple linear regression to investigate how our measures of recreation specialization varied by ethno-racial group. As expected, the ethno-racial composition of the birdwatchers we studied was significantly less diverse than that of the American public. Of the 29,380 respondents who reported their ethno-racial group, 5.2% were Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color (including Native American, Black, Asian, Pacific Islander, Hispanic/Latino, or multiracial), while 94.8% were non-Hispanic White. However, we observed no statistically significant ethno-racial patterns in overall degree of recreation specialization, even when controlling for social connection and demographic characteristics. Considering the three dimensions of specialization individually, we found that some ethno-racial predictors were statistically significant, but coefficients were too small to be practically significant. We conclude that while some ethno-racial groups are underrepresented among birdwatchers, there is insufficient evidence that they are also under-specialized.

Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism↗

USGS2019

Rural-urban differences in hunting and birdwatching attitudes and participation

Outdoor recreation facilitates important connections to nature and wildlife but is perceived differently across population segments. As such, we expected that current and past socio-demographic characteristics of individuals would influence intention to participate in outdoor recreation. We solicited 5,000 U.S. residents. (n = 1,030, 23% response) to describe their perceptions of hunting and birdwatching. The influence of current and childhood community size (i.e., urban-rural residence gradient) was examined as a potentially important predictor of intention to participate in hunting and birdwatching within the context of theory of planned behavior. Hunting attitudes and personal behavior control were more positive when respondents maintained a residence in rural areas. Alternatively, birdwatching attitudes, norms, and perceived behavioral control did not differ with community size. Therefore, programs aimed at increasing participation in outdoor recreation should carefully consider the importance of socio-demographic variables in the context of their objectives, especially for recruiting urban hunters.

Human Dimensions of Wildlife↗