Beach recreationists perceive a lack of knowledge about shorebirds’ needs as a constraint to walking around shorebird flocks

Abstract

Abstract Walking through shorebird flocks can have negative impacts on shorebird populations. Understanding human behavior is essential for minimizing disturbance. As such, we used a mixed methods approach consisting of phone interviews and a survey to explore (1) recreationists’ perceived benefits and constraints to voluntarily walk around shorebird flocks, (2) recreationists’ intentions to walk around shorebird flocks, (3) differences in behavioral intention by sociodemographic variables, and (4) differences in norms, benefits, and constraints among recreationists who intend to walk around flocks and recreationists who do not intend to walk around flocks. We found that perceived benefits to walking around flocks were maintaining undisturbed conditions for shorebirds and reducing harm to people and their dogs, whereas perceived constraints related to a lack of knowledge about shorebirds’ needs. The majority of recreationists were willing to walk around flocks, rather than through them. Intention to walk around flocks can vary by sociodemographic groups. Recreationists who intended to walk around flocks had stronger personal and social norms than recreationists who did not intend to walk around flocks. Recreationists who intended to walk around flocks generally agreed more strongly that maintaining undisturbed conditions for shorebirds and reduced harm to people and their dogs were benefits, compared to participants who did not intend to walk around flocks. Recreationists who did not intend to walk around flocks agreed more strongly that a lack of knowledge about shorebirds’ needs was a constraint compared to participants who intended to walk around flocks. Our findings could be used in the strategy development phase of a community-based social marketing campaign (CBSM) aimed at encouraging recreationists to voluntarily walk around shorebird flocks. Using behavior change techniques, benefits uncovered in this study can be emphasized and constraints uncovered in this study can be reduced for the purpose of promoting less disturbance to shorebirds.