Exploring perceptions about chronic wasting disease risks among wildlife and agriculture professionals and stakeholders

Abstract

ABSTRACTChronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal disease of North American Cervidae. New York State (NYS, USA) successfully managed an outbreak of CWD in 2005 in both captive and wild white‐tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) with no reoccurrence of the disease as of 2015. To attain maximum compliance and efficacy of management actions for prevention of CWD entry, understanding the varied risk perceptions will allow for targeted, proactive communication efforts to address divergences between expert‐derived risk assessments and stakeholder risk perceptions. We examined perceived risks associated with CWD introduction and exposure among agricultural and wildlife agency professionals within and outside of NYS, as well as stakeholder groups (e.g., hunters and captive cervid owners). We measured perceived risk using a risk assessment questionnaire online via Qualtrics survey software and evaluated similarities within, as well as differences in, perception among participant groups. New York State biologists employed by the Department of Environmental Conservation and independent non‐NYS wildlife and agricultural professionals thought CWD risks associated with captive cervids were high; captive cervid owners thought risks for wild and captive cervids were low. Agriculture and wildlife professional groups agreed on general risk perceptions. We ranked 15 individual risk hazards into high and low–medium categories based on all responses. Differences between groups were most evident in hypothetical disease pathways. Any pathway involving inter‐state import of live cervids received high ranking for all groups except captive cervid owners. Comparatively low‐risk perceptions by captive cervid operators may stem from misinformation, lack of understanding of testing programs, and indemnity payments for animal depopulation. Communication and education directed at areas of disagreement may facilitate effective disease prevention and management. © 2016 The Wildlife Society.