Abstract
At present, 21 game species have been successfully established in Hawai‘i for the purpose of recreational and subsistence hunting. However, it is unknown how these management efforts have affected hunting and recreation trends in Hawai‘i and how the patterns may parallel national data. Consequently, managers and biologists in Hawai‘i have little reliable harvest and hunting participation information on which to base current and future management goals. This study provides the first ever analysis of public hunting data in the state of Hawai‘i, and is one of only a handful nationally to investigate long-term hunting dynamics in the United States. Our goal was to understand historical hunting trends in the state of Hawai‘i in order to provide baseline information to assist in current and future management efforts. Based upon this goal, our objectives were to investigate the influence that time, location, and species have had on both game harvest and hunter participation from 1946 to 2008 across the inhabited islands of Hawai‘i. We used 62 years of data from Pittman-Robertson reports to evaluate temporal trends in game harvest and hunter participation for all species, individual species, and taxonomic groups (mammals and birds) at both state and island levels. Since 1946, trends in game harvest and hunter participation in Hawai‘i have varied widely by island and species, suggesting that game management may be most effective when approached at the island or species level. Across the state the overall harvest has declined, with only a handful of species being harvested in greater numbers over time on several islands. However, our findings do highlight inconsistencies and potential biases in harvest collection data that are critical for science-based management. In particular, because every game species in Hawai‘i has been introduced, there is a critical need to improve harvest data collection and couple it with monitoring data in order to provide management and policy recommendations and develop better conservation planning guidelines.
Highlights
Since the end of market hunting in the United States over a century ago, recreational and subsistence hunting for game species has been a closely managed activity
Models indicated that bird and mammal harvest did show a marked change over time (Table 4)
A comprehensive look at game harvest and hunter participation data for the entire state does not indicate simple, overarching historical hunting trends in Hawai‘i. statewide harvest and hunter data for all species combined show little to no correlation when analyzed as a whole (Fig 2; Table 9)
Summary
Since the end of market hunting in the United States over a century ago, recreational and subsistence hunting for game species has been a closely managed activity. Hunting records have been monitored regularly at both state and federal government levels. Beginning in 1937, states seeking aid for wildlife related activities from the federal government have been required to submit annual hunting statistics to the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) under the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration (P-R) program. While the annual state-reported data provide a wealth of information on specific game species and harvest rates, most historical trend analyses across the US have used the FHWAR data (e.g., [2,3,4,5])
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
