Elk Hunting Research Articles

Hunting Specialization and its Relationship to Participation in Response to Chronic Wasting Disease

This article examines the influence of chronic wasting disease (CWD) on displacement and desertion among hunters of varying degrees of specialization. Data were obtained from surveys (n = 9,567) of resident and nonresident deer and elk hunters in eight states. Cluster analyses of hunters' skill, centrality, equipment, and experience revealed four specialization groups (casual, intermediate, focused, veteran). Hunters were shown hypothetical scenarios depicting CWD prevalence levels and human death from the disease, and asked what they would do (e.g., hunt in other states, quit hunting). If CWD conditions worsen (e.g., 50% prevalence, death), nonresidents were more likely to switch states (up to 46%); residents would quit (up to 38%). Among residents and nonresidents, casual hunters were most likely to quit (up to 61%); veterans were least likely (up to 23%). If CWD influences a greater proportion of casual hunters (i.e., newcomers) to quit, impacts on the future of hunting due to hunter recruitment could be catastrophic. Veteran residents were more inclined to switch states (up to 19%); casual residents were least likely to be displaced (up to 7%). For nonresidents, there were few differences among specialization groups regarding intention to switch states. Given that focused hunters exhibited low experience, but high skill and centrality, trajectories of specialization dimensions are not identical and do not increase in “lock step” fashion. Specialization, therefore, may be best suited for revealing styles of involvement and career stages in an activity rather than a linear continuum of progression.

State and Residency Differences in Hunters' Responses to Chronic Wasting Disease

This article examines: (a) the extent to which chronic wasting disease (CWD) may influence individuals to hunt in other states or quit hunting permanently; (b) hunters' acceptance of strategies for managing the disease; and (c) whether hunters' responses differ by residency, species hunted, and state where they hunted. Data were obtained from mail surveys (n = 9,567) of resident and nonresident deer hunters in eight states and elk hunters in three states. Hunters were shown hypothetical scenarios depicting CWD prevalence levels and human death from the disease. At current prevalence levels in some states, few hunters would change their behavior. If conditions worsen (e.g., 50% prevalence across state, human death), up to 18% of hunters would hunt deer or elk in other states and 37% would quit hunting these species. Arizona and North Dakota hunters were most likely to alter their behavior. Given that CWD is not in these states, it may pose a new risk. In Wisconsin, where hunting is a tradition, hunters were least likely to change their behavior. Across most scenarios: (a) hunters were more likely to quit than switch states; (b) residents were more likely to quit and nonresidents would switch states; and (c) CWD testing and herd reduction were acceptable, whereas taking no action was unacceptable.

Divergent Validity of Contingent Valuation Responses in a Wildlife-Related Application

Assessments of the construct validity of contingent valuation (CV) rarely explore divergent validity. The unique structure of the Colorado elk and deer hunting seasons allowed the authors to assess divergent validity aspects of CV. A CV survey was designed that asked willingness to purchase an elk license only, a deer license only, both an elk and deer license, or neither at randomly assigned fee increases. Economic theory suggests when both fees are low, respondents would purchase both licenses; as one fee increases in relation to the other, respondents would be more likely to purchase the lower priced license only; when both fees are high, respondents would be more likely to purchase neither. Results for both residents and nonresidents support the hypothesized purchase patterns, suggesting respondents were considering the bid amount in relation to their value of the hunt, the price of substitute species hunts, and seriously considering the CV question.

Assessing validity of elk and deer license sales estimated by contingent valuation

Although contingent valuation (CV) often has been applied in the wildlife management field, the validity of CV remains a concern. This study explored the convergent and predictive validity of CV in a wildlife-related issue and addressed the use of CV in fee-structure decisions by examining estimates of participation and revenue associated with different deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and elk (Cervus canadensis) hunting license fees in Colorado. We examined convergent validity by comparing CV estimates of resident deer and elk hunting license sales to estimates from an analysis of historic license sales. We examined predictive validity by comparing estimates of nonresident deer and elk license sales to actual license sales after a fee increase took place. With respect to convergent validity, elk license sale estimates from the CV and historic analysis showed strong correspondence, but deer license sales from the 2 methods did not show strong convergence. Predictive validity test results showed that the CV model underestimated actual elk license sales at the increased fee by 31% and overestimated deer license sales by 55%. Implications of the results suggest a need for stronger correspondence in context in hunts between the CV scenario and when the fee increase takes place. Also, issues surrounding information provided to respondents in CV studies should be further explored.

Assessing demand for big-game hunting opportunities: applying the multiple-satisfaction concept

We used a multiple-satisfaction approach to assess demand for elk hunting opportunities in Colorado. We used a mail-out instrument and follow-up telephone interview to contact a random sample of resident and nonresident Colorado elk (Cervus elaphus) hunters (n = 1,618). The majority of elk hunters preferred rifle hunts that maximize hunting frequency but also coincide with higher hunter densities and smaller male elk. We also found that hunters preferred management alternatives that allow frequent hunts for moderate-sized animals over alternatives that focus on trophy hunting. Consistent with other studies employing the multiple satisfaction construct and with principles that guide experience-based management, we found that not all hunters seek the same type of hunting opportunity. This would suggest that within the constraints of cost, providing a range of hunting opportunities will result in a broader range of benefits to the hunting public. Data were used not only to indicate preference for different herd management alternatives but also to provide the basis for estimating total number of hunters afield in a given year and expected license-sale revenue across alternatives. Information we provided has aided the Colorado Division of Wildlife in updating its big-game-hunting regulatory process.

Hunters’ Behavior and Acceptance of Management Actions Related to Chronic Wasting Disease in Eight States

The impacts of chronic wasting disease (CWD) on hunters’ behavior and beliefs about acceptable management actions are not clearly understood. This article presents findings from an initial phase of a multi-stage, multi-state effort to address these knowledge gaps. Data were obtained from mail surveys (n = 659) of resident and nonresident deer hunters in eight states and elk hunters in three states. Hunters were presented with hypothetical situations of increasing: (1) CWD prevalence (all eight states), and (2) human health risks (two states). Logistic regression equations estimated that at current prevalence levels in some states, 3% (residents) to 5% (nonresidents) of hunters would stop hunting deer/elk in their state. If 50% of the deer or elk across the state were infected, approximately 42% (residents) and 54% (nonresidents) would stop hunting deer/elk in their state. In hypothetical situations where a hunter died from CWD at this prevalence level, the percentage was 68%. Potential for conflict indices (PCI) showed that as prevalence and human health risks increased, acceptability of testing and lethal management increased and acceptability of allowing CWD to take its natural course decreased.

POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF ELK HARVEST ON FALL DISTRIBUTION OF GRIZZLY BEARS IN THE GREATER YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM

Abstract The tradition of early elk (Cervus elaphus) hunting seasons adjacent to Yellowstone National Park (YNP), USA, provides grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) with ungulate remains left by hunters. We investigated the fall (Aug–Oct) distribution of grizzly bears relative to the boundaries of YNP and the opening of September elk hunting seasons. Based on results from exact tests of conditional independence, we estimated the odds of radiomarked bears being outside YNP during the elk hunt versus before the hunt. Along the northern boundary, bears were 2.40 times more likely to be outside YNP during the hunt in good whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) seed-crop years and 2.72 times more likely in poor seed-crop years. The level of confidence associated with 1-sided confidence intervals with a lower endpoint of 1 was approximately 94% in good seed-crop years and 61% in poor years. Along the southern boundary of YNP, radiomarked bears were 2.32 times more likely to be outside the park during the hunt in ...

Interactive effects of human activities, herbivory and fire on quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) age structures in western Wyoming

AimFire suppression, elk (Cervus elaphus Erxleben) browsing and drought have been suggested as possible explanations for low aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) ramet regeneration in elk winter range of the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) during the twentieth century. This study analyses the relationship between the rates of aspen regeneration, biophysical factors and human land use since 1830. This approach reveals the importance of indirect human impacts, especially through fire and elk management strategies, on forest structure.LocationThis study was conducted in and around the winter range of the Jackson Hole elk herd in western Wyoming, USA. Aspen stands in this region represent the ecotone between coniferous forest and sagebrush‐grassland vegetation.MethodsAge structures of aspen stands were reconstructed from tree‐rings in order to determine how variation in drought, elk populations and fire occurrence may have affected aspen ramet regeneration since 1830. The effects of recent prescribed fires and elk browse on aspen regeneration were also evaluated by measuring stem height, browse intensity and age of ramets <2 m tall in prescribed burns and in unburned areas.ResultsAspen ramet regeneration has occurred consistently but at low frequencies since 1830, with three peaks of regeneration: 1860–85, 1915–40 and 1955–90. Periods of frequent ramet regeneration coincided with low to moderate elk populations and aspen regenerated only sporadically when elk populations were high. Based on a comparison of the age structures with a tree‐ring reconstruction of Palmer drought severity index (PDSI), observed PDSI and annual precipitation, drought variability appears unrelated to episodes of aspen regeneration. Recent regeneration patterns suggest that fire does not enhance the recruitment of tree‐sized aspen stems in the presence of elk browse, although sample sizes were small. Since 1900, elk hunting and spatially clustered elk feeding in the study area has facilitated low but consistent regeneration of aspen ramets in the twentieth century. In contrast, extremely low ramet regeneration has been observed in national parks of the Rocky Mountains, where elk have been managed according to the `natural regulation' policy (no hunting or feeding) since 1969.Main conclusionsOver time, different management strategies have altered the interactions between fire, herbivory and aspen regeneration suggesting that management history and the causes of change in management, should be explicitly included in ecological studies and future management strategies. These results also point to the value of using the spatial and temporal variation in human interactions with ecological systems as a method for understanding ecological relationships.

Valuing Non-Marketed Goods: The Case of Elk Permit Lotteries

Permit allocation methods offer a way of estimating the value of non-marketed elk hunting. Applicants compete for elk hunting permits in Colorado by acquiring preference points that have a monetary cost and by distributing themselves among hunts until their marginal values are equalized. We infer the marginal value of permits from the opportunity costs incurred to acquire these permits and use a hedonic regression analysis to estimate the impact of various hunt characteristics on permit value.

Using the demand for hunting licences to evaluate contingent valuation estimates of willingness to pay

Taking advantage of differences in inflation adjusted licence prices over time, the demand for hunting licences is estimated. This introduces a different type of validity test which compares willingness to pay derived from actual licence demand to estimates of hunting benefits derived by the contingent valuation method. Willingness to pay estimates for deer and elk hunting derived from contingent valuation are statistically less than corresponding estimates from the actual licence sale demand analysis.

Determinants of lottery participation for big game hunting privileges: Resident versus nonresident elk hunters in New Mexico

The objective of this study is to investigate the statistical determinants of lottery applications for New Mexico elk hunting licenses from three different groups: (1) residents, (2) guided nonresidents, and (3) nonguided nonresidents. Relatively scant empirical information is available to game managers on the statistical determinants of lottery applications for elk hunting privileges, and what is available does not distinguish between groups. Given the count nature of lottery applications (i.e., non‐negative integers), we use a statistical technique that is designed to accommodate such data: the negative binomial regression model. Results indicate that changes in hunt characteristics either simultaneously increase or decrease applications across groups, with the exception of bow hunts. Also of note, bow hunts and mature bull hunts are statistically significant determinants of lottery applications for nonresidents and especially so for guided nonresidents.

Quality hunting experiences: A qualitative inquiry

Research into quality hunting experiences has, with few exceptions, employed quantitative assessment techniques. This study examines Idaho elk hunters’ own narrations, using a qualitative analysis procedure novel in the hunting literature, to describe the key characteristics of Idaho hunters’ quality rifle elk hunting experiences. Discernible patterns that emerged from the analysis resulted in 32 quality categories, supporting the contention that quality hunting experiences are made up of multiple factors. However, fewer salient factors per hunter were found. Although caution is advised against using frequencies for qualitative data as an indication of importance, the statistical sampling techniques used suggest that some confidence can be attributed to the relative degree of importance of the top ranked quality categories. They were, in order of frequency: seeing elk or elk sign, being in a natural setting, seeing few other hunters, seeing an abundance of elk, and harvesting an elk.

Effects of Bull Age on Conception Dates and Pregnancy Rates of Cow Elk

Productivity of cows in many Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus nelsoni) populations of northeast Oregon has declined over the last 30 years. Numbers of mature bulls declined concurrently, suggesting a potential link that accounts for declining productivity. We evaluated the influence of bull age on conception dates and pregnancy rates of cow elk within a 78-km 2 enclosure on the Starkey Experimental Forest and Range in northeast Oregon from 1989 to 1993. We allowed a single cohort of bulls to mature from 1 1/2 to 5 1/2 years and function as principal herd sires. Subsequent male offspring were reduced in numbers through hunting and trapping. We estimated conception dates, pregnancy rates, body condition, age, and lactation status of cows killed in December. Conception dates occurred earlier as bull age increased (P = 0.0001) and were significantly different between bulls ≤ 2 years and ≥ years of age. The rut became more synchronous and shortened from 71 days (n = 26) when breeding was by yearling bulls to 41 days (n = 33) when 5-year-old bulls were the principal sires. Pregnancy rates increased from 89 to 97% as bull age increased, but not significantly (P = 0.62). Cow body condition was highest (P = 0.004) in 1989 when breeding was by yearling bulls. To enhance herd productivity we recommend that elk hunting seasons be designed so that older bulls ( ≥ 3 yr) are retained in the population.

Environmentalism and Economic Justice: Two Chicano Struggles in the Southwest

Ecological causes are championed not only by lobbyists or hikers. While mainstream environmentalism is usually characterized by well-financed, highly structured organizations operating on a national scale, campaigns for environmental justice are often fought by poor or minority communities. Environmentalism and Economic Justice is one of the first books devoted to Chicano environmental issues and is a study of U.S. environmentalism in transition as seen through the contributions of people of color. It elucidates the various forces driving and shaping two important examples of environmental organizing: the 1965-71 pesticide campaign of the United Farm Workers and a grazing conflict between a Hispano cooperative and mainstream environmentalists in northern New Mexico. The UFW example is one of workers highly marginalized by racism, whose struggle--as much for identity as for a union contract--resulted in boycotts of produce at the national level. The case of the grazing cooperative Ganados del Valle, which sought access to land set aside for elk hunting, represents a subaltern group fighting the elitism of natural resource policy in an effort to pursue a pastoral lifestyle. In both instances Pulido details the ways in which racism and economic subordination create subaltern communities, and shows how these groups use available resources to mobilize and improve their social, economic, and environmental conditions. Environmentalism and Economic Justice reveals that the environmental struggles of Chicano communities do not fit the mold of mainstream environmentalism, as they combine economic, identity, and quality-of-life issues. Examination of the forces that create and shape these grassroots movements clearly demonstrates that environmentalism needs to be sensitive to local issues, economically empowering, and respectful of ethnic and cultural diversity.

Comparisons of Big Game Harvest Estimates from Check Station and Telephone Surveys

Unbiased estimates of harvest are requisite to game management. We evaluated the response bias of harvest estimates obtained from 1991 telephone surveys used by the Colorado Division of Wildlife to estimate big game harvest. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and elk (Cervus elaphus) hunters that completed their hunt and were leaving North Park, Colorado, were interviewed once at check stations and again 2-3 months later by telephone to determine whether they had harvested an animal. We determined the Game Management Unit (GMU) of harvest, which GMUs they hunted, and the number of days hunted in each GMU. Harvest estimates from the 2 surveys were similar (P ≥ 0.736). Game Management Unit of harvest was the same on the 2 surveys for 67.4 % of the mule deer hunters and 80.2 % of the elk hunters

On the Need for Scientific Method in Archaeology: Nämforsen Reconsidered

The primary aim of this article is to illustrate empirtcally what the author regards as a general methodological weakness in archaeology. For this purpose the views of Hallström (1960) are compared with those of Baudou (1977) and Ramqvist et al. (198S) on the relationship hetween the depiction of elks in prehistoric localities in Norrland and elk hunting.

The Adventures of the Woman Homesteader: The Life and Letters of Elinore Pruitt Stewart.

Generations of readers have delighted in Elinore Pruitt Stewart's Letters of a Woman Homesteader (1914) and Letters on an Elk Hunt (1915), among the most engaging accounts of life in the American West. Stewart related her adventures on an isolated Wyoming homestead with such vividness, gusto, and sympathy that she has become the woman homesteader. Until now, however, little has been known about her except what she chose to reveal in her published letters. Old friends and new acquaintances alike will welcome this book combining Stewart's previously unpublished or uncollected letters with Susanne K. George's extensive research. Here is as full and candid a portrait as wella re ever likely to have of The Woman Homesteader: the illness, disappointments, and grinding hard work that lay behind her genial public persona; the family, neighbors, and correspondents who peopled her letter-stories and shared her life. George has discovered in Elinore Pruitt Stewart a story fully as rewarding as any told by the Woman Homesteader herself. In an afterword George considers Stewart's use of fictional devices and her growth as a writer as well as her place in American letters.

Art rupestre du bassin de Minusinsk : nouvelles recherches franco-russes

The article is an account of a Franco-Russian field work performed in the summer of 1992 in Southwestern Siberia, in the Minusinsk basin (Khakassia). Prof. Ja. A. Sher gives an historical account of the researches in rock art in this area, from the 17th century to present days. F. Soleilhavoup, geomicrobiologist, demonstrates that the patina and calcification on the rocks surfaces, before and after the creation of the petroglyphs, are of biological origin (bacterias, etc.). He describes in detail the methods used to evidence this old microbiological activity and to reactivate the organisms in vitro. These methods have a great potential for datation and restauration of stone moments. P. Vidal describes the way the photography records are used (notably stereomacrophotography), as well as a method of watching the evolution of rock surfaces. H.-P. Francfort and D. Sacchi give a full archaeological account of some surfaces, from fresh drawings. It appears that seasonality is a central concept in this naturalist art. It is argued that the traditional concept of a Neolithic art of elk hunters and a Chalcolitic- Bronze Age art of pastoralists (engraving images of bovids) is not enough founded. More reflexion and new interpretations are hoped, based on the elaboration of an extensive corpus of Central Asian rock art.

Structural Reinterpretation of Ruedi and Woody Creek Quadrangles, Pitkin and Eagle Counties, Colorado: A Central Colorado Overthrust Belt: ABSTRACT

The mountains northwest of Aspen, Colorado, are composed of Pennsylvanian through Triassic evaporites and molasse of the Eagle Valley, Belden, Minturn, Maroon, and State Bridge formations. Southwest of the Roaring Fork River and its tributary, Woody Creek, are Jurassic through Cretaceous sediments that unconformably overlie these older rocks. This entire sequence is located in the Elk Range thrust sheet. Along Woody Creek and the Roaring Fork River, Bryant and Freeman have mapped the continuation of the Castle Creek fault zone. These writers interpreted the fault zone as a southeast-dipping normal fault with a horst of Eagle Valley formation continuously present between the Pennsylvanian-Triassic and Cretaceous beds within the fault zone. Southwestward thrusting on a decollement within the Eagle Valley evaporite sequence would explain (1) its presence in the fault zone, (2) the 17,000 + ft of stratigraphic throw, and (3) the structural discordance across the fault zone. The author interprets the fault zone to be a northeast-dipping gravity slide that has been thrust off and possibly pushed by the Laramide Sawatch uplift. Cross sections through the area have similar geometry to those for the Elk Range and Hunters Hill thrusts to the south-southwest. The upturned heel is exposed along themore » Sawatch structural front between Hunter Creek (north of Aspen) and Lenado. These relationships suggest that another thrust paralleling the Fryingpan River is possible to the north. The author proposes the name Roaring fork thrust for the fault zone in the Woody Creek and Roaring Fork River valleys. The Castle Creek fault zone should be reserved for the fault zone in the drainage south of Aspen and the southwest projection of the Homestake shear zone, against which is appears to terminate.« less

Pricing Policies for Antlerless Elk Hunting Permits

One of the effects of increasing emphasis on leisure time in the U.S. has been a growth in demand for hunting privileges. An example of such growth is the rapidly increasing demand for the opportunity to hunt elk in various western states (Potter 1982). From 1960-1979, the number of licensed elk hunters more than doubled in North America, while average elk hunter success steadily declined from 25% to 14% over the same period. Even though total elk harvests are increasing, elk populations are not growing at a rate anywhere near that of current demand growth. Thus, state fish and wildlife departments must utilize methods to allocate elk resources. Such allocation procedures include split seasons, waiting lines, drawings, and fee increases, each with distinct efficiency and equity implications (Meyer 1979; Peek, Pederson, and Thomas 1982). The problem of allocating Rocky Mountain antlerless elk hunting privileges in eastern Oregon is instructive in this regard. Oregon's Department of Fish and Wildlife controls the hunt of antlerless (cow and calf) elk by controlling the numbers of hunting tags annually issued for each designated geographic area. The numbers of tags issued are determined by estimating the quantity of hunters needed to achieve the target harvest level of antlerless elk in each area. For a one dollar processing fee, prospective hunters may indicate a first and a second choice hunting area from