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Large Carnivore Conservation

Integrating Science and Policy in the North American West

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ISBN: 9780226107400
Published May 2014
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ISBN: 9780226107547
Published May 2014
epub (45 days)
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ISBN: 9780226107547
Published May 2014
pdf
$68.99
ISBN: 9780226107547
Published May 2014
pdf (45 days)
$12.50
ISBN: 9780226107547
Published May 2014

Large Carnivore Conservation

Integrating Science and Policy in the North American West

Drawing on six case studies of wolf, grizzly bear, and mountain lion conservation in habitats stretching from the Yukon to Arizona, Large Carnivore Conservation argues that conserving and coexisting with large carnivores is as much a problem of people and governance—of reconciling diverse and sometimes conflicting values, perspectives, and organizations, and of effective decision making in the public sphere—as it is a problem of animal ecology and behavior. By adopting an integrative approach, editors Susan G. Clark and Murray B. Rutherford seek to examine and understand the interrelated development of conservation science, law, and policy, as well as how these forces play out in courts, other public institutions, and the field.

In combining real-world examples with discussions of conservation and policy theory, Large Carnivore Conservation not only explains how traditional management approaches have failed to meet the needs of all parties, but also highlights examples of innovative, successful strategies and provides practical recommendations for improving future conservation efforts.

416 pages | 1 map, 5 line drawings, 3 tables | 6 x 9 | © 2014

Biological Sciences: Behavioral Biology, Conservation

Reviews

Large Carnivore Conservation provides a critical assessment of our largely failed attempts to conserve most species of large carnivores in North America at an important time. As growing human pressures continue to impact large carnivore populations, as global climate change increasingly affects carnivore habitats and food sources, and as the discourse over the appropriate management of large carnivores becomes ever more polarized and steeped in incivility, the timing of a book aimed at improving conservation could not be better.”

Richard P. Reading | Vice President for Conservation, Denver Zoological Foundation

“Very timely. With many large carnivores now recovered or recovering and spilling into the human-occupied landscape, the issues of conservation and governance are many, and the ability of these recovered populations to continue to exist is somewhat tenuous. Large Carnivore Conservation ties together several lines of thought from psychology to game and fish management and from social science to the biological literature to present its case from an interdisciplinary perspective. By doing this, it moves the conversation and our understanding to a new level. This book could significantly impact the conservation of large carnivores.”

Jodi Hilty | Executive Director, North America Program, Wildlife Conservation Society

“Although more science is always better, many of our problems now are cultural or political, but we still seem to forge on by gathering more data. We actually know a lot about controversial carnivores, but we’re still stuck. Clark and Rutherford bring together a collection of voices pointing in another direction—better institutions and decision making. Building on decades of work, this book integrates biological knowledge with human dimensions study and charts a course for coexistence with large carnivores. Perhaps just in time, too. Large Carnivore Conservation is worth great attention and deep thought.”

Douglas W. Smith | Senior Wildlife Biologist, Yellowstone National Park

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments

1 Large Carnivores, People, and Governance
Susan G. Clark, Murray B. Rutherford, and David J. Mattson
Appendix. Criteria for Evaluating Decision Processes

2 State-Level Management of a Common Charismatic Predator: Mountain Lions in the West
David J. Mattson
Appendix. Decision Activities, Standards, and Effectiveness in Mountain Lion Conservation in the West

3 Wolves in Wyoming: The Quest for Common Ground
Rebecca Watters, Avery C. Anderson, and Susan G. Clark
Appendix 3.1. Decision Activities, Standards, and Effectiveness in Wolf Management in Two Wyoming Communities
Appendix 3.2. Tests of the Common Interest

4 Science-Based Grizzly Bear Conservation in a Co-Management Environment: The Kluane Region Case, Yukon
Douglas Clark, Linaya Workman, and D. Scott Slocombe
Appendix 4.1. The Grizzly Bear Management Dialectic in the Southwest Yukon
Appendix 4.2. Problems with the Decision Process from the Kluane Grizzly Bear Case and Recommended Improvements

5 Wolf Management on Ranchlands in Southwestern Alberta: Collaborating to Address Conflict
William M. Pym, Murray B. Rutherford, and Michael L. Gibeau
Appendix 5.1. Tests of the Common Interest
Appendix 5.2. Decision Activities, Standards, and Effectiveness in the Central Rockies Wolf Project/Southern Alberta Conservation Cooperative and the Oldman Basin Carnivore Advisory Group

6 Human–Grizzly Bear Coexistence in the Blackfoot River Watershed, Montana: Getting Ahead of the Conflict Curve
Seth M. Wilson, Gregory A. Neudecker, and James J. Jonkel
Appendix 6.1. Likert-Scaled Statements Regarding Perceptions of Grizzly Bear Activity and Appropriate Landowner/Resident Behaviors in the Blackfoot Watershed, Montana
Appendix 6.2. The Relative Difficulty of Important Issues for Improving Human–Grizzly Bear Coexistence
Appendix 6.3. Decision Activities, Standards, and Effectiveness for Grizzly Bear Management in the Blackfoot River Watershed, Montana
Appendix 6.4. A Continuum of Local Involvement in Grizzly Conservation

7 Collaborative Grizzly Bear Management in Banff National Park: Learning from a Prototype
J. Daniel Oppenheimer and Lauren Richie
Appendix 7.1. Overview of Grizzly Bear Management in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
Appendix 7.2. Decision Activities, Standards, and Effectiveness in the Grizzly Bear Dialogue Group

8 Large Carnivore Conservation: A Perspective on Constitutive Decision Making and Options
Susan G. Clark, David N. Cherney, and Douglas Clark
Appendix. Common Recurring Weaknesses in Constitutive Decision Making

9 The North American Model of Wildlife Conservation: An Analysis of Challenges and Adaptive Options
Susan G. Clark and Christina Milloy
Appendix. Claims, Values, and Decision Activities in the Policy Process of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation

10 Complexity, Rationality, and the Conservation of Large Carnivores
David J. Mattson and Susan G. Clark
Appendix. Queries and Graphics for Synoptically Appraising Conservation Cases

11 Improving Governance for People and Large Carnivores
Murray B. Rutherford and Susan G. Clark
Appendix. Tests of the Common Interest

Contributors
Index

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