How Vermonters Feel About Coyotes
Conference Year
January 2019
Abstract
One challenge to wildlife managers is trying to make management decisions around people who have different values surrounding wildlife. In Vermont, this dynamic is evident in policy challenges surrounding coyotes. Conflicts between different stakeholder groups over how to manage coyotes have been on the rise potentially due to the difference in culture and values between urban and rural residents. Although the general attitudes of hunters, farmers and the public about coyotes has been nationally studied, no study has investigated the difference between rural and urban residents’ attitudes about coyotes. In this study, I am using cultural ecosystem services (CES) as a framework to explore the values behind Vermonters attitudes regarding coyotes. CES are the non-material values that are a direct result of people’s relationship with nature and are often left out of decision-making. Once I obtain my results, I expect to see urban areas having more tolerance to the presence of coyotes, and in rural areas I expect there to be more animosity towards them.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Rachelle Gould
Graduate Student Mentors
Joshua Morse
Faculty/Staff Collaborators
Joshua Morse (Graduate Student Mentor)
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
Rubenstein School of Environmental and Natural Resources
Program/Major
Wildlife and Fisheries Biology
Primary Research Category
Vermont Studies
Secondary Research Category
Food & Environment Studies
Tertiary Research Category
Social Sciences
How Vermonters Feel About Coyotes
One challenge to wildlife managers is trying to make management decisions around people who have different values surrounding wildlife. In Vermont, this dynamic is evident in policy challenges surrounding coyotes. Conflicts between different stakeholder groups over how to manage coyotes have been on the rise potentially due to the difference in culture and values between urban and rural residents. Although the general attitudes of hunters, farmers and the public about coyotes has been nationally studied, no study has investigated the difference between rural and urban residents’ attitudes about coyotes. In this study, I am using cultural ecosystem services (CES) as a framework to explore the values behind Vermonters attitudes regarding coyotes. CES are the non-material values that are a direct result of people’s relationship with nature and are often left out of decision-making. Once I obtain my results, I expect to see urban areas having more tolerance to the presence of coyotes, and in rural areas I expect there to be more animosity towards them.