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This paper is a photographic summary of a scientific and touristic expedition carried out in August 2011 in Wyoming State, U.S. to know the natural beauties of the different ecosystems and the structure of the Yellowstone National Park. The photos show some of the Park and wilderness areas structures, important geological formations, and some of the species of flora and fauna registered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the preservation of wilderness and the complex history and challenges surrounding it. Topics include the donation of one million acres of land in Chile by Kristine McDivitt-Tompkins, the criticism of the wilderness idea as a colonial construct, and the need to reframe the concept of nature and wilderness to address its historical baggage and promote more inclusive perspectives.

Air tour management plans for U.S. national park units are developed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Park Service (NPS). The FAA recommends pilots fly higher than 2,000 feet above ground level (AGL) over parks, wildlife refuges, and areas with wilderness characteristics. Management of air tours is important for mitigating visual and noise impacts. Understanding air tour travel patterns has been problematic because objective location data have been difficult to obtain. A newer technology, Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS–B), can be used to accurately track overflights. Prior ADS–B studies of air tours conducted limited analysis with respect to altitude characteristics. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine how overflights spatially vary across altitudes and determine altitude trends for primary flight corridors. Results suggest overflights trend along the east side of the park and 74.59 percent of waypoints within a 0.5-mile buffer around the park boundary had altitudes less than 2,000 feet above ground level (AGL). Results revealed that as altitude increased, overflight density decreased. Using hot spot clustering analysis, overflight lateral pattern differences were determined for altitudes lower than 2,000 feet AGL compared to altitudes higher than 2,000 feet AGL. This study also identified one primary flight corridor with average altitudes mostly below 2,000 feet AGL. Managers can use these results to inform the development of air tour management plans and monitor compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a photographic summary of a scientific and touristic expedition carried out in June 2022 in the Triglav National Park, located in the northwestern of Slovenia. The Flora and fauna of the Park are very rich and diverse, and also has a huge number of rivers, streams, and crystalline lakes, emerald-blue in color and connected by a series of cascades and waterfalls, embedded in a network of mountains in the Julian Alps. The photos show park structures and wilderness areas, with spacious forest complexes, lakes, small streams, and waterfalls extending, besides geological formations, plants, and animal species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wilderness is an important concept in the discourses and policies concerning contemporary European protected areas, inherently challenging in terms of sustainability. Since its designation in 1992, the Val Grande National Park, located in northwest Italy, has been portrayed and promoted as a wilderness area, thereby enhancing tourism, whilst disregarding the historical signs of human activity. In this paper we explore the wilderness concept, focusing on the narratives developed in the area, that changed from a strict conservationist approach to a more utilitarian one, influencing the National Park's policy-making. The research is based mainly on the content analysis of several literary texts. We conclude that wildernessneeds to be reconceptualized so that contemporary European protection policies might become more effective, and we may use our knowledge of nature to promote sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In areas where farmland borders protected areas, wildlife may be attracted to crops and cause substantial financial damage for farmers. Elephants, in particular, can destroy a year's harvest in a single night, and can also cause damage to buildings and other farm structures. Few studies have examined whether damage caused by wild elephants increases social inequalities in farmer communities. We interviewed settlement leaders and subsistence rice farmers living in the buffer zone of Bardiya National Park, Nepal, to examine (1) the variation and spatial distribution of wealth within the farmer community, (2) the severity and spatio-temporal distribution of damage inflicted by Asian elephants Elephas maximus, and (3) the willingness to insure against such damage. We investigated whether particular societal strata are disproportionally affected by negative interactions with elephants. We found that farmers near the boundary between agricultural and wilderness areas were significantly poorer and had smaller landholdings than those further into the cultivated lands. Concomitantly, damage to crops and houses was more frequent nearer the wilderness–agriculture boundary than further away from it. Hence, in the buffer zone of Bardiya National Park, farmers near the wilderness–cultivation boundary, with small landholdings, had a relatively higher cost of elephant damage, yet were less willing to pay for an insurance scheme. We infer that in areas where both social inequality and damage caused by wildlife are spatially structured, conservation success may cause economic hardship for the local community, particularly for the poorer class. We discuss causes of the current lack of communal mitigation measures against the damage caused by elephants in the Park, and potential solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reintroductions of extirpated species are an important global conservation tool, yet can be challenging for wide-ranging species. Fences that help anchor reintroduced species to a target area may have deleterious effects on other wildlife. Here we assessed the wildlife-permeability of six bison drift fence designs at three spatial scales during the reintroduction of a wild herd of plains bison Bison bison to a 1200 km2 wilderness area in Banff National Park, Canada. First, we used an array of remote cameras along fences to capture wildlife interactions for 12 species, and modelled crossing success, preferred crossing methods and age–sex class tendencies. Second, we investigated fence barrier effects on wildlife movement at the local scale using cameras that were in place before and after fence construction. Finally, we tested for changes in movement rates of migratory elk and resident wolves at the landscape scale using GPS collar telemetry. Our results point to a single fence design that maximizes permeability for several species with diverse crossing strategies, and can be adjusted to contain bison. Wildlife detections increased independently of fence construction in our broader study area. Fence construction did not affect wolf or elk movements and migration at a landscape scale even when fences were deployed to obstruct bison. Our study highlights the important role of wildlife permeable fences in the reintroduction of large mammals such as bison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kenya's Tsavo National Parks are a critical conservation area and the only wilderness corridor through densely populated human‐dominated landscapes stretching from the East African coast to Lake Victoria, separating extensive undeveloped grasslands south of the equator from the undeveloped semiarid bushlands to the north. At nearly 21,000 km2, Tsavo is one of four lion strongholds in East Africa and part of Africa's most important populations of all other large African carnivores. To provide baseline data on the status of large carnivores, a track survey was undertaken in 2013. Lions and both hyaena species were widely distributed across both parks, while cheetahs and wild dogs were more patchily distributed. Spotted hyaenas were the most abundant, with an estimated population of 3,903 ± 514 (95% CI), followed by lion (706 ± 201), striped hyaena (679 ± 144), leopard (452 ± 98), cheetah (154 ± 74) and wild dog (111 ± 92). Tsavo's carnivores suffer from bushmeat poaching, illegal grazing and retaliatory killing, and increasing human numbers on its periphery. Given Tsavo's importance as a stronghold for lions and an ecological corridor, increased investment in effective protection is strongly recommended. Evaluating trends will require complementary techniques in light of intensive monitoring requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecosystem conservation often focuses on protecting wild places, but many remote forests and expansive savannahs have a deep human history of ecosystem management. Here we document grinding stones in the center of a high conservation-value forest, Kibale National Park, Uganda, indicating a historic human presence. Grinding stones were found at a minimum density of one per 0.57 km2 and in a range of forest types. Ecological plots around grinding stones were dominated by late successional tree species, although forest structure was comparable to formerly logged areas of Kibale. Building a more comprehensive understanding of human land-use before 1932, when protection policies began, will help explain current habitat heterogeneity. Future work should combine archaeology and ethnography to study the history and lifestyle of people who lived in Kibale. Understanding the role of people in this forest—and the role of the forest in local cultures—may elucidate contemporary ecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coral reef is one of many shallow-water ecosystems that are found in Bunaken National park. The coral reefs ecosystem in Bunaken National Park are threatened by the impact of climate change, such as rising seawater temperature, Change in Salinity, and increase extreme meteorological events. This study will address the coral reefs condition and its pattern in Bunaken National Park, how are the water condition in Bunaken National Park changes in the timespan of 2002-2017, and what are the relations between the degradation pattern of the coral reefs and the seawater condition as an exposure towards the ecosystem Climate change in the context of this study is based on oceanographic variables such as sea surface temperature and seawater salinity. The methods that are used in this study is through meta-descriptive analysis to determine the exposure of the coral reefs, spatial-descriptive analysis to relate between climate change and coral reef conditions. The results showed that the degradation conditions of coral reefs from 2002 to 2013 have decreased, but the condition of the degraded coral reefs has increased by 2017. Based on the analysis of the conditions of the exposure and coral reefs show that there is a correlation between the two. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ten first-generation national parks created under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act of 1949 generally disappointed those who had advocated national parks in the 1930s and 1940s. Their governance was much less strong than had been envisaged, their administration mostly being no more than the planning committees of the county councils within whose boundaries they lay. Here we explore the establishment of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, designated in 1952 and confirmed in 1954. The idea of a Dales National Park had been canvassed since the early 1930s. We find little public opposition to the designation of the park but little public support for it either. Farmers expressed fears of the damage which an influx of walkers would cause, but it is hard to ascertain whether their fears were well founded. Opposition came mainly from the North Riding County Council. The West Riding County Council seems to have been more accepting of the park, but was reluctant to be yoked to the North Riding in a Joint Board as the act envisaged, so both councils could readily agree that they wanted a weaker Joint Advisory Committee. It was this unsatisfactory arrangement that was finally implemented in 1956. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the role of writer James Fenimore Cooper in quest for American identity. Topics discussed include setting a precursor for America's national parks; wilderness as an icon for America, but in doing so he also grapples with the difficulties of trying to define "wilderness; and expresses real concerns for the destruction that occurs when wilderness comes into contact with civilization.

Lakes and ponds are important ecosystem components in arctic lowlands, and they are prone to rapid changes in surface area by thermokarst expansion and by sudden lake drainage. The 30 m resolution Landsat record (1984–2018) was used to derive a record of changes in the area of lakes and ponds in the five National Parks of northern Alaska. Surface-water area declined significantly in portions of the study area with ice-rich permafros t and water bodies of thermokarst origin. These declines were associated with rapid lake drainage events resulting from the thermoerosion of outlets. Thermoerosion was probably favored by the record warm mean annual temperatures in the study area, combined with precipitation that fluctuated near long-term normals. The rate of lake loss by rapid drainage was greatest in 2005–2007 and 2018. In landscapes with permafrost of lower ice content and water bodies in depressions of non-thermokarst origin, surface-water area generally fluctuated in response to year-to-year changes in precipitation, without a long-term trend, and lake drainage events were rare. Loss of surface water in ice-rich lowlands is likely to continue as the climate warms, with associated impacts on aquatic wildlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Park Service represents the nation's largest initiative in landscape conservation and preservation. As both a material and cultural construct, national parks are living memorials to a uniquely American wilderness narrative. In celebration of the National Park Service Centennial, American Wild is a speculative proposal for digital landscape preservation. The project generates civic pride by connecting the distinctive architecture of the Washington, DC Metro to the national parks. Using ultra-high-definition recordings, videos of each park are individually projection-mapped at full scale. The memorial creates a timeline of the National Park Service's 100-year history that advocates for its next centennial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Driven by spectacular growth over the last decade, the international cruise industry is constantly looking for new destinations to appeal to a different breed of traveler, one that seeks comfort alongside wilderness adventure. Meanwhile, national parks, long held up as icons of wilderness adventure, are increasingly governed through the logic of austerity politics and seek new revenue. These two distinct processes have started to provide increased opportunities for collaboration, introducing complex dynamics and power struggles at destinations and beyond. However, few studies have addressed these issues so far. Drawing on the global political ecology of tourism and conservation literature, this article examines the various entanglements between Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve in Canada and the cruise industry, and the implications they have for the destination as a whole. To better understand the many challenges facing park authorities and their partners, we employed a slate of qualitative methods, including document analysis, participant observation, and 30 semistructured interviews with key stakeholders. Results show that although the expectations of regional actors have not been met and the future of cruise tourism in Mingan is uncertain, park authorities continue to invest time and money to engage with the industry and adapt their facilities to this clientele. This raises questions about the real motives of park authorities and the contribution of this form of tourism to the sustainable development of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Great Walks' are highly managed multi-day experiences established within New Zealand's national parks. We examine their history and promotion asking ' How have the contexts for recreational walking in the New Zealand wilderness changed?' and ' How are these changes regarded by trampers as practitioners of backcountry walking?' To address these questions, we draw on 703 responses to an online survey. We note a mixed regard for Great Walks among trampers. Some consider the wilderness experience as undermined by the popularity of these branded experiences while others note that they cater for a range of users, despite high costs reducing effective accessibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a society that is becoming more dynamic, complex, and diverse, the ability to solve ill-structured problems (ISPs) has become an increasingly critical skill. Students who enter adult roles with the cognitive skills to address ISPs will be better able to assume roles in the emerging economies. Opportunities to develop and practice these skills are limited in the traditional schooling structures. In contrast, wilderness education is one environment that provides students opportunities to engage with the critical elements that aid in the development of these cognitive skills. The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of wilderness education on students’ ability to solve ISPs when compared with peers in a traditional classroom setting. Results of this study suggested that students who were engaged in a wilderness education setting showed significant gains in their ISP skills when compared with their peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental regulations often have the objective of eliminating the lower tail of an index of environmental quality. That part of the distribution of environmental quality moves somewhere above a threshold and where in the original distribution it moves is a function of the control strategy chosen. This paper provides an approach for estimating the economic benefits of different distributional changes as the worst environmental conditions are removed. The proposed approach is illustrated by examining shifts in visibility at Class I visibility areas (National Parks and wilderness areas) that would occur with implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Regional Haze Program. In this application we show that people value shifts in the distribution of visibility and place a higher value on the removal of a low visibility day than on the addition of a high visibility day. We found that respondents would pay about $120 per year in the Southeast U.S. and about $80 per year in the Southwest U.S. for improvement programs that remove the 20% worst visibility days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing number of protected areas around the world and their importance in the conservation of species and ecosystems, protected areas management capacity remains difficult to evaluate. A standard is needed to help policy makers compare the goals with the results obtained. This empirical research builds a tool to analyze the management efficiency and predicts the new touristic outcomes in case of a policy change. Using as example the state parks agencies in the USA, this paper develops a technological frontier using data envelopment analysis based on the Protected Areas Management Approach. After that, a prediction of the outcomes is analyzed with a budget change for any state park agency. Data suggest that many of them need to improve their performance to be more efficient. Another result obtained shows how budget changes will affect each agency's performance in different degrees and, therefore, budget reductions should be modeled separately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a recent national survey of federal wilderness managers, respondents identified the high priority need for scientific information about public attitudes toward biophysical intervention to adapt to climate change and attitudes of the public toward restoration of natural conditions. In a survey of visitors to one National Park wilderness in California, visitors revealed that they largely do not support biophysical intervention in wilderness to mitigate the effects of climate change, but broad support for activities that restore natural conditions exists. In an attempt to understand how these attitudes vary among visitors, it was found that those visitors who most value naturalness aspects of wilderness character also most positively support restoration and are most negative toward climate change intervention practices. More information about visitor-defined wilderness character attributes is needed and strategic planning to guide intervention decisions and restoration should be a priority. In this study, it was found that wilderness character is largely defined by visitors based on its wildness attributes, which include natural sounds, low density of people, pure water, clean air, and the presence of humans substantially unnoticeable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The McCarthy Road connects to former copper mining settlements within AlaskaÆs Wrangell‐St. Elias National Park and serves as an example of both public‐private accommodation within the Park as well as historical commemoration in a relatively isolated location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the importance of gardening and preserving the wild. Topics mentioned include the design of national parks in Canada, nature in literature, including the books "Misty of Chincoteague" by Marguerite Henry and "Candide" by Voltaire, and the benefits of respecting the environment on human life.