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Wild birds cause significant damage to dairy farms through the consumption and spoilage of cattle feed. A survey of Washington State dairy farmers revealed approximately $14 million in bird damage losses for the Washington State dairy industry, annually. Furthermore, farms that reported the presence of more than 10,000 birds per day were more likely to report the presence of Salmonella spp. or Johne’s disease (caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis). Over the course of three years, we assessed the impact of bird populations on the presence of bacteria in bird feces and the nutritional composition of cattle feed. Five dairies were enrolled into the study and visited to collect bird fecal samples and cattle feed samples. Several pens were monitored on each dairy. Bird fecal samples were analyzed for three bacterial populations. Fresh and bird-depleted feed samples were analyzed for dry matter, total digestible nutrients, protein, crude fiber, ash, fat, and net energy. The prevalence of bacterial populations in bird fecal samples did not differ among farms, but Campylobacter jejuni, a bacterial strain known for causing abortions in cattle, was discovered in one location. The number of birds observed at the feed bunk and the percentage of nutritional loss in cattle feed differed among pens. Understanding where birds prefer to feed on dairies may improve the effectiveness of bird deterrent management techniques. A variety of bird deterrent methods are available for dairy farmers but, at best, the most commonly used methods were considered only “somewhat effective” by farmers. The use of more sustainable methods, such as attracting native birds of prey to dairies, may be beneficial to dairy cattle well-being as well as dairy farmer economic sustainability.

We report the results of one of the most comprehensive surveys on feral swine damage and control in 11 U.S. states (Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas). The survey was distributed by the USDA National Agricultural Statistical Service in the summer of 2015 to a sample of producers of corn, soybeans, wheat, rice, peanuts, and sorghum in the 11 states listed above. A total of 4,377 responses were obtained. Findings indicate that damage caused by feral swine can be substantial. The highest yield loss estimates occur in peanut and corn production in the Southeast U.S. and Texas. We hope findings from this survey will help guide control efforts and research, as well as serve as a benchmark against which the effectiveness of future control efforts can be measured.

Rabies transmitted by the common vampire bat is a major public health concern in subtropical and tropical areas of Latin America, and there is some concern that the species will eventually spread into south Texas. The objective of this study was to estimate the total economic impact of the potential spread of vampire bats into south Texas. Data on livestock populations and values in the relevant counties was combined with expected mortality rates to calculate livestock losses. An IMPLAN model of the regional economy was then used to estimate the secondary impacts experienced by other businesses in the region. These impacts were combined with estimates of increased expenditures on post-exposure prophylaxis and animal tests to derive the total economic impact. We estimated the total economic impact would be $7 million to $9.2 million annually if vampire bats spread to south Texas.

Mexican gray wolves were reintroduced into New Mexico and Arizona in 1998. When wolves kill a producing cow, ranchers in the region are eligible to receive an indemnity payment equal to the market value of the lost animal. We developed a model that allows estimation of the present value of the revenue stream that a cow or herd provides and find that if a producing cow is killed, the decrease in the present value of the rancher’s revenue stream is about $1,230. Mean indemnity payments are currently $1,000, implying ranchers are not being sufficiently compensated.

Fruit producers have identified bird damage as a critical issue that has received limited attention from researchers. A USDA study estimated that birds cost producers in seven states tens of millions of dollars through fruit loss and management efforts. Despite these costs, research has been uncoordinated and piecemeal, leaving producers with few, well-tested management options. We describe several objectives to strive for in order to achieve the goal of providing producers with region-specific, cost-effective, and environmentally sustainable bird management strategies. These objectives include 1) quantifying economic consequences of bird damage for producers, consumers, and regional economies, and determining costs and benefits of various management techniques; 2) identifying amounts of damage attributable to specific bird species across crops and regions; 3) determining how bird damage varies within and across spatial scales (orchard, landscape, region); 4) evaluating consumer responses to management strategies and potential effects on marketing; 5) integrating economic, biological, and consumer information, i.e. using a systems approach, to determine the management strategies that should be tested; and 6) testing management strategies for efficacy with replicated, well-controlled experimental designs. By focusing on these objectives and coordinating activities among researchers and extension personnel from different regions of the country and from different disciplines, we will maximize efficiency in addressing this issue on a national scale while providing individual producers with region-specific information to guide their bird management efforts. Communication among researchers, extension personnel, and producers will be critical to minimize the costs of bird damage.

The mission of U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services (WS) is to provide federal leadership and expertise in managing problems caused by wildlife. Approximately every 5 years, WS conducts a research needs assessment (RNA) to help to align research priorities at the National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC, the research arm of the WS program) with WS program and customer needs. In 2011, the WS Deputy Administrator solicited input from employees throughout the WS program and representatives from other federal agencies, all 50 state wildlife agencies, various livestock and agricultural commodity groups, and non-governmental organizations. Eighty-six federal employees from 36 states and the District of Columbia and 31 non-federal employees from 20 states responded to the RNA survey. Aviation safety, zoonotic diseases, livestock predation, and to a lesser degree protecting threatened and endangered (T&E) species and reducing crop depredations, were projected to be major areas of concern during the next 5 years. Invasive species, specifically feral swine, were one of the most frequently identified areas where research is needed. Development of nonlethal control methods and economic assessments were given a high priority. Many respondents wanted economic justification for their organizations or programs. Protection of aquaculture, property, and human safety, and development of vaccines and repellents were more localized concerns. Predation on livestock (especially cattle and sheep) and big game, waterfowl, and upland birds was a much bigger concern in the Western Region (WR) than the Eastern Region (ER). A higher percentage of WR respondents also anticipated being more involved in conflicts involving birds. Cormorants, beavers, deer, and especially vultures were of higher concern in the ER. State agency and private stakeholders most frequently identified either wildlife transmission of diseases or livestock depredation as their highest area of concern. State agency and private stakeholders most often identified development of more effective management techniques as their highest research priority. All respondents expressed a need for better economic information about the extent and nature of various human-wildlife conflicts. The results of this RNA, along with guidance from Congress and the WS Deputy Administrator and stakeholder input, will help establish WS research priorities.

The objective of this analysis was to estimate the net benefits of controlling bird and rodent pests in California production of wine grapes and avocados. These two crops were chosen because of the expected differences in types and extent of pest damage and methods of pest control used by growers, as well as their importance in California agriculture. A web-based survey was designed to capture grower experiences with current levels of pest damage and their expectations about damage levels without control. Information on the methods of pest control and associated costs was also solicited from growers. We obtained 83 responses from avocado growers and 84 responses from wine grape growers. Results indicate that rodenticide use and trapping are the predominant methods of rodent control in both crops, while netting and visual scare devices are the most common methods used to control birds. The net benefits of bird and rodent control were measured on a per-acre basis and accounted for crop savings, avoided property damage, and control costs. In avocado production, the net benefit of bird control was estimated to be $60 to $196 per acre, and the net benefit of rodent control was estimated to be $574 to $1,117 per acre. In wine grape production, the net benefit of bird control was $956 to $1,600 per acre and the estimate for rodent control was $390 to $832 per acre.

Invasive feral swine combine a number of characteristics (e.g., high mobility, high fecundity, destructive behavior, reservoir of diseases, etc.) that make them one of the most serious wildlife threats to American agriculture. Additionally, feral swine are susceptible to foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) infection and could play a significant role in spreading and maintaining FMD if it was introduced to the U.S. Outbreaks of FMD also have devastating economic impacts and cause the loss of billions of dollars to the agricultural economy. Problems associated with spread and control would be exacerbated if FMD was contracted and spread by feral swine, threatening the 4.3 million head of cattle and 3.1 million head of domestic hogs in Missouri. This study uses a bioeconomic modeling framework to estimate the direct and indirect economic impacts of FMD being transmitted from feral swine to Missouri’s livestock. It is predicted that if FMD occurred in feral swine in Missouri, the disease outbreak would last 45 days, resulting in 18,658 head of livestock being destroyed, and would cost the state a minimum of $7.5 million.

The economic impact of wildlife-caused damage and associated management is one of the many factors that arguably play a role in the decision-making process of wildlife managers. Often the role of an economist is to value the damage created by wildlife, or to assess programmatic efficiency to determine if changes can be made to increase return per dollar invested in management efforts. Frequently, the results of economic analyses of wildlife-caused damage are used to justify program efforts in the pursuit or maintenance of funding. The complexity of determining the economic impact of wildlife-caused damage requires that there is a clear understanding of the methodological approach used to determine impacts. Examining specific methodological approaches used in actual case studies provides a systematic replicable approach to valuing damage. This study outlines the methodology for determining the economic impact of cormorant damage to natural resources in a local economy: the Oneida Lake Region of central New York.

OvoControl G® is a relatively new product that reduces the hatchability of Canada goose (Branta canadensis) eggs. However, little data is available on the cost of application. We present a model for estimating the cost of application of OvoControl G for managing nuisance Canada goose populations and compare that model to the cost and results of field-based 2 applications in Oregon. Our model showed that at low goose densities, fixed labor costs are responsible for a significant portion of the total cost. As goose densities increase, these fixed costs become equivalent to, and eventually less than, the costs associated with the purchase of the product. As we expected from the model, the cost of applying OvoControl is high compared to the actual reduction in reproduction. However, even with this apparently high cost, cooperators were pleased with the results. We also present several scenarios that managers may employ to further reduce the cost of application.

California is the nation’s greatest agricultural producer. In 2006, California’s gross value of agriculture production was more than $38.3 billion, almost double the value of production for the second most important agriculture state, Texas. The agricultural sector is a fundamental segment of any economy because it not only contributes substantially to the general economy and employment of the region, but it is additionally linked to almost all other sectors in the economy (i.e., manufacturing, retail trade, and accommodation and food service) as a source of inputs. Damage to crops by birds and rodents can reduce total crop yield and increase pest control costs. This ultimately reduces the production output of the agricultural sector and all other linked sectors and could potentially have significant total economic impacts. One method to estimate the total impact to the California economy of a decrease in agricultural yields and increase in pest control costs as a result of bird and rodent damage is an input-output (IO) model. To capture the sub-regional effects of economic changes, IO modeling is done at the county level. For the initial phases of this project, a deductive process was used to systematically rank California counties according to gross value agricultural production, value of production of targeted crops, and concentration of targeted crops. This process was used to identify the 10 leading agricultural counties, out of California’s 58, that will be processed for IO modeling to measure economic impact of bird and rodent damage on employment and revenue in each of these counties.

Effective management of vertebrate pest populations is enhanced by greater understanding of stakeholder-pest interactions as well as stakeholder attitudes toward control of the problem species. It has long been reported that black vultures are responsible for depredation of livestock, especially newborns. To gain a better understanding of this phenomenon, we conducted a survey of 374 Florida cattle ranchers, representing roughly 2% of the total number of Florida cattle ranches. A 3-page questionnaire was used to gather information of ranch characteristics and whether or not the ranchers had experienced vulture attacks. In cases where vulture attacks were reported, respondents were asked to quantify the value of property lost to vultures and preventative measures taken to reduce vulture predation. All respondents were asked a similar set of questions regarding coyotes as well as a series of questions concerning their attitudes toward vulture control and regulations. The survey revealed that 38% of respondents had experienced vulture predation that, on average, resulted in over $2,000 damage. Important predictors of vulture predation were ranch size and number of cattle. Attacks were recorded throughout the year, with the greatest number occurring during the winter months. By gaining better knowledge of stakeholder views and opinions, as well as the extent and characteristics of their depredation problems, we can more efficiently address the needs of livestock ranchers to reduce vulture damage.

This paper presents a general summary of an economic assessment of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services (WS) Program in California (CA). Detailed analyses quantified WS economic benefits to each of the 38 counties that contributed cooperative funds in 2004, with an aggregate report of county results used to form an overall statewide estimate of the Program’s value. Four general categories of wildlife damage management activities were: Agriculture, Health and Human Safety, Natural Resources, and Property. Two general methods of determining economic valuation were employed to quantify benefits: replacement-cost method, and damage-avoided method. Results showed that the protection of livestock, particularly sheep, cattle, and goats, from predation was a main activity of WS–CA personnel in each of the cooperating counties. Annual estimated replacement costs for WS–CA operations for Year 1 and Year 2 of the analysis (i.e., approximately equivalent to fiscal years 2003 and 2004, respectively) totaled $6,605,234 and $8,602,590 for the combined counties, respectively. Mean replacement costs for WS operations in the cooperating counties in Year 1 and Year 2 equaled $173,821.95 and $226,373.13, respectively. Given that the counties paid an average $51,798.10 share to WS–CA in 2003, the counties would have incurred averaged net increased expenses of $122,023.85 and $174,575.03 for similar services offered by commercial wildlife damage management companies.

Benefit-cost analysis (BCA) has become a highly useful economic tool to evaluate research and operational efforts in wildlife damage management. At the same time, common problems with BCA can be noted in these studies. These problems include: the absence of present value calculations, the misuse of market vs. non-market valuations, and the improper accounting of benefits and costs. Solutions to these problems are relatively simple but are imperative to the accuracy of the results. This paper outlines a number of common errors in BCA and offers solutions that enhance the use of economics in wildlife damage management studies.

Benefit-cost analysis (BCA) involves comparing all of the gains and losses from a given wildlife damage management action or management technique over time in similar units, thereby providing a total picture of potential gains and losses to society. This technique is at the core of justifications for wildlife damage management efforts. BCA has been noticeably absent from the study of vertebrate pest management problems, and in the few studies where a BCA has been included, the analysis is incomplete. This paper provides an overview of the steps in a BCA, using specific wildlife damage examples to highlight and expand the technique for researchers interested in documenting these effects.

Through compelling examples from various continents, Reidinger effectively illustrates the far-reaching consequences of invasive species on native ecosystems and local communities, and the complexities of mitigating damage. In Chapter 6, Communities, Ecosystems, and Landscapes, Reidinger equates ecosystems to communities - all organisms living in an area at a given time interacting with their abiotic components. Russell Reidinger's revised book, I Human-Wildlife Conflict Management: Prevention and Problem Solving i , provides a comprehensive and practical guide to understanding human-wildlife conflict, and offers a variety of effective strategies in prevention and resolution. [Extracted from the article]

Wild pigs (Sus scrofa) pose significant challenges to wildlife managers. This research explored Texas hunters' acceptability of wild pig control actions, and whether acceptability varied according to hunters' affiliation with four different categories of natural resource organizations as an indicator of social identity. Results of a survey (n = 37,317) revealed that most hunters were accepting of all control actions except toxicants and non-lethal deterrents. Mean acceptability scores for each action differed significantly across the four affiliation categories, but effect sizes were minimal. Hunters affiliated with agricultural organizations were the most accepting of control actions, while hunters with no organizational affiliations were least accepting. Findings suggested that while the type of organization with which a hunter affiliates provides some basis for predicting acceptability of control actions, the association is likely not significant enough to warrant differentiating wild pig outreach messaging on the basis of affiliation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]