American black bears (Ursus americanus) triggered complaints from property owners across much of Wisconsin, USA, from 2008 to 2010. Wildlife managers provided technical assistance and live-trapped bears to mitigate nuisances. We examined the longevity of these management actions as measured by the risk (or hazard) that a conflict site would generate a subsequent complaint after live-trapping or technical assistance had been implemented. We observed that as one expanded outward in distance from the original complaint site, the number of days separating a management action and a subsequent complaint decreased. Additionally, the number of bears that were translocated from a conflict location was not associated with decreased hazard. The percentages of locations that did not have a subsequent complaint were nearly identical for both technical assistance and live-trapping interventions. Our technique is a practical one, which could be used to analyze existing agency records. Also, our results could improve the benefit-cost calculations of agencies contemplating new or modified nuisance-response protocols for this bear species and perhaps others.
- Volume 26
- Issue 1
- Pages 11-20
- Publication Date 1 May 2015
- DOI 10.2192/ursus-d-14-00038.1
- File Size 552.80 KB
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