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Keep Wildlife Wild
Habituation and Food Conditioning
At Mount Rainier National Park
Overview
What is habituation and food-conditioning?
Why is it a problem? (What are the risks involved?)
The causes of habituation and food-conditioning.
How you can help.
Habituation : Loss of Fear
Food-Conditioning : People = Food
The Problem
Extent of Problem
Inventory of Habituated Wildlife study-2006 Mt. Rainier National Park
Foraging Behavior
11%
54%
35%
HumanFed
HumanForage
NaturalForage
The Wildlife FactorWe all need to take responsibility for the wild animals whose habitat we share
Habituation and Food-Conditioning
Human / Wildlife Risks
Human Wildlife Encounters / Disease Transmission
Predation
Vehicle Encounters
Human / Wildlife Risks
Human/Wildlife Encounters and Disease Transmission
• Wildlife may carry zoonotic diseases and parasites which can be transmitted to humans through close contact.
• Animals may become aggressive and bite, causing serious injury or transmission of disease.
• Disease transmission affects wildlife too!
Human / Wildlife Risks
Predation
• Feeding concentrates deer and small mammals into specific areas. This may attract predators such as fox, bear, and cougars.
• Large predators attracted by concentrated prey species become habituated to humans and are more likely to attack pets and people.
• Corvids are nest predators; large concentrations of food-conditioned corvids will decrease songbird populations.
Steller’s Jay
Clark’s Nutcracker
Gray Jay
Mount Rainier’s four species of corvids
Raven
Human / Wildlife Risks
Vehicle Encounters
• Food-conditioned wildlife is attracted to areas with high traffic volume and are frequently killed by vehicles.
• Vehicle encounters with
wildlife put people at risk.
Loss of Wildlife to Vehicle Encounters
2007- Cascade fox struck by car, euthanized.
( 4 foxes have been hit since 2005)
2008- 3 bears struck by vehicles
Causes of Food-Conditioning
FeedingUnsecure food/garbageLack of educationLack of support
How You Can Help
Report what you see-Wildlife Database / cards-Road kill database
Education-Interpretive programs, talking to visitors- Moral-appeal vs. Fear-appeal messages
Practice proper food/garbage storage
Thanks for your Support!
Help Protect Future
Generations of Wildlife!