Wildlife in U.S. Cities: Managing Unwanted Animals

Animals

John Hadidian¹  Kate Littin¹  Trudy Sharp¹ 

[1] The Humane Society of the United States, 2100 L St. NW, Washington, DC, USA; E-Mail

关键词: urban wildlife;    pest;    nuisance wildlife;    human-wildlife conflict;    animal welfare;    humane wildlife control;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ani5040401

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Wild animals are increasingly adapting to living in urbanizing environments, even as urban living has become the dominant human life style. This leads to greater opportunities to experience and enjoy wildlife, but also to increases in the kind and frequency of human-wildlife conflicts. Conflicts occur not only with species deemed to be perennial pests or nuisances, but situationally and episodically with others that are valued and esteemed. Regardless of how we view wild animals with whom we have conflicts, all deserve moral consideration and humane treatment. Issues in coexisting with urban wildlife are reviewed here.

Conflicts between people and wild animals in cities are undoubtedly as old as urban living itself. In the United States it is only of late, however, that many of the species now found in cities have come to live there. The increasing kind and number of human-wildlife conflicts in urbanizing environments makes it a priority that effective and humane means of conflict resolution be found. The urban public wants conflicts with wildlife resolved humanely, but needs to know what the alternative management approaches are, and what ethical standards should guide their use. This paper examines contemporary urban wildlife control in the United States with a focus on the moral concerns this raises. Much of the future for urban wildlife will depend on reform in governance, but much as well will depend on cultural changes that promote greater respect and understanding for wild animals and the biotic communities of which they and we are both a part.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.