Human' wildlife interactions can be negative when wildlife impact human livelihoods. In the Iberian Mediterranean Basin, the management of the native European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) constitutes a classic example of human-wildlife conflict. Rabbits can be dually perceived as beneficial or harmful, since they may cause significant damage to agriculture, but at the same time they are one of the most important small-game species and act as an ecological keystone species (e.g. as prey for many predator species of conservation concern). Under this scenario, conservationists, hunters and farmers frequently have different positions in relation to rabbit management, hence conflicts between these groups are common. Here, we examined stakeholder perceptions of the rabbit and its management in Spain. To do this, we conducted face-to-face questionnaires to 820 hunters, farmers and farmers-hunters (i.e. farmers who practised hunting) in two predominantly agricultural areas where there is significant rabbit damage to vineyards. The majority of surveyed people (c. 75%) considered that conflicts were much more intense a few years ago, when the abundance of the rabbit population was significantly higher. However, despite this general agreement, hunters and farmers had some disagreements on the assessment of the problem, the influencing factors, and possible solutions. Farmer-hunters were often in an intermediate position between hunters and farmers, making them a group of particular interest as potential mediators of conflicts over rabbit management. Perceptions of rabbit population abundance had an important influence on the preferred management measures by stakeholders, with individuals indicating higher perceived abundance supporting harder management measures. Our findings emphasize the importance of promoting initiatives aimed at increasing the coordination and collaboration between hunters and farmers for improving human-wildlife conflict management strategies.

Resumen del trabajo presentado a la Pathways Europe 2022: Human Dimensions of Wildlife Conference, celebrada en Paises Bajos del 19 al 21 de octubre.

Peer reviewed