Session Summary

Over half of the land in the United States is privately owned and provides vital habitat for a disproportionate number of endangered and endemic wildlife species. Therefore, to achieve wildlife conservation success,... [ view full abstract ]

Over half of the land in the United States is privately owned and provides vital habitat for a disproportionate number of endangered and endemic wildlife species. Therefore, to achieve wildlife conservation success, conservation practitioners must work with willing landowners to support wildlife habitat on their property. To aid this effort, researchers and practitioners can apply the wealth of social science research on private landowner behavior and decision-making. Findings from these inquiries can be used to develop new or adapt existing wildlife habitat conservation programs on private lands that are strategic and effective. The goal of this session is to characterize what is known in the literature broadly, distill key insights, and showcase some recent studies. Talks in this session will focus on innovative social science research relating to voluntary wildlife habitat conservation programs on private lands including investigating determinants of conservation behavior, understanding conservation behavior persistence after incentive payments end, exploring intrinsic motivations for voluntary wildlife habitat conservation behaviors, and addressing innovative tools to promote wildlife habitat conservation. We’ll end with a presentation about increasing communication and collaboration between human dimensions researchers and conservation practitioners to improve delivery of conservation programs on private lands. Speakers will emphasize transferable insights and applications that can both enhance the efforts of wildlife conservation organizations and professionals working with private landowners and increase wildlife habitat on private lands.