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!