Abstract
Combining a novel panel dataset of 18 Montana ranches with spatial data on known wolf pack locations and satellite-generated climatological data from 1995-2010, we estimate the spatial impact of changing wolf pack locations and confirmed wolf depredations on the weight of beef calves. We find no evidence that wolf packs with home ranges that overlap ranches have any detrimental effects on calf weights. Other non-wolf factors, notably climate and individual ranchspecific husbandry practices, explained the majority of the variation in the weight of calves. However, ranches that experienced a confirmed cattle depredation by wolves had a negative and statistically significant impact of approximately 22 pounds on the average calf weight across their herd, possibly due to inefficient foraging behavior or stress to mother cows. For ranches experiencing confirmed depredation, the costs of these indirect weight losses are shown to potentially be greater than the costs of direct depredation losses that have, in the past, been the only form of compensation for ranchers who have suffered wolf depredations. These results demonstrate a potentially important and understudied aspect of economic conflict arising from the protection and funding of endangered species recovery programs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 631-656 |
| Number of pages | 26 |
| Journal | American Journal of Agricultural Economics |
| Volume | 96 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Apr 2014 |
Funding
Joseph P. Ramler is a graduate student in the Economics Department, University of Montana. Mark Hebblewhite is an associate professor in the Wildlife Biology Program, Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, University of Montana. Derek Kellenberg is an associate professor in the Economics Department, University of Montana. Carolyn Sime is a law student in the School of Law, University of Montana. The authors would like to thank The Blackfoot Challenge, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NASA grant #NNX11AO47G, and the Montana Stockgrowers Association for their financial support and data in conducting this project. The authors also thank Greg Neudecker, Shawn Cleveland, John Steuber, Wayne Slaught, David Mannix, Jay Bodner, Kim Baker, Jed Evjene, Ron Carlstrom, Jamie Lannen, Andrea Sarchet, J.P. Tanner, Jodi Pauley, Ed Bangs, Doug Dalenberg, Mike Mitchell, the USDA Wildlife Services, participants at the 2012 Canadian Resource and Environmental Economics Workshop, 2 anonymous referees, the editor, and all of the ranch participants in the study, for their help, advice, data, expertise, and comments on this project. Correspondence may be sent to: [email protected].
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | #NNX11AO47G |
Keywords
- Calf weight
- Endangered species
- Livestock depredation
- Natural resources
- Wildlife management
- Wolves