Public perceptions of a white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla L.) restoration program

Mayhew, Michael ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2934-5489 , Convery, Ian ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2527-5660 , Armstrong, Roy ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8748-8787 and Sinclair, Billy (2015) Public perceptions of a white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla L.) restoration program. Restoration Ecology, 24 (2). pp. 271-279.

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Abstract

The historic persecution and decline of European raptor populations precipitated the use of reintroduction as a species restoration tool in the late twentieth century. One of the key requirements of the World Conservation Union reintroduction guidelines concerns the need for social feasibility studies to explore the attitudes of local human populations toward restoration and reintroduction proposals. Ahead of any formal proposals to reintroduce white-tailed sea eagles to Cumbria, United Kingdom, we conducted a baseline public attitudinal survey (n = 300). We identified broad public support for this reintroduction, which transcended differences in the demographic, geographic, and employment profiles of the study cohort. There was public recognition that white-tailed sea eagles could deliver a broad range of socioeconomic and environmental benefits with few detrimental impacts. Although the value of attitudinal surveys of this nature has been questioned, we would argue that they provide a useful baseline “snapshot” ahead of a more structured and focused reintroduction consultation. These results reinforce the emergence of public interest in the restoration of European raptors in the late twentieth and early twenty-first century.

Item Type:	Article
Journal / Publication Title:	Restoration Ecology
Publisher:	Wiley for Society for Ecological Restoration International
ISSN:	1526-100X
Departments:	Institute of Science and Environment > Forestry and Conservation Centre for National Parks and Protected Areas (CNPPA)
Depositing User:	Anna Lupton
Date Deposited:	11 Apr 2016 15:02
Last Modified:	12 Jan 2024 15:00
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/2089

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