Introduction: conservation and recreation

In the late nineteenth century, about 44% of the population of the USA lived and worked on farms. By 1950 numbers had decreased to 15% and in 1985 farmers represented a mere 2.2% of the population (USDA, 1986). While the number of people farming may be decreasing, the total amount of agricultural produce is increasing. Estimates suggest that by the year 2000, domestic and foreign demand for food and fibre products could be met by nearly half (218 million acres) the current cropland. With less reliance on rural land for agricultural production, landowners are looking for alternative economic uses for their land. The increasing urban population may hold the secret of the success of alternative enterprises where improvement of land for wildlife habitat is compatible with recreational use.

Increases in personal disposable income, vacation entitlements and life expectancy beyond retirement, coupled with more comfortable, faster and less expensive means of transport suggests that recreational demand will continue to increase worldwide. The benefits of recreation for humans are well documented by medical and other professions and the popularity of wildliferelated recreation evident in the extensive sale of nontechnical natural history publications and the broadcasting of wildlife television programs. However, it is also widely appreciated that wildlife-related recreation can produce a whole host of undesirable side effects.