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Ecology and Society 28(2): 32
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<br />Interview participants noted the lack of access to hunting areas
<br />and pigs as a current issue (n = 9). Hunter etiquette required
<br />hunters to "give people right of way. If someone is over there
<br />[parked at a hunting area entry point], people don't like to be
<br />hunted [from] behind ... There is a mutual respect that people have
<br />for each other." Most of the public hunting areas were noted to
<br />have one entry point and "it's just tradition that whoever [is] there
<br />first, gets the spot first." In some cases, the entry point into the
<br />hunting area was such a great distance away from the area
<br />permitted to hunt, that "half (of) the day is spent trying to get
<br />[back] there [to the hunting area] ... It's why a lot of hunters start
<br />early." One participant mentioned the impact of development on
<br />access. "Access to land is going to get harder and harder. Land is
<br />developing. I can tell you when I was a kid and I was hunting,
<br />there are houses where there used to not be. "Another participant
<br />mentioned that some of the public hunting areas in Central Oahu
<br />were located just outside of neighborhoods without a designated
<br />parking lot for hunters, which worried some hunters about
<br />parking their vehicle along the side of the road throughout the
<br />day. One participant mentioned that he had his truck burglarized
<br />while hunting.
<br />Another issue that participants mentioned was a lack of respect
<br />among groups (n = 8), primarily between hunters and managers,
<br />but also between hunters and private landowners and among
<br />hunters. One participant believed that relationships between
<br />DLNR and hunters were better when he was younger and
<br />management was flexible, whereas "Now, we get DLNR trying
<br />to control ... Not too much hunters get along with DLNR." With
<br />limited access to public hunting lands, some hunters have resorted
<br />to hunting on private lands with and without permission, i.e.,
<br />poaching. Poaching has led to issues between landowners and
<br />hunters. One participant gave his input as to why there is a lack
<br />of respect stating, "I think a lot of those large landowners, they
<br />have this problem. Whether [it is] theft on their ag [agriculture]
<br />land, whether it be vehicles, tractors, whatever is related to the
<br />hunting activity." Participants did acknowledge disrespectful
<br />behaviors by some hunters: "They don't care ... They want to
<br />catch their pig, take their picture or not ... There's no way to
<br />change these people's minds." Interview participants also
<br />highlighted lack of communication between hunters and the
<br />general public where, "A lot of people look [at] hunters as bad
<br />people because they [are] killing pigs and utilizing dogs, but really
<br />it is not even like that ..." Participants were concerned that social
<br />media and local news stations had the ability to spread false
<br />representations of hunters that the public believed, while it was
<br />actually only a small group of hunters responsible for negative
<br />behaviors.
<br />Participants noted an increase in hiker use of trails in Hawaii,
<br />especially in public hunting areas of state forest reserves managed
<br />by DLNR, leading to an increased potential for user conflict
<br />between hunters and hikers (n = 7). One participant voiced his
<br />concerns from a personal experience with hikers stating, "There
<br />are [hikers] in there [public hunting areas] walking dogs and then
<br />your dog hurts their dog, it costs you money. And their dog starts
<br />growling and barking at your dog." Hikers moving through the
<br />same areas as hunters may also reduce the likelihood of catching
<br />a pig. One participant described his past experiences where
<br />"Plenty times we see hikers and the dogs [are] out tracking pigs
<br />... we just ask them to keep it [the noise] down ... then around the
<br />corner, they [hikers] start screaming their head off"
<br />The increased presence of trash was another important issue
<br />among interview participants (n = 7). Participants noted that with
<br />the influence of social media and tourism, human presence (not
<br />only hunters) in Hawai`i's mountains and forest areas was larger
<br />than ever before, increasing the amount of trash within these
<br />areas. Some participants noted that they often have to pick up
<br />candy wrappers, plastic bottles, beer bottles, and other trash,
<br />particularly in forest reserves frequented by hikers. One
<br />participant pointed out that hunters also leave trash, especially
<br />in areas far from the main hiking trails. Other issues and concerns
<br />raised by participants included current attitudes and practices,
<br />liability, current management techniques by the State of Hawaii
<br />(DLNR), the lack of available hunting areas, and lack of funding
<br />(Fig. 3).
<br />Recommendations to improve hunting and management of'feral
<br />pigs
<br />Nearly half of the interview participants recommended the need
<br />for increased community engagement and interactions by the state
<br />(e.g., DLNR) with hunters and local communities (n = 14; Fig.
<br />4). Participants noted they would like to see resource managers
<br />show a concerted effort to reach out to different communities,
<br />including hunters. Some specific options of community
<br />engagement that participants recommended were outreach to
<br />local communities about potential decisions, recreation days for
<br />hunters and managers to interact, and arranging for hunters to
<br />help with damage control and/or eradication of feral pigs from
<br />ecologically sensitive areas.
<br />Education was the next most common recommendation among
<br />participants (n = 8). Some participants felt that education could
<br />be improved by adding more literature onto the DLNR website,
<br />using social media to provide updates on rule changes, and
<br />learning more about native vegetation and ecosystems. One
<br />participant shared that "it's never one side. There's so many things
<br />that come into play." Education will not succeed without
<br />relationships between community members and different user
<br />groups. Participants also provided recommendations for new
<br />rules and management techniques (n = 7), including increasing
<br />seasonal hunting areas, restricting hikers and their dogs in hunting
<br />areas to avoid conflict, increasing trash cans in hunting areas to
<br />decrease trash, issuing permits to allow nighttime hunting
<br />(currently illegal), and improving call -in or internet-based systems
<br />to reserve road access for hunting areas.
<br />Respect and finding common ground were both important
<br />suggestions from participants to improve hunting and
<br />management of feral pigs (n = 8). One participant talked about
<br />how DOCARE (Division of Conservation and Resource
<br />Enforcement) officers were often negatively portrayed by hunters
<br />without personally knowing the officer. Participants felt that
<br />hunters needed to work extra hard to gain public support. As one
<br />participant pointed out, "If the hunters can start respecting the
<br />people around us then those people can start respecting us."
<br />Suggestions to improve public meetings included "Sometimes
<br />[managers] just sit and listen to folks mana`o [thoughts], and issues
<br />and questions. Try not to make it like [managers are] higher than
<br />anybody else ... Be respectful of each other's opinions." Increasing
<br />the number of hunting areas (n = 8) and improved access to
<br />hunting areas (n = 7) were also recommendations among
<br />interview participants. Interviewees talked about access and
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