TNR and conservation on a university campus: a political ecological perspective

PDF Version Also Available for Download.

Description

Article discussing TNR and conservation on a university campus and a political ecological perspective.

Physical Description

21 p.

Creation Information

Dombrosky, Jonathan & Wolverton, Steven J. March 18, 2014.

Context

This article is part of the collection entitled: UNT Scholarly Works and was provided by the UNT College of Arts and Sciences to the UNT Digital Library, a digital repository hosted by the UNT Libraries. It has been viewed 106 times. More information about this article can be viewed below.

Who

People and organizations associated with either the creation of this article or its content.

Authors

Publisher

  • PeerJ
    Place of Publication: [Corte Madera, California]

Provided By

UNT College of Arts and Sciences

The UNT College of Arts and Sciences educates students in traditional liberal arts, performing arts, sciences, professional, and technical academic programs. In addition to its departments, the college includes academic centers, institutes, programs, and offices providing diverse courses of study.

Contact Us

What

Descriptive information to help identify this article. Follow the links below to find similar items on the Digital Library.

Degree Information

Description

Article discussing TNR and conservation on a university campus and a political ecological perspective.

Physical Description

21 p.

Notes

Abstract: How to manage the impact of free-ranging cats on native wildlife is a polarizing issue. Conservation biologists largely support domestic cat euthanasia to mitigate impacts of free-ranging cat predation on small animal populations. Above all else, animal welfare activists support the humane treatment of free-ranging cats, objecting to euthanasia. Clearly, this issue of how to control free-ranging cat predation on small animals is value laden, and both positions must be considered and comprehended to promote effective conservation. Here, two gaps in the free-ranging cat—small-animal conservation literature are addressed. First, the importance of understanding the processes of domestication and evolution and how each relates to felid behavioral ecology is discussed. The leading hypothesis to explain domestication of wildcats (Felis silvestris) relates to their behavioral ecology as a solitary predator, which made them suited for pest control in early agricultural villages of the Old World. The relationship humans once had with cats, however, has changed because today domesticated cats are usually household pets. As a result, concerns of conservation biologists may relate to cats as predators, but cat welfare proponents come from the position of assuming responsibility for free-ranging household pets (and their feral offspring). Thus, the perceptions of pet owners and other members of the general public provide an important context that frames the relationship between free-ranging cats and small animal conservation. The second part of this paper assesses the effects of an information-based conservation approach on shifting student’s perception of a local Trap–Neuter–Return (TNR) program in introductory core science classes at the University of North Texas (UNT). UNT students are (knowingly or unknowingly) regularly in close proximity to a TNR program on campus that supports cat houses and feeding stations. A survey design implementing a tailored-information approach was used to communicate what TNR programs are, their goals, and the “conservationist” view of TNR programs. We gauged favorability of student responses to the goals of TNR programs prior to and after exposure to tailored information on conservation concerns related to free-ranging cats. Although these results are from a preliminary study, we suggest that an information-based approach may only be marginally effective at shifting perceptions about the conservation implications of free-ranging cats. Our position is that small animal conservation in Western societies occurs in the context of pet ownership, thus broader approaches that promote ecological understanding via environmental education are more likely to be successful than information-based approaches.

Source

  • PeerJ, 2014, Corte Madera: PeerJ

Language

Item Type

Identifier

Unique identifying numbers for this article in the Digital Library or other systems.

Publication Information

  • Publication Title: PeerJ
  • Volume: 2
  • Issue: e312
  • Peer Reviewed: Yes

Collections

This article is part of the following collection of related materials.

UNT Scholarly Works

Materials from the UNT community's research, creative, and scholarly activities and UNT's Open Access Repository. Access to some items in this collection may be restricted.

What responsibilities do I have when using this article?

When

Dates and time periods associated with this article.

Submitted Date

  • September 25, 2013

Accepted Date

  • February 27, 2014

Creation Date

  • March 18, 2014

Added to The UNT Digital Library

  • Aug. 1, 2014, 8:31 a.m.

Usage Statistics

When was this article last used?

Yesterday: 0
Past 30 days: 0
Total Uses: 106

Interact With This Article

Here are some suggestions for what to do next.

Start Reading

PDF Version Also Available for Download.

International Image Interoperability Framework

IIF Logo

We support the IIIF Presentation API

Dombrosky, Jonathan & Wolverton, Steven J. TNR and conservation on a university campus: a political ecological perspective, article, March 18, 2014; [Corte Madera, California]. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc307501/: accessed March 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT College of Arts and Sciences.

Back to Top of Screen