The role of wildlife-associated recreation in private land use and conservation: Providing the missing baseline

Successfully integrating human activities with ecosystem conservation forms the foundation of sustainability and is key to maintaining biological diversity. This is especially important in privately-owned lands in the U.S., which harbor high levels of biodiversity yet are often vulnerable to habitat degradation and loss. This study analyzes recreation as a sustainable use on private property, focusing on wildlife-associated recreation, defined here as fishing, hunting and wildlife watching. Eighteen national surveys implemented by three U.S. government agencies spanning 1999-2013 were analyzed to provide baseline information and an assessment of the conservation impact of recreation. Results show that approximately 440.1 million acres of private land, ∼22% of the contiguous land area of the U.S., are either leased or owned for wildlife-associated recreation. Land utilized for hunting accounts for 81% of that total. Approximately 33% of private forestland, 18% of private grazing land and 4% of private cropland is used to earn revenue from recreational activities. Annual spending for wildlife-associated recreation on private land is estimated at $814 million in day-use fees, $1.48 billion for long-term leases, and $14.8 billion to own land primarily for recreation (2011 dollars). Hunters own or lease properties of larger size classes than anglers or wildlife-watchers, indicating that hunting may provide a greater economic incentive for maintaining large unfragmented properties that provide a variety of conservation benefits. On grazing and cropland, landowners who earn income from recreation are significantly more likely to participate in government conservation programs (p < 0.001) and to pay for private conservation practices (p = 0.08). This provides support that recreation incentivizes conservation at higher rates than agricultural activities alone. Three policy measures that could further enhance conservation benefits of recreation are discussed.