Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Improving decision-making for sustainable hunting: regulatory mechanisms of hunting pressure in red-legged partridge

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Sustainability Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Knowledge about how hunting pressure is determined, and the relative efficacy of different mechanisms to regulate harvest, can help to improve the managers’ decision-making process. We developed a general framework about the decision-making process that regulates red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) hunting pressure in central Spain based on information from a focus group and individual interviews with game managers. We also used available information to compare the efficiency of different tools thus improving some decision steps. We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of different population monitoring methods as a way to reduce uncertainty on partridge availability to hunters. Additionally, we investigated the relationship between annual harvest and various regulatory mechanisms of partridge hunting pressure used in the study area to identify the most potentially useful one to limit annual take-off. Game managers usually set hunting pressure after a qualitative assessment on population abundance prior to the hunting season, but this decision was frequently modified during the course of the hunting season according to variations in catch or perceived abundance at that time. Our results showed that kilometric abundance indices (counting partridges from cars along line transects) was a simple cost-efficient and reliable estimate of partridge density (estimated by Distance sampling). A variety of regulatory mechanisms were used by managers. The variables that most affected annual harvest (in addition to partridge abundance) were the number of driven-shooting days, and hunter density in walked-up hunting days, suggesting that their adjustment will be the most efficient regulatory mechanisms. We conclude that adequate monitoring on population abundance should be a critical step for managers’ decision-making, and that a better understanding of the relative value of regulatory mechanisms, combining social and ecological approaches, would help improving our understanding of any human-mediated system, thus leading to better management recommendations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aanes S, Engen S, Sæther B-E, Willebrand T, Marcström V (2002) Sustainable harvesting strategies of willow ptarmigan in a fluctuating environment. Ecol Appl 12:281–290

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andersen O (2008) Attitudes of hunters and managers toward harvest regulations of willow ptarmigan in Norway. Master thesis, Hedmark University College, Hamar

  • Arroyo B, Delibes-Mateos M, Díaz-Fernández S, Viñuela J (2012) Hunting management in relation to profitability aims: red-legged partridge hunting in central Spain. Eur J Wildl Res 58:847–855

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baines D, Moss R, Dugan D (2004) Capercaillie breeding success in relation to forest habitat and predator abundance. J Appl Ecol 41:59–71

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barbosa AM, Vargas J, Farfán MA, Real R, Guerrero JC (2004) Caracterización del aprovechamiento cinegético de los mamíferos en Andalucía. Galemys 16:41–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Beja P, Gordinho L, Reino L, Loureiro F, Santos-Reis M, Borralho R (2009) Predator abundance in relation to small game management in southern Portugal: conservation implications. Eur J Wildl Res 55:227–238

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bibby CJ, Burgess ND, Hill DA (2000) Bird census techniques, 2nd edn. Academic Press (BTO-RSPB), London

    Google Scholar 

  • Bicknell J, Smart J, Hoccom D, Amar A, Evans A et al (2010) Impacts of non-native gamebird release in the UK: a review. RSPB research report no. 40, RPSB, Bedfordshire

  • BirdLife International (2012) Alectoris rufa. In: IUCN 2013, IUCN red list of threatened species, version 2013.2. www.iucnredlist.org. Accessed 4 Apr 2014

  • Bischof R, Nilsen EB, Brøseth H, Männil P, Ozoliņš J et al (2012) Implementation uncertainty when using recreational hunting to manage carnivores. J Appl Ecol 49:824–832

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanco-Aguiar JA, Virgós E, Villafuerte R (2004) Perdiz Roja (Alectoris rufa). In: Madroño A, González C, Atienza JC (eds) Libro rojo de las aves de España. Dirección General para la Biodiversidad-SEO/BirdLife, Madrid, pp 182–185

    Google Scholar 

  • Borralho R, Rego F, Vaz Pinto P (1996) Is driven transect sampling suitable for estimating red-legged partridge Alectoris rufa densities? Wildl Biol 2:259–268

    Google Scholar 

  • Brooke AP, Tschapka M (2002) Threats from overhunting to the flying fox, Pteropus tonganus, (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) on Niue Island, South Pacific Ocean. Biol Conserv 103:343–348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Broseth H, Nilsen NB, Pedersen HC (2012) Temporal quota corrections based on timing of harvest in a small game species. Eur J Wildl Res 58:797–802

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buckland ST, Ahmadi S, Staines W, Gordon IJ, Youngson RW (1993) Estimating the minimum population size that allows a given annual number of mature red deer stags to be culled sustainably. J Appl Ecol 33:118–130

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buenestado FJ, Ferreras P, Blanco-Aguiar JA, Tortosa F, Villafuerte R (2009) Survival and causes of mortality among wild red-legged partridges Alectoris rufa in southern Spain: implications for conservation. Ibis 151:720–730

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bunnefeld N, Baines D, Newborn D, Milner-Gulland EJ (2009) Factors affecting unintentional harvesting selectivity in a monomorphic species. J Anim Ecol 78:485–492

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bunnefeld N, Hoshino E, Milner-Gulland EJ (2011) Management strategy evaluation: a powerful tool for conservation? Trends Ecol Evol 26:441–447

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burnham KP, Anderson DR (2002) Model selection and multimodel inference: a practical information-theoretic approach, 2nd edn. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Calvert AM, Gauthier G (2005) Effects of exceptional conservation measures on survival and seasonal hunting mortality in greater snow geese. J Appl Ecol 42:442–452

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caughlan L, Oakley KL (2001) Cost considerations for long-term ecological monitoring. Ecol Indic 1:123–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christensen NL, Bartuska AM, Brown JH, Carpenter S, Antonio CD et al (1996) The report of the ecological society of America committee on the scientific basis for ecosystem management. Ecol Appl 6:665–691

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conroy MJ, Miller MW, Hines JE (2002) Identification and synthetic modeling of factors affecting American black duck populations. Wildl Monogr 150:1–64

    Google Scholar 

  • Daly HE (1991) Steady state economics. Island Press, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R (2009) European rabbit population trends and associated factors: a review of the situation in the Iberian Peninsula. Mammal Rev 39:124–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Díaz-Fernández S, Ferreras P, Viñuela J, Arroyo B (2013) The role of economic and social factors driving predator control in small-game estates in central Spain. Ecol Soc 18(2):28

    Google Scholar 

  • Díaz-Fernández S (2012) Relationships between red-legged partridge hunting management, red-legged partridge populations, and human populations. PhD thesis, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real

  • Díaz-Fernández S, Viñuela J, Arroyo B (2012) Harvest of red-legged partridge in central Spain. J Wildl Manag 76:1354–1363

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Díaz-Fernández S, Arroyo B, Casas F, Martinez-Haro M, Viñuela J (2013) Effect of game management on wild red-legged partridge abundance. PLoS One 8:e66671

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diefenbach DR, Brauning DW, Mattice JA (2003) Variability in grassland bird counts related to observer differences and species detection rates. Auk 120:1168–1179

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Draycott RAH, Hoodless AN, Sage RB (2007) Effects of pheasant management on vegetation and birds in lowland woodlands. J Appl Ecol 45:334–341

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duarte J, Vargas JM (2001) Survey methods for red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) in olive groves in Southern Spain. Game Wildl Sci 18:141–156

    Google Scholar 

  • Fernandez de Simon J, Díaz-Ruiz F, Cirilli F, Sánchez Tortosa F, Villafuerte R et al (2011) Towards a standardized index of European rabbit abundance in Iberian Mediterranean habitats. Eur J Wildl Res 57:1091–1100

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fischer A, Young J (2007) Understanding mental constructs of biodiversity: implications for biodiversity management and conservation. Biol Conserv 136:271–282

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freckleton RP, Watkinson AR, Green RE, Sutherland WJ (2006) Census error and the detection of density dependence. J Anim Ecol 75:837–851

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gamino V, Gutiérrez-Guzmán AV, Fernández de Mera IG, Ortiz JA, Durán-Martín M et al (2012) Natural Bagaza virus infection in game birds in southern Spain. Vet Res 43:65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garrido JL (2012) La caza. Sector económico: valoración por subsectores. FEDENCA-EEC, Madrid

    Google Scholar 

  • Gottschalk TK, Huettmann F (2010) Comparison of distance sampling and territory mapping methods for birds in four different habitats. J Ornithol 152:421–429

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holland DS (2010) Management strategy evaluation and management procedures: tools for rebuilding and sustaining fisheries. OECD food, agriculture and fisheries working papers no. 25. OECD Publishing, Portland

  • Jakob C, Ponce-Boutin F, Besnard A (2014) Coping with heterogeneity to detect species on a large scale: N-mixture modeling applied to red-legged partridge abundance. J Wildl Manag 78:540–549

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keane A, de Brooke ML, Mcgowan PJK (2005) Correlates of extinction risk and hunting pressure in gamebirds (Galliformes). Biol Conserv 126:216–233

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kinahan A, Bunnefeld N (2012) Effectiveness and cost efficiency of monitoring mountain nyala in Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia. Endang Species Res 18:105–114

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lande R, Sæther B-E, Enger S (1997) Threshold harvesting for sustainability of fluctuating resources. Ecology 78:1341–1350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macaulay LT, Starrs PF, Carranza J (2013) Hunting in managed oak woodlands: contrasts among similarities. In: Campos P, Huntsinger L, Oviedo JL, Diaz M, Starrs P et al (eds) Mediterranean oak woodland working landscapes: dehesas of Spain and ranchlands of California. Springer, New York, pp 311–350

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Marques TA, Thomas L, Fancy SG, Buckland ST (2007) Improving estimates of bird density using multiple-covariate distance sampling. Auk 124:1229–1243

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martínez-Padilla J, Redpath SM, Zeineddine M, Mougeot F (2014) Insights into population ecology from long-term studies of red grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus. J Anim Ecol 83:85–98

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milner-Gulland EJ (2011) Integrating fisheries approaches and household utility models for improved resource management. P Roy Soc B-Biol Sci 108:1741–1746

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Msoffe FU, Ogutu JO, Kaaya J, Bedelian C, Said MY et al (2009) Participatory wildlife surveys in communal lands: a case study from Simanjiro, Tanzania. Afr J Ecol 48:727–735

    Google Scholar 

  • Mustin K, Newey S, Irvine J, Arroyo B, Redpath S (2012) Biodiversity impacts of game bird hunting and associated management practices in Europe and North America. Report to RSPB. The James Hutton Institute, Aberdeen

    Google Scholar 

  • Norvell RE, Howe FP, Parrish JR (2003) A seven-year comparison of relative-abundance and distance-sampling methods. Auk 120:1013–1028

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nuno A, Bunnefeld N, Milner-Gulland EJ (2013) Matching observations and reality: using simulation models to improve monitoring under uncertainty in the Serengeti. J Appl Ecol 50:488–498

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oldfield TEE, Smith RJ, Harrop SR, Leader-Williams N (2003) Field sports and conservation in the United Kingdom. Nature 423:531–533

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Oñate JJ, Peco B (2005) Policy impact of desertification: stakeholders’ perceptions in southern Spain. Land Use Policy 22:103–114

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • R development Core Team (2013) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna

    Google Scholar 

  • Ricci JC (1989) Une méthode de recensement des perdrix rouges (Alectoris rufa L.) au printemps par índice kilométrique d’abondance (IKAPRV) dans le Midi-Méditerranéen. Gibier faune sauvage 6:145–158

    Google Scholar 

  • Ríos-Saldaña CA (2010) Los planes técnicos de caza de Castilla-La Mancha y su aplicación en la gestión y conservación de las especies cinegéticas. PhD thesis, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real

  • Schüttler E, Rozzi R, Jax K (2011) Towards a societal discourse on invasive species management: a case study of public perceptions of mink and beavers in Cape Horn. J Nat Conserv 19:175–184

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sinclair ARE, Ludwig D, Clark CW (2000) Conservation in the real world. Science 289:1875

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sinclair ARE, Fryxell JM, Caughley G (2006) Wildlife ecology, conservation, and management. Blackwell, Malden

    Google Scholar 

  • Sokal R, Rohlf F (2012) Biometry, 4th edn. WH Freeman, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Solberg EJ, Sæther B-E (1999) Hunter observations of moose Alces alces as a management tool. Wildl Biol 5:107–118

    Google Scholar 

  • Solberg EJ, Sæther B-E, Strand O, Loison A (1999) Dynamics of a harvested moose population in a variable environment. J Anim Ecol 68:186–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strand O, Nilsen EB, Solberg EJ, Linnell JCD (2012) Can management regulate the population size of wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) through harvest? Can J Zoolog 90:163–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland WJ (2001) Sustainable exploitation: a review of principles and methods. Wildl Biol 7:131–140

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor VJ, Dunstone N (1996) The exploitation of mammal populations. Chapman and Hall, London

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Thomas L, Buckland ST, Rexstad EA, Laake JL, Strindberg S et al (2010) Distance software: design and analysis of distance sampling surveys for estimating population size. J Appl Ecol 47:5–14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (1992) Agenda 21. Rio de Janeiro. www.unep.org. Accessed 24 Apr 2014

  • Wam HK, Andersen O, Pedersen HC (2013) Grouse hunting regulations and hunter typologies in Norway. Hum Dimens Wildl 18:45–57

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watson A, Moss R (2008) Grouse. Collins, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Weinbaum KZ, Brashares JS, Golden CD, Getz WM (2013) Searching for sustainability: are assessments of wildlife harvests behind the times? Ecol Lett 16:99–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Willebrand T, Hörnell M (2001) Understanding the effects of harvesting willow ptarmigan Lagopus lagopus in Sweden. Wildl Biol 7:205–212

    Google Scholar 

  • Willebrand T, Hörnell-Willebrand M, Asmyhr L (2011) Willow grouse bag size is more sensitive to variation in hunter effort than to variation in willow grouse density. Oikos 120:1667–1673

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to the many people who aided with fieldwork and game managers for their collaboration and cooperation. S. Díaz-Fernández carried out all face-to-face questionnaires to game managers. J. Vicente helped with the distance sampling analysis. N. Bunnefeld and E. Newton provided helpful suggestions on a previous draft. J.C. had a postdoctoral contract jointly financed by the European Social Fund and JCCM (Operational Programme FSE 2007–2013), M.D.M. is currently funded by Consejería de Economía, Inovación, Ciencia y Empleo of Junta de Andalucía, and the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement 267226. Work was supported by the European Commission (7th Framework Programme for R&D through project HUNT, 212160, FP7-ENV-2007-1), JCCM (project PPII-2014-016-A), and Conserjería de Agricultura), by the Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología (CGL2008-04282/BOS), and by CSIC (PIE 201330E105).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos, IREC (CSIC-UCLM-JCCM), Ronda de Toledo s/n., 13071, Ciudad Real, Spain

    Jesús Caro, Miguel Delibes-Mateos, Javier Viñuela & Beatriz Arroyo

  2. CIBIO/InBIO, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal

    Miguel Delibes-Mateos

  3. Instituto de Estudios Sociales Avanzados (IESA-CSIC), Campo Santo de los Mártires 7, 14004, Córdoba, Spain

    Miguel Delibes-Mateos

  4. Instituto de Investigaciones Oceanológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Km. 107 Carretera Tijuana-Ensenada, 22862, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

    Juan Francisco López-Lucero

Authors
  1. Jesús Caro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Miguel Delibes-Mateos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Javier Viñuela
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Juan Francisco López-Lucero
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Beatriz Arroyo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jesús Caro.

Additional information

Handled by Salvatore Arico, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), France.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 25 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Caro, J., Delibes-Mateos, M., Viñuela, J. et al. Improving decision-making for sustainable hunting: regulatory mechanisms of hunting pressure in red-legged partridge. Sustain Sci 10, 479–489 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0302-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0302-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation