Abstract
After providing background on Dendrolagus species in Australia, two consecutive surveys ofBrisbane's residents are used to assess public knowledge of tree-kangaroos and the stated degree of supportfor their conservation in Australia. The responses of participants in Survey I are based on their pre-surveyknowledge of wildlife. The same set of participants completed Survey II after being provided with additionalinformation on all thewildlife speciesmentioned in Survey I.Changes in the attitudes of respondents and theirdegree of support for the protection and conservation of Australia's tree-kangaroos are measured, includingchanges in their contingent valuations and stated willingness to provide financial support for such conservation.Reasons for wanting to protect tree-kangaroos are specified and analysed. Furthermore, changesthat occur in the relative importance of these reasons with increased knowledge are also examined. Supportfor the conservation of tree-kangaroos is found to rise with the additional knowledge supplied about allspecies and is compared with variations in support for protection of other mammals. Support for the conservationof Australia's less well known tropical mammals is found to increase relative to better knownmammals (icons) present in temperate areas, such as koalas and red kangaroos. Possible implications of theresults for government conservation policies in Australia are examined.
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Tisdell, C., Wilson, C. The public's knowledge of and support for conservation of Australia's tree-kangaroos and other animals. Biodiversity and Conservation 13, 2339–2359 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BIOC.0000047906.93376.60
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BIOC.0000047906.93376.60