AMERICANS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD HUNTING, FISHING, SPORT SHOOTING, AND TRAPPING

Conducted for the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Under Multistate Conservation Grant Number F19AP00100

Responsive Management and the National Shooting Sports Foundation

2019

AMERICANS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD HUNTING, FISHING, SPORT SHOOTING, AND TRAPPING

2019

Responsive Management National Office Mark Damian Duda, Executive Director Martin Jones, Senior Research Associate Tom Beppler, Senior Research Associate Steven J. Bissell, Ph.D., Qualitative Research Associate Amanda Center, Research Associate Andrea Criscione, Senior Research Associate Patrick Doherty, Research Associate Gregory L. Hughes, P.E., Research Associate Caroline Gerken, Survey Center Manager Alison Lanier, Business Manager

130 Franklin Street Harrisonburg, VA 22801 Phone: 540/432-1888 E-mail: [email protected] www.responsivemanagement.com

National Shooting Sports Foundation Jim Curcuruto, Director, Research & Market Development

11 Mile Hill Rd Newtown, CT 06470 Phone: 203-426-1320 E-mail: [email protected] www.nssf.org

Although the NSSF partnered with Responsive Management for this report and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies provided funding for it, any errors in the report are the sole responsibility of Responsive Management.

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping i

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This study was conducted by Responsive Management and the National Shooting Sports Foundation to assess trends in Americans’ attitudes toward hunting, fishing, sport shooting, and trapping. Responsive Management has tracked public attitudes on the four activities in various forms since 1995, and the study makes use of this trend data by examining how Americans’ attitudes have changed over the years.1 The project was funded by a Multistate Conservation Grant from the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. The study entailed a scientific telephone survey of adult Americans, ages 18 and older. Details of the survey methodology are shown in the body of the report. Overall, 80% of Americans approve of legal hunting. Approval of hunting is highest in the Midwest (at 86% approval) and is lowest in the Northeast (72%). Americans’ level of approval of hunting has remained generally consistent over the past quarter century, with a gradual increase in approval since 1995 when approval was at 73%. However, approval of hunting varies considerably depending on the stated reason for hunting. When the reasons are utilitarian in nature—for meat, to protect humans or property, for wildlife management—approval is very high, but hunting drops substantially when the reason is for the sport or for the challenge; meanwhile, less than a third of Americans approve of hunting for a trophy. Nonetheless, approval of these less popular hunting motivations has rebounded following rather sharp declines in 2016 (note that administration of the 2016 survey followed several high- profile news stories that depicted trophy hunting in a negative light). The species being hunted also affects approval of hunting. Hunting of ungulates and waterfowl is more accepted than hunting of predator species, while the hunting of African lions and elephants has even less approval among Americans. Similarly, approval of hunting depends on the technique being used, especially the extent to which the technique in question allows for fair chase (i.e., whether the animal has a reasonable chance to evade the hunter). For example, more Americans approve of hunting with archery equipment than approve of hunting with high-tech gear or hunting on property that has a high fence around it. The survey findings suggest that fishing is less controversial than hunting: 93% of Americans approve of legal recreational fishing (compared to 80% who approve of legal hunting). Like hunting, however, approval of fishing depends on the motivation: more Americans approve of fishing for food than fishing for the sport, for the challenge, or for a trophy fish. Meanwhile, most methods of fishing have high approval, with the exceptions of gigging and snagging. The survey also examined attitudes toward shooting, finding that 81% of Americans approve of legal recreational shooting. This finding is consistent with the approval rates for shooting found in previous survey years, with the exception of a slight dip in approval in 2011. Trapping is more controversial than the other outdoor recreational activities explored in this study. Public opinion on regulated trapping is split: 52% of Americans approve while 31% disapprove. Again, attitudes appear to be influenced by the stated motivation for the activity: there is relatively high approval of trapping for wildlife restoration, population control, food, and property protection, but less approval of trapping for money, fur clothing, and recreation. Higher approval of all four activities (hunting, fishing, shooting, and trapping) is correlated with being male, white, living in a rural area, living in the Midwest or Southeast regions, and growing up with firearms. Conversely, lower approval of the activities is associated with being female, Hispanic, black, living in an urban area, living in the Northeast or West regions, and not growing up with firearms.

1 For the trend results in this report, comparisons of the new data are made only to previous Responsive Management survey questions that used consistent wording. ii Responsive Management

TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction and Methodology ...... 1 Use of Telephones for the Survey ...... 1 Questionnaire Design ...... 2 Survey Sample ...... 2 Telephone Interviewing Facilities ...... 2 Interviewing Dates and Times ...... 2 Telephone Survey Data Collection and Quality Control ...... 3 Data Analysis ...... 3 Sampling Error ...... 4 Additional Information About the Presentation of Results in the Report ...... 5 Demographic Correlation Graphs and How to Interpret Them ...... 6 Attitudes Toward Hunting in the United States ...... 7 Attitudes Toward Hunting in General ...... 7 Motivations for Hunting ...... 12 Attitudes Toward Hunting Different Species ...... 23 Methods of Hunting ...... 34 Attitudes Toward Fishing in the United States ...... 44 Attitudes Toward Fishing in General ...... 44 Motivations for Fishing ...... 48 Methods of Fishing ...... 57 Attitudes Toward Sport Shooting in the United States ...... 67 Attitudes Toward Trapping in the United States ...... 72 Demographics ...... 85 About Responsive Management ...... 89

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 1

INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY This study was conducted by Responsive Management and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) to measure Americans’ attitudes toward hunting, fishing, sport shooting, and trapping. Responsive Management has tracked public attitudes on the four activities in various forms since 1995, and the study makes use of this trend data by examining how Americans’ attitudes have changed over the years.2 The study also examines how approval of hunting, fishing, and trapping varies by motivation, species, and method. The study entailed a scientific telephone survey of adult Americans, ages 18 and older. Data from the survey were weighted to ensure that the results were representative of adult Americans as a whole.

In the survey, the four activities are referred to as follows: “legal hunting,” “legal recreational fishing,” “legal recreational shooting,” and “regulated trapping.” The qualifying terms before each activity serve to exclude any illegal or improper variations of the activity, as might be the case if a respondent were to interpret the single term “hunting” as being inclusive of poaching.

The project was funded by a Multistate Conservation Grant from the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA). Previous similar trend surveys have been funded by a variety of partners and grants, most often through NSSF, AFWA, and regional state fish and wildlife agency associations. Other sources for the data used in the hunting, fishing, and trapping trend analysis include surveys for the Professional Outdoor Media Association and the Archery Trade Association; additionally, the trend analysis on shooting uses data from a survey by Roper Starch Worldwide. Sample sizes for these surveys range from 800 to 5,103, with sampling error ranging from plus or minus 1.4 to 3.5 percentage points. All telephone surveys administered since 2006 entailed landlines and cell phones called in their proper state and regional proportions.

Specific aspects of the research methodology are discussed below.

USE OF TELEPHONES FOR THE SURVEY For the survey, telephones were selected as the preferred sampling medium because of the almost universal ownership of telephones among Americans (both landlines and cell phones were called in their exact state and regional proportions). Additionally, telephone surveys, relative to mail or Internet surveys, allow for more scientific sampling and data collection, provide higher quality data, obtain higher response rates, are more timely, and are more cost-effective. Telephone surveys also have better representation of the sample than mail surveys because the latter systematically exclude those who are not literate enough to complete the surveys or who would be intimidated by having to complete a written survey—by an estimate of the U.S. Department of Education’s National Institute of Literacy (2016), up to 43% of the general population read no higher than a “basic level,” suggesting that they would be reticent to complete a written survey. Finally, telephone surveys also have fewer negative effects on the environment than do mail surveys because of reduced use of paper and reduced energy consumption for delivering and returning the questionnaires.

2 For the trend results in this report, comparisons of the new data are made only to previous Responsive Management survey questions that used consistent wording. 2 Responsive Management

QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN The telephone survey questionnaire was developed cooperatively by Responsive Management and NSSF, based on the research team’s familiarity with similar surveys. In addition, the questionnaire in part included questions from previous surveys to allow for a trend analysis. Responsive Management conducted pre-tests of the questionnaire to ensure proper wording, flow, and logic in the survey.

SURVEY SAMPLE The sample of adult Americans was obtained from Dynata (formerly known as Survey Sampling International), a firm that specializes in providing scientifically valid samples for survey research. The sample included both landlines and cell phones, which were called in the exact proportions that they exist on a state-by-state and regional basis—the resulting national sample was representative of all Americans living in households with a landline, cell phone, or both. A probability-based selection process ensured that each eligible American had an equal chance of being selected for the survey. This process ensured that the sample was valid because every resident had a known chance of participating in the survey.

Responsive Management obtained a total of 3,014 completed interviews. The sample size is less than 3,014 on some graphs because certain questions were asked only of a random subset of the entire sample. This was done to minimize respondent burden by reducing the overall survey length for each respondent.

TELEPHONE INTERVIEWING FACILITIES A central polling site at the Responsive Management office allowed for rigorous quality control over the interviews and data collection. Responsive Management maintains its own in-house telephone interviewing facilities. These facilities are staffed by interviewers with experience conducting computer-assisted telephone interviews on the subjects of outdoor recreation and natural resources.

To ensure the integrity of the telephone survey data, Responsive Management has interviewers who have been trained according to the standards established by the Council of American Survey Research Organizations. Methods of instruction included lecture and role-playing. The Survey Center Managers and other professional staff conducted a project briefing with the interviewers prior to the administration of this survey. Interviewers were instructed on type of study, study goals and objectives, handling of survey questions, interview length, termination points and qualifiers for participation, interviewer instructions within the survey questionnaire, reading of the survey questions, skip patterns, and probing and clarifying techniques necessary for specific questions on the survey questionnaire.

INTERVIEWING DATES AND TIMES Telephone surveying times are Monday through Friday from noon to 9:00 p.m., Saturday from noon to 5:00 p.m., and Sunday from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., local time. A five-callback design was used to maintain the representativeness of the sample, to avoid bias toward people easy to reach by telephone, and to provide an equal opportunity for all to participate. When a respondent Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 3 could not be reached on the first call, subsequent calls were placed on different days of the week and at different times of the day. The survey was conducted in January 2019.

TELEPHONE SURVEY DATA COLLECTION AND QUALITY CONTROL The software used for data collection was Questionnaire Programming Language (QPL). The survey data were entered into the computer as each interview was being conducted, eliminating manual data entry after the completion of the survey and the concomitant data entry errors that may occur with manual data entry. The survey questionnaire was programmed so that QPL branched, coded, and substituted phrases in the survey based on previous responses to ensure the integrity and consistency of the data collection.

The Survey Center Managers and statisticians monitored the data collection, including monitoring of the actual telephone interviews without the interviewers’ knowledge, to evaluate the performance of each interviewer and ensure the integrity of the data. The survey questionnaire itself contains error checkers and computation statements to ensure quality and consistent data. After the surveys were obtained by the interviewers, the Survey Center Managers and/or statisticians checked each completed survey to ensure clarity and completeness.

DATA ANALYSIS The analysis of data was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics as well as proprietary software developed by Responsive Management. The survey data were weighted by age, gender, race/ ethnicity, and geographic region, based on the latest population proportions obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau. Note that this weighting resulted in only minimal adjustments to the results (typically 1-2%), as the raw data collected were quite close to actual population proportions. The findings shown in this report are representative of adult Americans as a whole (see the “Demographics” section at the end of the report for a breakdown of the characteristics of adult Americans used for the weighting of survey data).

For all questions in the survey, crosstabulations were run to compare and contrast regional differences. The four geographic regions used for these analyses are shown in the map on the following page.

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Map was created in color; legibility may be compromised if viewed in black and white.

SAMPLING ERROR Throughout this report, findings of the telephone survey are reported at a 95% confidence interval. For the entire sample of adult Americans, the sampling error is at most plus or minus 1.76 percentage points. This means that if the survey were conducted 100 times on different samples that were selected in the same way, the findings of 95 out of the 100 surveys would fall within plus or minus 1.76 percentage points of each other. Sampling error was calculated using the formula described below, with a sample size of 3,014 and a population size of 253,227,600 adult Americans.

Sampling Error Equation

 Np(.25)   −.25  Where: B = maximum sampling error (as decimal) B =  Ns (1.96) NP = population size (i.e., total number who could be surveyed) S = sample size (i.e., total number of respondents surveyed)  Np −1  N    

Derived from formula: p. 206 in Dillman, D. A. 2000. Mail and Internet Surveys. John Wiley & Sons, NY.

Note: This is a simplified version of the formula that calculates the maximum sampling error using a 50:50 split (the most conservative calculation because a 50:50 split would give maximum variation).

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 5

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE PRESENTATION OF RESULTS IN THE REPORT In examining the results, it is important to be aware that the questionnaire included several types of questions: • Closed-ended questions have an answer set from which to choose. • Single or multiple response questions: Some questions allow only a single response, while other questions allow respondents to give more than one response or choose all that apply. Those that allow more than a single response are indicated on the graphs with the label, “Multiple Responses Allowed.” • Scaled questions: Many closed-ended questions (but not all) are in a scale, such as excellent-good-fair-poor. • Series questions: Many questions are part of a series, and the results are primarily intended to be examined relative to the other questions in that series (although results of the questions individually can also be valuable). Typically, results of all questions in a series are shown together.

Some graphs show an average, either the mean or median (or both). The mean is simply the sum of all numbers divided by the number of respondents. Because outliers (extremely high or low numbers relative to most of the other responses) may skew the mean, the median may be shown. The median is the number at which half the sample is above and the other half is below. In other words, a median of 150 means that half the sample gave an answer of more than 150 and the other half gave an answer of less than 150.

Most graphs show results rounded to the nearest integer; however, all data are stored in decimal format, and all calculations are performed on unrounded numbers. For this reason, some results may not sum to exactly 100% because of this rounding on the graphs. Additionally, rounding may cause apparent discrepancies of 1 percentage point between the graphs and the reported results of combined responses (e.g., when “strongly approve” and “moderately approval” are summed to determine the total percentage of approval).

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DEMOGRAPHIC CORRELATION GRAPHS AND HOW TO INTERPRET THEM Special graphs that show many demographic variables as they relate to a single question are included in this report. As shown in the example below, the graph shows the overall results regarding the percentage who approve of hunting in the striped bar, as well as the percentage of specific demographic groups that approve of hunting in the solid bars. All groups above the striped bar have a higher percentage approving of hunting—in other words, these groups have a higher likelihood of approving of hunting. On the other hand, all groups below the striped bar have a lower percentage approving of hunting.

Percent of each of the following groups who approve of legal hunting:

Hunter 98.8 Shooter 96.8 This graph looks at Angler 90.8 approval of legal Resides in rural area 89.8 hunting. The striped bar shows that 79.6% of Grew up with family who owned firearms 88.3 adult Americans White or Caucasian 86.5 approve of hunting. Male 86.4 Rural residents are Resides in Midwest Region 86.1 more likely than the Resides in small city or town 83.4 general population 55 years old or older 82.7 overall to approve of hunting, with 89.8% Wildlife viewer 82.6 who do so. 35-54 years old 81.8 Resides in Southeast Region 81.6 Conversely, those groups below the Total 79.6 striped bar are less Resides in West Region 77.2 likely to approve of Non-hunter 76.9 hunting than are residents overall. 18-34 years old 75.7 Non-wildlife viewer 74.3 For instance, Hispanic Non-angler 74.2 residents (61.5%) are less likely to approve of Resides in large city or suburb 73.8 hunting than are Non-shooter 73.7 residents overall. Female 73.2 Resides in Northeast Region 72.5 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 65.6 Black or African-American 64.6 Hispanic or Latino 61.5

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014) Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 7

ATTITUDES TOWARD HUNTING IN THE UNITED STATES ATTITUDES TOWARD HUNTING IN GENERAL  Overall, 4 out of 5 Americans approve of hunting when the activity is asked about in a general sense. (Note that the survey asked about legal hunting so that poaching or other illegal activities would not be considered in the responses.) • Differences in approval rates can be observed between the geographic regions, as well. Regional crosstabulations show that approval of hunting is highest in the Midwest (66% of residents strongly approve and 20% moderately approve, for an overall approval of 86%) and lowest in the Northeast (72% overall approval). • Americans’ level of approval for hunting has remained generally consistent over the past quarter century, with a gradual uptick since 1995 when approval was at 73% (in fact, the current approval level of 80% is the highest yet among the study years). • Sport shooters and anglers are more likely to approve of hunting than the average American. Other groups associated with higher levels of approval of hunting are those who live in rural areas, those who grew up in a family that owned firearms, white residents, and male residents. On the other hand, groups associated with lower levels of approval of hunting include Hispanic residents, those who did not grow up in a family that owned firearms, black residents, Northeast region residents, and female residents. (Note that the demographic correlation graphs of those who approve and disapprove of hunting are largely the inverse of each other; however, they are not quite mirror images due to neutral and “don’t know/refused” responses.)

 The survey also asked respondents, regardless of their personal opinion of hunting, if they agree or disagree that it is acceptable for other people to hunt provided they do so legally and in accordance with hunting laws and regulations. Most Americans (92%) agree that it is acceptable, compared to only 6% who disagree. Given that the initial question showed that 13% of Americans disapprove of hunting, this follow-up question suggests that just over half of those who disapprove nonetheless feel that others should have the right to hunt. • There was little variation between the regions on overall agreement, although strong agreement was highest in the Midwest and Southeast regions. • There was a slight decrease in overall agreement compared to 2011.

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Q106. Do you approve or disapprove of legal Q106. Do you approve or disapprove of legal hunting? hunting?

44 58 Strongly approve Strongly approve 55 66 49 80% 28 Moderately 24 Moderately 25 approve 20 approve 28

7 Neither approve 7 nor disapprove 5 Neither approve 7 9 nor disapprove Northeast (n=582) 6 Southeast (n=1091) Moderately 3 Midwest (n=638) disapprove 2 West (n=703) Moderately 4 4 disapprove 13 Strongly 8 13% disapprove 5 9 Strongly 9 disapprove 1 0 Don't know 2 1

Don't know 1 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Q106. Do you approve or disapprove of legal hunting?

100 1995 2003 2006 2011 2013 2015 2016 2019

79 79 80 80 78 77 73 75 74

60 Percent 40

22 20 20 17 16 12 13 14 13

0 Overall approval Overall disapproval (2019 n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 9

Percent of each of the following groups who approve of legal hunting:

Hunter 98.8 Shooter 96.8 Angler 90.8 Resides in rural area 89.8 Grew up with family who owned firearms 88.3 White or Caucasian 86.5 Male 86.4 Resides in Midwest Region 86.1 Resides in small city or town 83.4 55 years old or older 82.7 Wildlife viewer 82.6 35-54 years old 81.8 Resides in Southeast Region 81.6 Total 79.6 Resides in West Region 77.2 Non-hunter 76.9 18-34 years old 75.7 Non-wildlife viewer 74.3 Non-angler 74.2 Resides in large city or suburb 73.8 Non-shooter 73.7 Female 73.2 Resides in Northeast Region 72.5 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 65.6 Black or African-American 64.6 Hispanic or Latino 61.5

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

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Percent of each of the following groups who disapprove of legal hunting:

Hispanic or Latino 25.8 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 22.9 Black or African-American 21.0 Resides in Northeast Region 19.5 Female 17.0 Non-shooter 16.2 Non-angler 16.2 Resides in large city or suburb 15.8 Non-wildlife viewer 15.8 Non-hunter 14.2 18-34 years old 13.2 Resides in West Region 13.0 35-54 years old 12.7 Total 12.5 Resides in Southeast Region 11.5 55 years old or older 11.0 Wildlife viewer 10.8 Resides in small city or town 10.1 White or Caucasian 7.9 Male 7.8 Resides in rural area 7.2 Resides in Midwest Region 6.9 Grew up with family who owned firearms 6.1 Angler 4.9 Shooter 1.7 Hunter 0.4

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 11

Q109. No matter your opinion on hunting, do you Q109. No matter your opinion on hunting, do you agree or disagree that it is OK for other people to agree or disagree that it is OK for other people to hunt if they do so legally and in accordance with hunt if they do so legally and in accordance with hunting laws and regulations? hunting laws and regulations?

67 79 Strongly agree 75 Strongly agree 81 72

92% 21 15 Somewhat agree Somewhat agree 17 14 19

2 Neither agree nor 2 Neither agree nor 2 disagree 1 disagree 2 Northeast (n=582) 2 Southeast (n=1091) Somewhat 1 Midwest (n=638) Somewhat 1 disagree 1 West (n=703) disagree 2

6%* 7 3 Strongly disagree 3 Strongly disagree 4 *Apparent discrepancy is due to rounding of 6 numbers on graph; calculation is made on 0 unrounded numbers. 0 Don't know 1 Don't know Less than 0.5 1

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent (n=3014)

Q109. No matter your opinion on hunting, do you agree or disagree that it is OK for other people to hunt if they do so legally and in accordance with hunting laws and regulations?

100 95 2011 2019 92

80

60 Percent 40

20

4 6 0 Agree Disagree (2019 n=3014)

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MOTIVATIONS FOR HUNTING  Approval of hunting varies considerably depending on the stated reasons for hunting. When the reasons are utilitarian in nature—for meat, to protect humans or property, for wildlife management—approval is very high. In addition, a strong majority of Americans are supportive of hunting to obtain organic meat or locally sourced food. On the other hand, approval of hunting drops substantially when the reasons are for the sport, the challenge, or a trophy. The motivations for hunting asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • To protect humans from harm (85% approve; 63% strongly approve) • For the meat (84% approve; 61% strongly approve) • For wildlife management (82% approve; 58% strongly approve) • To get locally sourced food (83% approve; 56% strongly approve) • To get organic meat (77% approve; 50% strongly approve) • To protect property (74% approve; 48% strongly approve) • For the sport (50% approve; 26% strongly approve) • For the challenge (41% approve; 19% strongly approve) • For a trophy (29% approve; 9% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of motivations are shown together on one graph for comparison. This is followed by graphs showing the series results within each region, as well as the regional crosstabulation for each motivation individually. o The trend graph shows that the percentages who approve of hunting for the sport, for the challenge, and for a trophy have returned to 2006 levels after showing sharp declines in 2016.

 The preceding series showed a high level of approval of hunting for the meat. The survey also asked respondents if they had eaten wild-caught game meat, such as venison or deer, wild turkey, boar, buffalo, or duck in the 12 months prior to the survey; less than half of Americans (43%) had done so. • Residents of the Midwest are the most likely to have done so: at 55%, the Midwest is the only region in which a majority of its residents have eaten game meat. Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 13

Percent that [approve / disapprove] of hunting for each of the following reasons: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don’t know

To protect humans 63 22 3 5 6 1 from harm

For the meat 61 23 3 4 8 1

For wildlife 58 25 3 6 9 1 management

To get locally 56 26 3 4 8 2 sourced food

To get organic meat 50 27 5 5 11 2

To protect property 48 26 5 9 11 1

For the sport 26 25 5 11 34 1

For the challenge 19 22 5 14 39 1

For a trophy 9 20 4 15 51 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

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Percent that strongly approve or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following reasons:

To protect humans 85 from harm

For the meat 84

To get locally 83 sourced food

For wildlife 82 management

To get organic meat 77

To protect property 74

For the sport 50

For the challenge 41

For a trophy 29

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 15

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following reasons: (Northeast Region)

To protect humans from 83 harm

To get locally 82 sourced food

For the meat 81

For wildlife 79 management

To get organic 73 meat

To protect 70 property

For the sport 50

Northeast (n=196)

For the challenge 38

For a trophy 25

0 20 40 60 80 100

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Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following reasons: (Southeast Region)

To protect humans 89 from harm

For wildlife 86 management

For the meat 85

To get locally 85 sourced food

To get organic 79 meat

To protect property 79

For the sport 52 Southeast (n=361)

For the challenge 42

For a trophy 31

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 17

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following reasons: (Midwest Region)

For the meat 89

To protect humans 87 from harm

For wildlife 84 management

To get locally 84 sourced food

To get organic 78 meat

To protect property 78

For the sport 57

Midwest (n=198) For the challenge 51

For a trophy 34

0 20 40 60 80 100

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Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following reasons: (West Region)

For the meat 82

To get locally 80 sourced food

To protect humans 77 from harm

For wildlife 77 management

To get organic 75 meat

To protect property 68

For the sport 42 West (n=220)

For the challenge 33

For a trophy 24

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 19

Q118. For the meat? Q119. For a trophy? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this reason?) for this reason?)

6 51 12 66 Strongly approve Strongly approve 12 67 7 56

20 30 Moderately 19 Moderately 19 approve 22 approve 22 18 26 Northeast (n=196) 7 3 Neither approve 4 Southeast (n=361) Neither approve 2 nor disapprove 3 Midwest (n=198) nor disapprove 4 4 3 West (n=220)

Northeast (n=196) 7 14 Moderately 3 Southeast (n=361) Moderately 18 disapprove 2 Midwest (n=198) disapprove 14 11 3 West (n=220)

9 51 Strongly 8 Strongly 46 disapprove 5 disapprove 46 11 60

1 2 2 1 Don't know Don't know 0 3 1 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q120. To protect humans from harm? Q121. For the challenge? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this reason?) for this reason?)

61 14 67 20 Strongly approve Strongly approve 64 24 57 17

23 25 Moderately 21 Moderately 22 approve 23 approve 27 19 17

3 7 Neither approve 3 Neither approve 6 nor disapprove 1 nor disapprove 4 Northeast (n=196) 7 4 Southeast (n=361) Northeast (n=196) Midwest (n=198) 5 Southeast (n=361) Moderately 4 16 West (n=220) Midwest (n=198) Moderately 4 15 disapprove West (n=220) 7 disapprove 15 10

7 Strongly 4 38 disapprove 6 Strongly 36 8 disapprove 30 51 1 0 1 Don't know 1 1 Don't know 1 0 2 0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

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Q122. To get organic meat? Q123. For wildlife management? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this reason?) for this reason?)

45 53 52 61 Strongly approve Strongly approve 51 63 52 52

28 25 Moderately Moderately 28 25 approve 22 approve 27 25 22

6 4 Neither approve 2 Neither approve 4 nor disapprove 2 nor disapprove 6 Northeast (n=196) 5 5 Southeast (n=361) Northeast (n=196) Midwest (n=198) 7 6 Southeast (n=361) Moderately 5 Moderately 4 West (n=220) 6 Midwest (n=198) 5 disapprove disapprove West (n=220) 8 6

11 11 Strongly Strongly 11 6 disapprove 7 disapprove 9 11 12

4 1 1 2 Don't know Don't know 0 2 0 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q124. To protect property? Q125. For the sport? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this reason?) for this reason?)

41 21 54 28 Strongly approve Strongly approve 54 30 39 24

29 30 Moderately 25 Moderately 24 approve 24 approve 27 28 18

4 6 Neither approve 6 Neither approve 7 nor disapprove 2 nor disapprove 1 9 Northeast (n=196) 4 Northeast (n=196) Southeast (n=361) Southeast (n=361) 13 Midwest (n=198) 12 Moderately 6 Moderately 9 Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) disapprove 8 disapprove 10 West (n=220) 9 12

13 32 Strongly 8 Strongly 31 disapprove 12 disapprove 31 13 42

0 0 1 1 Don't know Don't know 0 1 2 0

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 21

Q126. To get locally sourced food? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this reason?)

48 61 Strongly approve 60 53

34 Moderately 24 approve 24 26

3 Neither approve 2 nor disapprove 5 4 Northeast (n=196) 7 Southeast (n=361) Moderately 3 Midwest (n=198) disapprove 2 West (n=220) 6

8 Strongly 9 disapprove 6 9

0 1 Don't know 4 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

Q118-125. Percent who strongly or moderately approve of hunting for the following motivations:

100 2006 2016 2019 88 87 85 84 85 85 85 83 81 82 78 77 80 74 74 7169

60 53 50

41 Percent 40 40 36 29 26 28 21 20

* * 0 For the meat To protect To get locally For widlife To get To protect For the sport For the For a trophy humans from sourced food management organic meat property challenge harm

*Motivation not asked about in 2006 survey (2019 n=3014)

22 Responsive Management

Q111. Not including meat from farm-raised Q111. Not including meat from farm-raised sources, ordered at restaurants, or bought at sources, ordered at restaurants, or bought at stores, have you eaten any wild-caught game meat, stores, have you eaten any wild-caught game meat, such as venison or deer, wild turkey, boar, buffalo, such as venison or deer, wild turkey, boar, buffalo, or duck, in the past 12 months? or duck, in the past 12 months?

37

46 Yes Yes 43 55

36

63

54 No 45 No 56 64 Northeast (n=582) Southeast (n=1091) Midwest (n=638) 0 West (n=703) 0 Don't know 1

0 Don't know Less than 0.5

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014) Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 23

ATTITUDES TOWARD HUNTING DIFFERENT SPECIES  Attitudes toward hunting vary according to the species being hunted. This study, consistent with others, shows that hunting of ungulates, such as deer and elk, or waterfowl is more acceptable than is hunting of predators, such as bear, mountain lions, or wolves. Meanwhile, less than a fifth of Americans approve of hunting for exotic species such as African lions and elephants. The species asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of hunting each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • Deer (78% approve; 56% strongly approve) • Wild turkey (78% approve; 55% strongly approve) • Duck (74% approve; 47% strongly approve) • Rabbit (72% approve; 47% strongly approve) • Squirrel (65% approve; 43% strongly approve) • Elk (66% approve; 39% strongly approve) • Alligator (61% approve; 36% strongly approve) • Mourning dove (44% approve; 24% strongly approve) • Black bear (44% approve; 21% strongly approve) • Grizzly bear (40% approve; 20% strongly approve) • Wolf (39% approve; 20% strongly approve) • Mountain lion or cougar (38% approve; 18% strongly approve) • African lion (14% approve; 6% strongly approve) • African elephant (7% approve; 3% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of species are shown together on one graph, followed by graphs showing the series results within each region and the regional crosstabulation for each species individually. o The trend graph shows that approval of hunting black bear and wild turkey has increased since 2016. o It is interesting to note that there is no species for which hunting approval is as high as it is for hunting in general. This suggests that, for some, it is easier to approve of hunting in general when specific animals are not being considered.

24 Responsive Management

Percent that [approve / disapprove] of hunting each of the following species: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don't know

Deer 56 22 3 5 14 0

Wild turkey 55 24 4 5 11 2

Duck 47 28 4 7 14 1

Rabbit 47 25 3 9 15 1

Squirrel 43 22 5 9 19 1

Elk 39 27 6 8 18 2

Alligator 36 25 8 10 17 4

Mourning dove 24 20 10 11 31 4

Black bear 21 23 7 12 34 3

Grizzly bear 20 20 7 11 39 2

Wolf 20 19 7 13 39 3

Mountain lion or cougar 18 20 7 13 39 2

African lion 6 8 6 9 68 4

African elephant 3 3 5 7 80 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 25

Percent that strongly approve or moderately approve of hunting each of the following species:

Wild turkey 78

Deer 78

Duck 74

Rabbit 72

Elk 66

Squirrel 65

Alligator 61

Mourning dove 44

Black bear 44

Grizzly bear 40

Wolf 39

Mountain lion or cougar 38

African lion 14

African elephant 7

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

26 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting each of the following species: (Northeast Region)

Wild turkey 74

Deer 72

Duck 69

Rabbit 66

Elk 60

Alligator 59

Squirrel 57

Black bear 46 Northeast (n=196)

Grizzly bear 42

Wolf 40

Mountain lion or cougar 36

Mourning dove 32

African lion 14

African elephant 5

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 27

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting each of the following species: (Southeast Region)

Deer 82

Wild turkey 82

Duck 76

Rabbit 75

Squirrel 70

Alligator 69

Elk 65

Mourning dove 52

Black bear 44

Grizzly bear 40 Southeast (n=361)

Mountain lion or cougar 37

Wolf 37

African lion 17

African elephant 9

0 20 40 60 80 100

28 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting each of the following species: (Midwest Region)

Deer 82

Wild turkey 80

Duck 75

Rabbit 74

Elk 71

Squirrel 68

Alligator 63

Black bear 48

Wolf 46 Midwest (n=198)

Grizzly bear 44

Mountain lion or cougar 43

Mourning dove 39

African lion 11

African elephant 4

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 29

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting each of the following species: (West Region)

Duck 77

Wild turkey 75

Deer 72

Rabbit 71

Elk 68

Squirrel 62

Alligator 48

West (n=220) Mourning dove 47

Black bear 39

Mountain lion or cougar 37

Wolf 34

Grizzly bear 33

African lion 10

African elephant 7

0 20 40 60 80 100

30 Responsive Management

Q129. Deer? Q130. Wild turkey? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

47 47 58 58 Strongly approve Strongly approve 69 62 49 51

25 27 Moderately 24 Moderately 25 approve 13 approve 18 23 24

4 4 Neither approve 2 Neither approve 3 nor disapprove 1 nor disapprove 3 5 6 Northeast (n=196) Southeast (n=361) 7 Northeast (n=196) 9 Midwest (n=198) Moderately 3 Southeast (n=361) Moderately 3 West (n=220) disapprove 5 Midwest (n=198) disapprove 5 4 West (n=220) 5

17 10 Strongly 12 Strongly 10 disapprove 11 disapprove 11 18 12

0 3 1 1 Don't know Don't know 0 2 0 3

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q131. Black bear? Q132. Mourning dove? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

19 12 21 30 Strongly approve Strongly approve 27 22 19 28

27 20 Moderately Moderately 22 22 17 approve 21 approve 20 20 Northeast (n=196) Northeast (n=196) Southeast (n=361) Southeast (n=361) 11 9 Midwest (n=198) Midwest (n=198) Neither approve 7 Neither approve 6 West (n=220) 11 West (n=220) nor disapprove 6 nor disapprove 5 12

14 13 Moderately Moderately 13 9 12 disapprove 11 disapprove 10 9

28 39 Strongly 35 Strongly 28 35 disapprove 30 disapprove 43 26

3 5 1 4 Don't know Don't know 5 3 2 5

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 31

Q133. Mountain lion or cougar? Q134. Elk? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

13 27 20 Strongly approve 40 19 Strongly approve 44 18 45

23 33 Moderately 17 Moderately 25 approve 24 approve 27 19 23

9 Northeast (n=196) 6 Neither approve 8 Northeast (n=196) Neither approve 6 nor disapprove 7 Southeast (n=361) Southeast (n=361) nor disapprove 3 5 Midwest (n=198) 7 Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) West (n=220) 19 11 Moderately 13 Moderately 8 disapprove 12 disapprove 8 11 7

33 20 Strongly 41 Strongly 19 disapprove 37 disapprove 14 46 16

4 3 1 Don't know 1 2 Don't know 5 1 1

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q135. Duck? Q136. Grizzly bear? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

39 16 49 22 Strongly approve Strongly approve 52 23 46 18

30 26 Moderately 27 Moderately 19 approve 22 approve 22 30 15 Northeast (n=196) Southeast (n=361) 11 4 Northeast (n=196) Midwest (n=198) Neither approve 3 Neither approve 7 Southeast (n=361) West (n=220) nor disapprove 4 nor disapprove 6 6 Midwest (n=198) 5 West (n=220) 10 13 Moderately 8 Moderately 13 disapprove 6 disapprove 9 4 9

16 29 Strongly 12 Strongly 39 disapprove 15 disapprove 37 13 50

2 5 0 1 Don't know Don't know 1 3 0 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

32 Responsive Management

Q137. Alligator? Q138. Wolf? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

32 18 45 19 Strongly approve Strongly approve 32 23 28 18

27 22 Moderately 24 Moderately 18 approve 31 approve 23 20 15

9 8 Neither approve 7 Neither approve 4 Northeast (n=196) nor disapprove 6 nor disapprove 8 Southeast (n=361) 15 Northeast (n=196) 7 Midwest (n=198) Southeast (n=361) 14 West (n=220) 13 Midwest (n=198) Moderately 12 Moderately 8 West (n=220) disapprove 12 disapprove 14 10 11

14 33 Strongly 17 Strongly 40 disapprove 13 disapprove 32 23 48

5 4 2 3 Don't know Don't know 3 2 4 1

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q139. Rabbit? Q140. Squirrel? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

31 34 47 Strongly approve 48 50 Strongly approve 54 43 51 26 32 Moderately 23 Moderately 27 approve 18 approve 21 19 20 5 3 Neither approve 3 Northeast (n=196) Neither approve Northeast (n=196) 6 2 nor disapprove Southeast (n=361) nor disapprove 3 Southeast (n=361) 6 Midwest (n=198) 3 Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) West (n=220) 16 10 Moderately 8 Moderately 6 disapprove 9 disapprove 14 6 8 20 20 Strongly 18 Strongly 17 disapprove 14 disapprove 7 24 16 1 0 2 Don't know 1 3 Don't know 1 1 1 0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 33

Q141. African lion? Q142. African elephant? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting for this species?) for this species?)

3 1 9 5 Strongly approve Strongly approve 7 3 3 3

10 4 Northeast (n=196) Moderately 9 Moderately 4 approve 4 Northeast (n=196) approve 1 Southeast (n=361) 7 Southeast (n=361) 3 Midwest (n=198) Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) 9 West (n=220) 7 Neither approve 4 Neither approve 5 nor disapprove 9 nor disapprove 5 4 3

10 7 Moderately 8 Moderately 5 disapprove 11 disapprove 8 7 7

64 80 Strongly 68 Strongly 79 disapprove 65 disapprove 80 76 81

4 1 3 2 Don't know Don't know 4 3 3 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q129-142. Percent of respondents who strongly approve or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following species:

100 2006 2016 2019

78 78 79 80 77 76 74 75 71 7172 69 65 6666 60 61 60 58

47 44 44 42 42 Percent 40 4040 3939 40 37 3738

20 16 14

7 4 * * * * * * * * 0 Deer Duck Wild Rabbit Squirrel Elk Alligator Mourning Grizzly Wolf Black Mountain African African turkey dove bear bear lion or Lion elephant cougar *Species not asked about in 2006 survey (2019 n=3014)

34 Responsive Management

METHODS OF HUNTING  The methods used to hunt also affect Americans’ attitudes toward the sport. The hunting methods asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • Hunting with a bow and arrow (80% approve; 60% strongly approve) • Hunting with dogs (55% approve; 26% strongly approve) • Hunting using scents that attract game (43% approve; 18% strongly approve) • Hunting over bait (32% approve; 13% strongly approve) • Hunting bear during the spring (20% approve; 10% strongly approve) • Hunting using high-tech gear such as hearing devices or laser tripwires (26% approve; 9% strongly approve) • Hunting on property that has a high fence around it (21% approve; 8% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of hunting methods are shown together on one graph, followed by graphs showing the series results within each region and the regional crosstabulation for each method individually. o Although hunting using high-tech gear and on high-fence property remain unpopular methods of hunting, approval for each has notably increased since 2016.

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 35

Percent that [approve / disapprove] of hunting using each of the following methods: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don't know

Hunting with a bow and arrow 60 20 12 3

2 4

Hunting with dogs 26 29 6 11 24 4

Hunting using scents that attract game 18 25 7 12 33 5

Hunting over bait 13 19 8 14 41 5

Hunting bear during the spring 10 10 11 17 43 9

Hunting using high-tech gear such as 9 18 6 17 46 4 hearing devices or laser tripwires

Hunting on property that has a high fence 8 13 8 14 52 5 around it

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

36 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly approve or moderately approve of hunting using each of the following methods:

Hunting with a bow 80 and arrow

Hunting with dogs 55

Hunting using scents that attract 43 game

Hunting over bait 32

Hunting using high- tech gear such as 26 hearing devices or laser tripwires

Hunting on property that has a high 21 fence around it

Hunting bear during 20 the spring

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=975)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 37

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting using each of the following methods: (Northeast Region)

Hunting with a bow 71 and arrow

Hunting with dogs 55

Hunting using scents that attract 40 game

Hunting using high- tech gear such as 27 hearing devices or Northeast (n=196) laser tripwires

Hunting over bait 22

Hunting bear during 20 the spring

Hunting on property that has a high 17 fence around it

0 20 40 60 80 100

38 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting using each of the following methods: (Southeast Region)

Hunting with a bow 81 and arrow

Hunting with dogs 52

Hunting using scents that attract 45 game

Hunting over bait 39

Hunting using high- tech gear such as Southeast (n=361) 27 hearing devices or laser tripwires Hunting on property that has a 25 high fence around it

Hunting bear 21 during the spring

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 39

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting using each of the following methods: (Midwest Region)

Hunting with a bow 87 and arrow

Hunting with dogs 64

Hunting using scents that attract 48 game

Hunting over bait 31 Midwest (n=198) Hunting using high- tech gear such as 30 hearing devices or laser tripwires

Hunting bear 25 during the spring

Hunting on property that has a 21 high fence around it

0 20 40 60 80 100

40 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of hunting using each of the following methods: (West Region)

Hunting with a bow 79 and arrow

Hunting with dogs 51

Hunting using scents that attract 39 game

Hunting over bait 31 West (n=220)

Hunting using high- tech gear such as 22 hearing devices or laser tripwires

Hunting on property that has a high 18 fence around it

Hunting bear during 15 the spring

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 41

Q145. Hunting over bait? Q146. Hunting on property that has a high-fence (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting around it? using this method?) (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting using this method?)

6 4 20 Strongly approve 9 13 Strongly approve 10 10 8

16 13 Moderately 19 Moderately 16 approve 19 11 21 approve 10 Northeast (n=196) 8 Southeast (n=361) 9 Neither approve 7 Midwest (n=198) Neither approve 9 nor disapprove 10 Northeast (n=196) 9 6 West (n=220) nor disapprove Southeast (n=361) 6 Midwest (n=198) 23 West (n=220) 16 Moderately 10 Moderately 11 disapprove 16 15 10 disapprove 15

42 54 Strongly 40 Strongly 51 disapprove 38 51 46 disapprove 53

5 5 3 Don't know 4 5 Don't know 5 7 8

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q147. Hunting using scents that attract game? Q148. Hunting with dogs? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting using this method?) using this method?)

21 11 27 22 Strongly approve Strongly approve 35 21 24 16

34 29 Moderately 26 Moderately 23 approve 30 approve 28 27 23

6 Northeast (n=196) 9 Neither approve 6 Northeast (n=196) Neither approve 8 nor disapprove 6 Southeast (n=361) nor disapprove 6 Southeast (n=361) 6 Midwest (n=198) 5 Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) West (n=220) 12 17 Moderately 12 Moderately 10 disapprove 9 disapprove 13 9 11

24 31 Strongly 27 Strongly 33 disapprove 16 disapprove 27 29 39

3 3 3 4 Don't know Don't know 5 6 5 6

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

42 Responsive Management

Q149. Hunting using high-tech gear such as Q150. Hunting with a bow and arrow? hearing devices or laser tripwires? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting using this method?) using this method?)

51 7 61 11 Strongly approve Strongly approve 68 9 59 7

20 20 Moderately 20 Moderately 16 approve 19 approve 21 20 15

4 6 Neither approve 2 Neither approve 7 Northeast (n=196) nor disapprove 0 Northeast (n=196) nor disapprove 5 3 7 Southeast (n=361) Southeast (n=361) Midwest (n=198) Midwest (n=198) West (n=220) 8 West (n=220) 17 Moderately 2 Moderately 14 disapprove 2 disapprove 19 3 20

15 47 Strongly 11 Strongly 47 disapprove 9 disapprove 44 12 45

3 4 3 5 Don't know Don't know 1 2 3 7

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q151. Hunting bear during the spring? (Do you approve or disapprove of hunting using this method?)

9 10 Strongly approve 14 8

11 Moderately 11 approve 11 7 Northeast (n=196) Southeast (n=361) 13 Neither approve 11 Midwest (n=198) nor disapprove 10 West (n=220) 10

24 Moderately 14 disapprove 14 17

34 Strongly 47 disapprove 40 47

9 8 Don't know 10 11

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 43

Q145-151. Percent who strongly approve or moderately approve of hunting for each of the following methods:

100 2007 2016 2019

80 80 76

57 60 54 55

43

Percent 38 40 36 32 29 27 26 20 22 20 21 22 20 20 14

* * 0 Hunting with a Hunting with dogs Hunting using Hunting over bait Hunting using Hunting in a high- Hunting bear bow and arrow special scents high-tech gear fence preserve / during the spring that attract game Hunting on property that has a high fence *Method not asked about in 2007 survey around it (2019 n=3014)

44 Responsive Management

ATTITUDES TOWARD FISHING IN THE UNITED STATES ATTITUDES TOWARD FISHING IN GENERAL  There is less controversy surrounding fishing, relative to hunting, with the vast majority of Americans approving of fishing. Nationally, 93% of Americans approve of legal recreational fishing, while only 3% disapprove. • There is little variation between the regions regarding overall approval, although strong approval is highest in the Midwest. The nationwide percentage of approval has remained consistent over the years. • The demographic correlations graphs show little variation between the groups regarding approval of fishing. Compared to the overall percentage of Americans who approve of fishing, there is slightly less approval among Hispanic residents and those who did not grow up with firearms in the family.

Q107. Do you approve or disapprove of legal Q107. Do you approve or disapprove of legal recreational fishing? recreational fishing?

70 77 Strongly approve Strongly approve 75 84 70

93% 21 Moderately 18 Moderately approve 12 18 approve 22

4 Neither approve 3 nor disapprove 2 Neither approve 3 4 nor disapprove 2 Northeast (n=582) Moderately 1 Southeast (n=1091) disapprove 1 Midwest (n=638) Moderately 1 1 West (n=703) disapprove 3 3% Strongly 1 disapprove 1 2 Strongly 2 disapprove 0 0 Don't know 0 1

Don't know Less than 0.5 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014) Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 45

Q107. Do you approve or disapprove of legal recreational fishing?

100 95 1995 2003 2006 2011 2019 93 93 93 90

80

60 Percent 40

20

4 5 3 2 3 0 Overall approval Overall disapproval (2019 n=3014)

46 Responsive Management

Percent of each of the following groups who approve of legal recreational fishing:

Hunter 98.5 Angler 98.2 Shooter 98.1 Grew up with family who owned firearms 96.7 White or Caucasian 95.9 Resides in Midwest Region 95.8 Resides in rural area 95.1 Male 95.1 35-54 years old 94.9 Wildlife viewer 94.7 Resides in Southeast Region 94.4 55 years old or older 94.3 Resides in small city or town 94.0 Total 93.5 Non-hunter 92.7 Resides in large city or suburb 92.5 Resides in West Region 91.9 Female 91.9 Non-shooter 91.9 18-34 years old 91.5 Non-wildlife viewer 91.4 Resides in Northeast Region 91.3 Non-angler 91.2 Black or African-American 91.1 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 88.3 Hispanic or Latino 87.7

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 47

Percent of each of the following groups who disapprove of legal recreational fishing:

Hispanic or Latino 6.5 Did not grow up with family who owned 5.3 firearms Resides in Northeast Region 4.6 18-34 years old 4.0 Non-angler 3.9 Black or African-American 3.6 Female 3.6 Non-wildlife viewer 3.4 Non-shooter 3.4 Resides in large city or suburb 3.2 Non-hunter 3.1 Resides in West Region 2.9 Total 2.8 Resides in small city or town 2.7 Wildlife viewer 2.5 55 years old or older 2.5 35-54 years old 2.3 Resides in Midwest Region 2.3 Resides in rural area 2.2 Resides in Southeast Region 2.1 Male 2.0 White or Caucasian 1.7 Grew up with family who owned firearms 1.4 Shooter 1.2 Hunter 1.1 Angler 0.6

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

48 Responsive Management

MOTIVATIONS FOR FISHING  Approval of fishing can vary depending on the motivations for fishing. Fishing for food is considered much more acceptable than fishing for the sport, for the challenge, or for a trophy fish. These results largely mirror those of the hunting portion of the survey, indicating that Americans approve of fishing for utilitarian purposes much more than they approve of fishing for sport. The motivations for fishing asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • For fish to eat (96% approve; 84% strongly approve) • To supplement income (82% approve; 55% strongly approve) • For the challenge (70% approve; 43% strongly approve) • For the sport (73% approve; 43% strongly approve) • For a trophy fish (53% approve; 26% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of motivations are shown together on one graph, followed by graphs showing the series results within each region and the regional crosstabulation for each motivation individually. o For most motivations, strong approval is highest in the Midwest and strong disapproval is highest in the Northeast. o Approval of fishing to supplement income has increased substantially, going from 65% in 2006 to 82% in 2019. The percentages of Americans who approve of fishing for the challenge and for a trophy fish have also notably increased.

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 49

Percent that [approve / disapprove] of fishing for each of the following reasons: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don't know

1

For fish to eat 84 12 0 1 1

To supplement 55 27 5 5 6 3 income

For the challenge 43 26 9 7 13 1

For the sport 43 30 7 7 12 1

For a trophy fish 26 27 9 13 24 1

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=1041)

50 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly approve or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following reasons:

For fish to eat 96

To supplement 82 income

For the sport 73

For the challenge 70

For a trophy fish 53

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=1041)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 51

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following reasons: (Northeast Region)

For fish to eat 97

To supplement 81 income

For the challenge 66

For the sport 65

Northeast (n=197)

For a trophy fish 47

0 20 40 60 80 100

52 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following reasons: (Southeast Region)

For fish to eat 96

To supplement 83 income

For the sport 75

For the challenge 71

Southeast (n=380)

For a trophy fish 58

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 53

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following reasons: (Midwest Region)

For fish to eat 97

To supplement 82 income

For the sport 78

For the challenge 77

Midwest (n=224)

For a trophy fish 61

0 20 40 60 80 100

54 Responsive Management

Percent that strongly or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following reasons: (West Region)

For fish to eat 95

To supplement 80 income

For the sport 71

For the challenge 64

West (n=240)

For a trophy fish 42

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 55

Q155. For fish to eat? Q156. For the sport? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing for this reason?) for this reason?)

84 35 82 46 Strongly approve Strongly approve 90 49 81 38

12 30 Moderately 14 Moderately 30 approve 7 approve 29 14 33

0 5 Neither approve 2 Neither approve 8 nor disapprove 1 nor disapprove 6 Northeast (n=197) 1 9 Southeast (n=380) Northeast (n=197) Midwest (n=224) 1 Southeast (n=380) 10 West (n=240) Moderately 6 Moderately 1 Midwest (n=224) 0 disapprove 7 disapprove West (n=240) 2 7

2 19 Strongly 1 Strongly 10 disapprove 2 disapprove 7 1 12

0 1 0 1 Don't know Don't know 0 2 1 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q157. To supplement income? Q158. For the challenge? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing for this reason?) for this reason?)

56 41 57 44 Strongly approve Strongly approve 57 53 49 36

24 25 Moderately 26 Moderately 27 approve 25 approve 24 32 29

5 7 Neither approve 6 Neither approve 9 Northeast (n=197) nor disapprove 5 Northeast (n=197) nor disapprove 8 Southeast (n=380) 4 Southeast (n=380) 11 Midwest (n=224) Midwest (n=224) West (n=240) 4 West (n=240) 7 Moderately 4 Moderately 7 disapprove 5 disapprove 5 6 11

6 19 Strongly 5 Strongly 13 disapprove 5 disapprove 8 6 11

4 1 2 1 Don't know Don't know 4 2 2 2

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

56 Responsive Management

Q159. For a trophy fish? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing for this reason?)

22 31 Strongly approve 30 19

25 Moderately 27 approve 31 23 Northeast (n=197) 8 Southeast (n=380) Neither approve 8 Midwest (n=224) nor disapprove 10 10 West (n=240)

16 Moderately 10 disapprove 9 17

29 Strongly 22 disapprove 19 27

0 1 Don't know 1 3

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

Q155-159. Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing for the following motivations:

100 96 96 2006 2019

82 80 75 73 70 65 64 60 53 48 Percent 40

20

0 For fish to eat For the sport To supplement For the challenge For a trophy fish income

(2019 n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 57

METHODS OF FISHING  As with hunting, the methods used to fish can influence Americans’ attitudes toward the sport. Approval is high for the most common fishing methods (catch-and-release fishing, fishing with bait, fly-fishing, and fishing with lures). Crabbing has slightly lower approval, and then there is a sharp decline in approval for gigging and snagging. The fishing methods asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • Catch-and-release fishing (89% approve; 73% strongly approve) • Fishing with bait (91% approve; 68% strongly approve) • Fly-fishing (84% approve; 63% strongly approve) • Fishing with lures (86% approve; 63% strongly approve) • Crabbing (79% approve; 54% strongly approve) • Gigging (57% approve; 32% strongly approve) • Snagging (43% approve; 21% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of fishing methods are shown together on one graph, followed by graphs showing the series results within each region and the regional crosstabulation for each method individually. o Strong approval is highest in the Midwest for all methods except crabbing, which has higher approval in the Northeast and Southeast. o Although the least popular methods of fishing are gigging and snagging, approval of each has increased substantially since 2006.

58 Responsive Management

Percent who [approve / disapprove] of fishing using each of the following methods: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don't know

Catch-and-release 73 16 3 3 4 2 fishing

Fishing with bait 68 23 3 3

1 2

Fly-fishing 63 21 5 7

1 2

Fishing with lures 63 24 5 3 2 4

Crabbing 54 25 8 2 3 9

Gigging 32 26 10 8 16 9

Snagging 21 22 9 14 25 9

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=1041)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 59

Percent who strongly approve or moderately approve of fishing using each of the following methods:

Fishing with bait 91

Catch-and-release 89 fishing

Fishing with lures 86

Fly-fishing 84

Crabbing 79

Gigging 57

Snagging 43

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=1041)

60 Responsive Management

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing using each of the following methods: (Northeast Region)

Fishing with bait 88

Catch-and-release 84 fishing

Fishing with lures 81

Crabbing 77

Fly-fishing 76

Gigging 47 Northeast (n=197)

Snagging 35

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 61

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing using each of the following methods: (Southeast Region)

Fishing with bait 92

Catch-and-release 90 fishing

Fishing with lures 88

Fly-fishing 88

Crabbing 84

Gigging 61 Southeast (n=380)

Snagging 44

0 20 40 60 80 100

62 Responsive Management

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing using each of the following methods: (Midwest Region)

Fishing with bait 94

Catch-and-release 94 fishing

Fishing with lures 92

Fly-fishing 87

Crabbing 77

Gigging 64

Midwest (n=224)

Snagging 51

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 63

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing using each of the following methods: (West Region)

Fishing with bait 88

Catch-and-release 86 fishing

Fly-fishing 83

Fishing with lures 82

Crabbing 78

Gigging 55 West (n=240)

Snagging 40

0 20 40 60 80 100

64 Responsive Management

Q162. Fishing with bait? Q163. Fishing with lures? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing using this method?) using this method?)

63 59 70 63 Strongly approve Strongly approve 79 75 61 54

24 23 Moderately 23 Moderately 25 approve 16 approve 17 28 28

3 3 Neither approve 3 Neither approve 6 nor disapprove 1 nor disapprove 2 Northeast (n=197) 7 5 Northeast (n=197) Southeast (n=380) Southeast (n=380) Midwest (n=224) 3 1 Midwest (n=224) West (n=240) Moderately 2 Moderately 1 West (n=240) disapprove 1 disapprove 1 2 5

3 3 Strongly 1 Strongly 1 disapprove 2 disapprove 2 1 3

5 9 2 3 Don't know Don't know 1 3 4 4

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q164. Catch-and-release fishing? Q165. Fly-fishing? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing using this method?) using this method?)

65 73 Strongly approve 81 69 52 63 Strongly approve 75 19 61 Moderately 16 approve 13 16 23 Moderately 24 approve 12 3 22 Neither approve 3 nor disapprove 1 4 8 Neither approve 3 nor disapprove 4 5 8 Moderately 2 Northeast (n=197) Northeast (n=197) disapprove 1 Southeast (n=380) Southeast (n=380) 4 2 Midwest (n=224) Moderately 1 Midwest (n=224) West (n=240) disapprove 0 West (n=240) 6 2 Strongly 4 disapprove 2 4 3 Strongly 1 disapprove 3 3 1 1 Don't know 1 3 12 6 Don't know 6 0 20 40 60 80 100 5 Percent 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 65

Q166. Crabbing? Q167. Gigging? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing using this method?) using this method?)

58 26 59 35 Strongly approve Strongly approve 50 36 47 27

19 21 Moderately 25 Moderately 26 approve 26 approve 28 28 31 Northeast (n=197) Southeast (n=380) 6 Northeast (n=197) 12 Neither approve Midwest (n=224) Neither approve 7 Southeast (n=380) 9 nor disapprove 7 West (n=240) nor disapprove 8 Midwest (n=224) 10 13 West (n=240)

3 8 Moderately 2 Moderately 8 disapprove 1 disapprove 7 2 8

4 19 Strongly 2 Strongly 14 disapprove 3 disapprove 16 2 15

10 13 6 8 Don't know Don't know 11 7 9 9

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q168. Snagging? (Do you approve or disapprove of fishing using this method?)

19 21 Strongly approve 29 17

16 Moderately 23 approve 22 24 Northeast (n=197) Southeast (n=380) 11 Midwest (n=224) Neither approve 11 West (n=240) nor disapprove 6 8

13 Moderately 14 disapprove 14 14

27 Strongly 22 disapprove 22 30

14 10 Don't know 7 7

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

66 Responsive Management

Q162-168. Percent who strongly or moderately approve of fishing for each of the following methods:

100 2006 2019 91 90 89 86 86 86 85 84 79 79 80

60 58

45 43 Percent 40 32

20

0 Fishing with Fishing with Catch-and- Fly fishing Crabbing Gigging Snagging bait lures release fishing

(2019 n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 67

ATTITUDES TOWARD SPORT SHOOTING IN THE UNITED STATES  Overall, 81% of Americans approve of legal recreational shooting, compared to 12% who disapprove. • As with hunting and fishing, approval is highest in the Midwest and lowest in the Northeast. • This approval rate is consistent with the 2016 survey. o Groups most commonly associated with approval of sport shooting are hunters and anglers, those who grew up with a family that owned firearms, those who live in rural areas, white residents, and male residents. At the opposite end, the groups most commonly associated with disapproval of shooting are black residents, those who did not grow up with a family that owned firearms, Northeast region residents, Hispanic residents, and female residents.

 The survey also asked respondents to select a statement that best reflects their opinion of recreational shooting sports. The three statements and the percentages who selected each are as follows: • Shooting sports are perfectly acceptable. (65%) • Shooting sports are OK, but maybe a little inappropriate now. (23%) • Shooting sports are inappropriate nowadays. (9%) o Residents of the Midwest and Southeast regions are the most likely to say shooting sports are perfectly acceptable, whereas those in the Northeast are the least likely to say this. o These results are consistent with the findings from 2011.

68 Responsive Management

Q108. Do you approve or disapprove of legal Q108. Do you approve or disapprove of legal recreational shooting? recreational shooting?

51 61 Strongly approve Strongly approve 59 64 59

81% 22 Moderately 22 Moderately approve 20 22 approve 23

6 Neither approve 6 nor disapprove 5 Neither approve 6 7 nor disapprove 4 Moderately 2 Northeast (n=582) disapprove 4 Southeast (n=1091) Moderately 3 3 Midwest (n=638) disapprove West (n=703) 15 12% Strongly 9 disapprove 6 7 Strongly 9 disapprove 1 0 Don't know 0 1

Don't know Less than 0.5 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Q108. Do you approve or disapprove of legal recreational shooting?

100 2006 2011 2016 2019

81 79 79 80 71

60 Percent 40

19 20 14 13 12

0 Overall approval Overall disapproval (2019 n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 69

Percent of each of the following groups who approve of legal recreational shooting:

Shooter 98.6 Hunter 98.3 Angler 91.2 Grew up with family who owned firearms 89.1 Resides in rural area 88.1 White or Caucasian 87.2 Male 86.8 35-54 years old 85.0 Resides in Midwest Region 84.7 Wildlife viewer 84.3 18-34 years old 83.1 Resides in Southeast Region 82.9 Resides in small city or town 82.6 Resides in West Region 82.3 Total 81.1 Non-hunter 78.6 Resides in large city or suburb 78.0 55 years old or older 77.8 Non-angler 76.2 Female 75.8 Hispanic or Latino 75.5 Non-wildlife viewer 75.3 Non-shooter 75.1 Resides in Northeast Region 73.0 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 68.4 Black or African-American 61.6

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

70 Responsive Management

Percent of each of the following groups who disapprove of legal recreational shooting:

Black or African-American 25.9 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 21.3 Resides in Northeast Region 19.8 Hispanic or Latino 18.8 Non-shooter 16.2 Female 15.9 Non-angler 15.3 55 years old or older 14.7 Non-wildlife viewer 14.6 Resides in large city or suburb 14.4 Non-hunter 13.9 Total 12.3 Resides in small city or town 11.6 Wildlife viewer 11.0 Resides in Southeast Region 10.9 18-34 years old 10.8 35-54 years old 10.3 Resides in West Region 10.1 Resides in Midwest Region 9.6 Male 8.5 White or Caucasian 7.6 Resides in rural area 7.6 Grew up with family who owned firearms 6.6 Angler 5.9 Hunter 0.8 Shooter 0.8

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 71

Q110. Which of the following statements best Q110. Which of the following statements best describes your opinion of recreational shooting describes your opinion of recreational shooting sports? sports?

54 Shooting sports Shooting sports 69 are perfectly are perfectly 65 70 acceptable acceptable 64

Shooting sports 31 are OK, but 19 Shooting sports maybe a little are OK, but 20 23 inappropriate maybe a little now 25 inappropriate now

11 Shooting sports 8 are inappropriate 8 Shooting sports nowadays 8 are inappropriate 9 Northeast (n=582) nowadays Southeast (n=1091) 2 Midwest (n=638) 2 West (n=703) None of these 1 1 None of these 2

2 2 Don't know 1 2

Don't know 2 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Q110. Which of the following statements best describes your opinion of recreational shooting sports?

100 2001 2006 2011 2019

80

66 63 65 59 60

Percent 40 28 27 23 23 20 11 11 9 5 2 3 2 3 0 Shooting sports are Shooting sports are okay, Shooting sports are None of these describes perfectly acceptable but maybe a little inappropriate nowadays my opinion / don't know inappropriate now

(2019 n=3014)

72 Responsive Management

ATTITUDES TOWARD TRAPPING IN THE UNITED STATES  Trapping is more controversial than the other outdoor recreation activities discussed in this study. A slight majority of Americans (52%) approve of regulated trapping, while 31% disapprove. • Approval is higher in the Midwest and Southeast regions, and disapproval is higher in the Northeast and West regions. • Since 2006, overall approval has remained consistent but strong disapproval has decreased slightly. o Those who participate in hunting, sport shooting, and fishing are considerably more likely to approve of trapping than is the average American. Other groups more likely to approve of trapping are those in rural areas, male residents, Midwest region residents, those who grew up with a family that owned firearms, and white residents. Conversely, groups who are more likely to disapprove of trapping are black residents, those who did not grow up with a family that owned firearms, Hispanic residents, female residents, and those who live in the Northeast and West regions.

 Opinion is highly influenced by the stated reason for the trapping of wildlife. Approval is highest for trapping if it is for wildlife restoration and population control. Similarly, trapping to provide food or protect property has more approval than trapping for money, fur clothing, or recreation. The motivations asked about in the survey and the percentages who approve of each are listed below, in descending order of strong approval: • As part of a restoration program (84% approve; 59% strongly approve) • For subsistence (73% approve; 47% strongly approve) • To help control wildlife populations (73% approve; 47% strongly approve) • For food (72% approve; 44% strongly approve) • To reduce damages to crops and gardens (69% approve; 39% strongly approve) • To reduce damage to human property (65% approve; 35% strongly approve) • As part of a biological study (64% approve; 33% strongly approve) • To make money (35% approve; 16% strongly approve) • For fur clothing (30% approve; 13% strongly approve) • For recreation (28% approve; 10% strongly approve) o The nationwide results for this series of motivations are shown together on one graph, followed by graphs showing the series results within each region and the regional crosstabulation for each motivation individually. o For most of these motivations, approval of trapping is highest in the Midwest region, although trapping to protect crops or gardens and human property has the most approval in the Southeast. Disapproval is highest in the Northeast region for nearly all trapping motivations.

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 73

Q113. In general, do you approve or disapprove of Q113. In general, do you approve or disapprove of regulated trapping? regulated trapping?

22 30 Strongly approve Strongly approve 29 38 25

52% 24 Moderately 25 Moderately 25 23 approve approve 18

11 Neither approve 12 nor disapprove 8 Neither approve 11 13 nor disapprove

11 Northeast (n=582) Moderately 9 disapprove 8 Southeast (n=1091) Moderately 14 Midwest (n=638) 10 disapprove West (n=703) 27 31% Strongly 19 disapprove 16 24 Strongly 21 disapprove 5 5 Don't know 5 6

Don't know 5 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Q113. In general, do you approve or disapprove of regulated trapping?

100 2006 2019

80

60 Percent 40 31 29 23 25 22 21 20 11 10 10 6 7 5

0 Strongly approve Moderately Neither approve Moderately Strongly Don't know approve nor disapprove disapprove disapprove

(2019 n=3014)

74 Responsive Management

Percent of each of the following groups who approve of regulated trapping:

Hunter 83.4 Shooter 74.0 Angler 66.2 Resides in rural area 65.3 Male 62.7 Resides in Midwest Region 62.3 Grew up with family who owned firearms 60.1 White or Caucasian 58.6 Resides in small city or town 56.1 Resides in Southeast Region 55.5 18-34 years old 54.7 Wildlife viewer 54.5 35-54 years old 54.1 Total 52.2 55 years old or older 50.3 Non-wildlife viewer 47.9 Non-hunter 47.7 Resides in Northeast Region 46.1 Resides in large city or suburb 45.5 Non-angler 45.3 Non-shooter 44.7 Resides in West Region 43.4 Hispanic or Latino 42.4 Female 42.1 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 40.3 Black or African-American 33.2

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 75

Percent of each of the following groups who disapprove of regulated trapping:

Black or African-American 46.8 Did not grow up with family who owned firearms 41.1 Hispanic or Latino 40.2 Resides in Northeast Region 38.3 Female 37.8 Resides in West Region 37.4 Resides in large city or suburb 37.3 Non-shooter 37.2 Non-angler 35.9 Non-hunter 34.6 55 years old or older 33.7 Non-wildlife viewer 32.5 Total 31.4 18-34 years old 31.1 Wildlife viewer 30.9 35-54 years old 28.8 Resides in small city or town 28.4 Resides in Southeast Region 27.8 White or Caucasian 26.5 Grew up with family who owned firearms 25.6 Male 24.7 Resides in Midwest Region 24.0 Angler 22.3 Resides in rural area 20.4 Shooter 14.7 Hunter 9.0

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

76 Responsive Management

Percent who [approve / disapprove] of trapping for each of the following reasons: Strongly approve Moderately approve Neither approve nor disapprove Moderately disapprove Strongly disapprove Don't know

As part of a restoration program 59 24 4 3 6 3

For subsistence 47 26 7 7 10 3

To help control wildlife populations 47 26 6 7 12 2

For food 44 28 6 6 14 2

To reduce damage to crops and gardens 39 30 7 9 12 2

To reduce damage to human property 35 30 7 10 15 3

As part of a biological study 33 31 8 6 18 4

To make money 16 19 7 15 40 4

For fur clothing 13 17 7 14 47 3

For recreation 10 17 6 16 48 3

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=998)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 77

Percent who strongly approve or moderately approve of trapping for each of the following reasons:

As part of a restoration program 84

For subsistence 73

To help control wildlife populations 73

For food 72

To reduce damage to crops and gardens 69

To reduce damage to human property 65

As part of a biological study 64

To make money 35

For fur clothing 30

For recreation 28

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=998)

78 Responsive Management

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of trapping for each of the following reasons: (Northeast Region)

As part of a restoration program 82

To help control wildlife populations 69

For food 67

For subsistence 66

To reduce damage to crops and 62 gardens

As part of a biological study 61

To reduce damage to human property 54

For fur clothing 26 Northeast (n=189)

To make money 26

For recreation 21

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 79

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of trapping for each of the following reasons: (Southeast Region)

As part of a restoration program 84

To help control wildlife populations 77

To reduce damage to crops and 75 gardens

For subsistence 74

To reduce damage to human property 74

For food 73

As part of a biological study 67

To make money 37

Southeast (n=350) For fur clothing 32

For recreation 30

0 20 40 60 80 100

80 Responsive Management

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of trapping for each of the following reasons: (Midwest Region)

As part of a restoration program 87

For subsistence 80

For food 77

To help control wildlife populations 75

To reduce damage to crops and 68 gardens

To reduce damage to human property 66

As part of a biological study 63

To make money 43 Midwest (n=216)

For fur clothing 36

For recreation 31

0 20 40 60 80 100

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 81

Percent who strongly or moderately approve of trapping for each of the following reasons: (West Region)

As part of a restoration program 82

For food 72

For subsistence 72

To help control wildlife populations 68

To reduce damage to crops and gardens 66

As part of a biological study 64

To reduce damage to human property 61

To make money 34 West (n=243)

For recreation 27

For fur clothing 26

0 20 40 60 80 100

82 Responsive Management

Q171. For food? Q172. For recreation? (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping for this reason?) for this reason?)

10 38 12 Strongly approve 48 10 Strongly approve 50 10 40 11 29 Moderately 19 Moderately 26 approve 21 approve 27 17 Northeast (n=189) 31 Southeast (n=350) 6 Northeast (n=189) Midwest (n=216) 4 Neither approve 6 West (n=243) Neither approve 7 Southeast (n=350) nor disapprove 5 nor disapprove 7 Midwest (n=216) 6 6 West (n=243) 18 7 Moderately 12 Moderately 6 disapprove 18 disapprove 5 17 4 53 20 Strongly 48 Strongly 12 disapprove 41 disapprove 8 48 16 2 2 3 Don't know 2 6 Don't know 3 2 2 0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q173. For subsistence? Q174. To help control wildlife populations? (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping for this reason?) for this reason?)

43 41 49 56 Strongly approve Strongly approve 52 49 42 37

23 28 Moderately 25 Moderately 21 approve 28 approve 26 29 31

7 5 Neither approve 8 Neither approve 7 nor disapprove 5 nor disapprove 3 Northeast (n=189) 10 Northeast (n=189) 10 Southeast (n=350) Southeast (n=350) Midwest (n=216) 12 Midwest (n=216) 8 West (n=243) Moderately 5 West (n=243) Moderately 5 disapprove 6 disapprove 7 5 6

13 17 Strongly 10 Strongly 9 disapprove 6 disapprove 12 10 12

1 1 3 1 Don't know Don't know 3 3 4 3

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 83

Q175. To reduce damage to crops and gardens? Q176. To reduce damage to human property? (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping for this reason?) for this reason?)

31 25 47 45 Strongly approve Strongly approve 43 36 32 30

31 29 Moderately 28 Moderately 29 approve 25 approve 30 34 31

9 11 Neither approve 6 Northeast (n=189) Neither approve 5 nor disapprove 4 nor disapprove 6 Southeast (n=350) Northeast (n=189) 10 8 Midwest (n=216) Southeast (n=350) West (n=243) 11 14 Midwest (n=216) Moderately 8 Moderately 6 West (n=243) disapprove 11 disapprove 11 9 9

17 19 Strongly 9 Strongly 12 disapprove 13 disapprove 13 12 18

1 1 2 3 Don't know Don't know 4 4 3 4

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Q177. For fur clothing? Q178. To make money? (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping for this reason?) for this reason?)

10 8 14 19 Strongly approve Strongly approve 18 21 11 13

16 18 Moderately 18 Northeast (n=189) Moderately 18 approve 18 22 Southeast (n=350) approve 15 21 Midwest (n=216) 8 West (n=243) 9 Northeast (n=189) Neither approve 6 Neither approve 8 Southeast (n=350) nor disapprove 6 nor disapprove 7 6 4 Midwest (n=216) West (n=243) 13 17 Moderately 15 Moderately 16 disapprove 15 disapprove 13 12 12

51 45 Strongly 45 Strongly 35 disapprove 38 disapprove 33 52 46

1 3 2 4 Don't know Don't know 5 5 3 4

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

84 Responsive Management

Q179. As part of a biological study? Q180. As part of a restoration program? (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping (Do you approve or disapprove of trapping for this reason?) for this reason?)

34 59 36 62 Strongly approve Strongly approve 31 62 32 54

28 22 Moderately Moderately 31 22 25 approve 32 approve 32 28 Northeast (n=189) Southeast (n=350) 10 6 Neither approve Neither approve 6 Midwest (n=216) 3 West (n=243) nor disapprove 2 nor disapprove 9 Northeast (n=189) 8 6 Southeast (n=350) Midwest (n=216) 5 3 Moderately Moderately 7 3 West (n=243) 3 disapprove 8 disapprove 6 3

22 6 Strongly Strongly 16 7 5 disapprove 16 disapprove 18 7

2 3 5 4 Don't know Don't know 5 2 4 3

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 85

DEMOGRAPHICS  These demographic data were collected for crosstabulations and data analysis. Because survey results were weighted by age, gender, race, and region to reflect the proportions of the population according to the U.S. Census, the results shown here are representative of adult Americans. The data collected include: • Age. • Gender. • Race or ethnicity. • Type of residential area. • State of residence.

Q191. May I ask your age? Q191. May I ask your age?

20 65 years old or 65 years old or 18 19 Northeast (n=582) older older 19 17 Southeast (n=1091) Midwest (n=638) 17 West (n=703) 55-64 years old 15 55-64 years old 16 17 15

16 17 Northeast Mean: 46.86 45-54 years old 17 Mean: 47.40 45-54 years old 17 Median: 47 16 Median: 48 Southeast 14 Mean: 46.48 16 Median: 46 35-44 years old 15 Midwest 35-44 years old 16 16 Mean: 47.61 17 Median: 47 25-34 years old 17 West 16 Mean: 46.26 18 25-34 years old 17 Median: 45 Note that the survey 12 was limited to adults 18-24 years old 12 age 18 or older. 13 12 18-24 years old 12 Note that the survey 4 was limited to adults 4 age 18 or older. Refused 3 5 Refused 4 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

86 Responsive Management

Q199. Respondent's gender (not asked; observed Q199. Respondent's gender (not asked; observed by interviewer). by interviewer).

48

48 Male Male 49 49

49

Northeast (n=582) 52 Southeast (n=1091) Midwest (n=638) West (n=703) 51 Female 51 Female 51

50

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Q188. What races or ethnic backgrounds do you Q188. What races or ethnic backgrounds do you consider yourself? Please mention all that apply. consider yourself? Please mention all that apply.

White or Caucasian 69 62 66 White or Caucasian 81 68

Hispanic or Latino 12 10 13 Hispanic or Latino 5 21 Black or African- 12 18 American 17 Black or African-American 9 4 Native American or Alaskan native or 3 1 Native American or Alaskan native or 3 Northeast (n=582) Aleutian 3 Southeast (n=1091) Aleutian 4 Midwest (n=638) East Asian 1 2 1 West (n=703) East Asian 2 2

1 South Asian 1 0 South Asian 0 1

0

Multiple Responses Allowed Responses Multiple Middle Eastern Less than 0.5 Middle Eastern 0 Multiple Responses Allowed Responses Multiple 1 0

4 Other 3 2 Other 3 3

2 Don't know 1 1 Don't know 0 1

4 3 Refused 4 Refused 3 4

0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014) Percent

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 87

Q190. Do you consider your place of residence to Q190. Do you consider your place of residence to be a large city or urban area, a suburban area, a be a large city or urban area, a suburban area, a small city or town, a rural area on a farm or ranch, small city or town, a rural area on a farm or ranch, or a rural area not on a farm or ranch? or a rural area not on a farm or ranch?

25 Large city or urban Large city or 25 27 urban area 22 area 36

26 22 Suburban area Suburban area 24 27 23

27 27 Small city or town 25 Small city or town 26 25 Northeast (n=582) 6 Rural area on a 7 Southeast (n=1091) Rural area on a farm or ranch 10 Midwest (n=638) 6 3 farm or ranch West (n=703) 13 Rural area not on 16 15 Rural area not on a farm or ranch 14 10 a farm or ranch 1 2 Don't know 1 1 Don't know 1 1 2 Refused 2 2 Refused 1 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014) 88 Responsive Management

Q194. What is your state of residence?

Alabama 1.4 Alaska 0.2 Arizona 2.1 Arkansas 0.8 California 12.4 Colorado 1.7 Connecticut 1.2 Delaware 0.3 Florida 6.4 Georgia 3.5 Hawaii 0.2 Idaho 0.5 Illinois 3.5 Indiana 2.1 Iowa 1.4 Kansas 1.1 Kentucky 1.2 Louisiana 1.7 Maine 0.5 Maryland 2.0 Massachusetts 2.2 Michigan 3.4 Minnesota 1.5 Mississippi 0.7 Missouri 1.9 Montana 0.4 Nebraska 0.5 Nevada 0.8 New Hampshire 0.4 New Jersey 2.6 New Mexico 0.6 New York 6.4 North Carolina 2.7 North Dakota 0.3 Ohio 3.5 Oklahoma 1.0 Oregon 1.2 Pennsylvania 4.1 Rhode Island 0.4 South Carolina 1.4 South Dakota 0.3 Tennessee 1.9 Texas 9.3 Utah 0.8 Vermont 0.2 Virginia 2.3 Washington 2.3 West Virginia 0.5 Wisconsin 1.7 Wyoming 0.2 Washington, D.C. 0.5

0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent (n=3014)

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Hunting, Fishing, Sport Shooting, and Trapping 89

ABOUT RESPONSIVE MANAGEMENT Responsive Management is an internationally recognized survey research firm specializing in attitudes toward natural resource and outdoor recreation issues. Our mission is to help natural resource and outdoor recreation agencies, businesses, and organizations better understand and work with their constituents, customers, and the public.

Since 1985, Responsive Management has conducted telephone, mail, and online surveys, as well as multi-modal surveys, on-site intercepts, focus groups, public meetings, personal interviews, needs assessments, program evaluations, marketing and communication plans, and other forms of research measuring public opinions and attitudes. Utilizing our in-house, full-service survey facilities with 75 professional interviewers, we have conducted studies in all 50 states and 15 countries worldwide totaling more than 1,000 projects.

Responsive Management has conducted research for every state fish and wildlife agency and most of the federal resource agencies, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

We have also provided research for many nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations, including the National Wildlife Federation, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the National Rifle Association, the Archery Trade Association, the Izaak Walton League, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, SCI, and Dallas Safari Club. Other nonprofit and NGO clients include Trout Unlimited, the Sierra Club, the American Museum of Natural History, the Ocean Conservancy, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, and the BoatUS Foundation.

Responsive Management conducts market research and product testing for numerous outdoor recreation manufacturers and industry leaders, such as Winchester Ammunition, Trijicon, Yamaha, and others.

Responsive Management also provides data collection for the nation’s top universities, including Auburn University, Clemson University, Colorado State University, Duke University, George Mason University, Michigan State University, Mississippi State University, North Carolina State University, Oregon State University, Penn State University, Rutgers University, Stanford University, Texas Tech, University of California-Davis, University of Florida, University of Montana, University of New Hampshire, University of Southern California, Virginia Tech, West Virginia University, and many more.

Our research has been upheld in U.S. Courts, used in peer-reviewed journals, and presented at major wildlife and natural resource conferences around the world. Responsive Management’s research has also been featured in many of the nation’s top media, including Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CNN, and on the front pages of The Washington Post and USA Today.

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