Jeremy Bruskotter

Yesterday the Trump administration announced a proposal that would dramatically weaken protections provided by the Endangered Species Act.  Fortuitously, my colleagues and I also happened to publish a paper on public support for the Endangered Species Act over time.  This paper also addresses concerns raised by some conservationists who worry that prolonged protections for controversial…

How do scientists make judgments that require consideration of ‘the best available science’ under conditions of high uncertainty?  To gain insight into this question, we surveyed a group of grizzly bear researchers.  We found that the majority of experts recommended continued listing of bears, and that experts who were employed by state and federal agencies…

The re-listing of wolves in Wyoming, prompted by law suits from a host of conservation groups has been celebrated as ‘righting’ what many have characterized as backwards and heavy-handed management policy  Researcher Daniel Kinka provides an alternative perspective in a recent blog post.  While acknowledging that Wyoming’s plan was “heavy-handed”, Kinka worries about how wolf…

Readers who have followed The Wildlife News for awhile may recall an ongoing and often cantankerous debate concerning the efficacy of firearms for deterring bear attacks.  While acknowledging that bear spray could be an effective deterrent, a few regular commenters argued vociferously that a gun would be more effective–at least for someone who could quickly…