E. J. Hackett

A mail survey of licensed trappers was conducted annually from 1976-1977 to 1979-1980 to obtain data to meet reporting requirements of the United States Endangered Species Scientific Authority (ESSA) on the status of the river otter (Lutra canadensis) in Mississippi. Estimates of harvest by trapping, number of trappers catching otters, trapper success, catch per unit effort, and species distribution were obtained from the data. An average of 356 licensed trappers caught an average of 1,155 river otters annually over the 4-year period. Occurrence of river otter was documented in 60 (73%) of...

Five-hundred twenty-seven trappers from a sample of 1000 responded to a mail survey designed to determine the reasons why they trap and the values that they associate with trapping. About 62 percent and 27 percent of the respondents indicated that sport and income, respectively, were the primary reasons that they trapped. Response to the question, "Why rlo you trap?" was significantly associated with age (P < 0.01)", experience (P = 0.01), anrl proportion of income derived from trapping (P < 0.01). Ranking of seven rlimensions of trapping satisfaction indicated that skill was the...