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This study examines individual and situational influences on declining hunter effort in Illinois. Data were obtained from a self-administered mail survey of 2,872 (response rate = 67%) resident hunters in Illinois. A series of four separate logistic regressions were constructed to model demographics, past experience, and perceived personal and situational constraints related to declining hunter effort. A final model included variables from each of the separate regressions. Nine variables were significant predictors of hunter effort in the final model: four perceived personal constraints (lack of time, interest, finances, and poor health), three situational constraints (not enough game, no land available for hunting, and too many regulations), and two past experience variables (years of hunting experience and days afield during prior season). None of the demographic variables had a significant influence on hunter effort after controlling for the other predictors in the model. The final model that included past experience and the two sets of perceived constraint measures (personal and situational) explained 91% of the variance and correctly classified 97% of hunters in both the "decreased" and "did not decrease" categories. Discussion focuses on the need for understanding perceived constraints to hunting participation that are within the control of management agencies.

The scale and intensity of extreme wind events have tremendous relevance to determining the impact on infrastructure and natural and managed ecosystems. Analyses presented herein show the following. 1) Wind speeds in excess of the station-specific 95th percentile are coherent over distances of up to 1000 km over the eastern United States, which implies that the drivers of high wind speeds are manifest at the synoptic scale. 2) Although cold fronts associated with extratropical cyclones are a major cause of high-wind speed events, maximum sustained and gust wind speeds are only weakly dependent on the near-surface horizontal temperature gradient across the front. 3) Gust factors (GF) over the eastern United States have a mean value of 1.57 and conform to a lognormal probability distribution, and the relationship between maximum observed GF and sustained wind speed conforms to a power law with coefficients of 5.91 and 20.499. Even though there is coherence in the occurrence of intense wind speeds at the synoptic scale, the intensity and spatial extent of extreme wind events are not fully characterized even by the dense meteorological networks deployed by the National Weather Service. Seismic data from the USArray, a program within the Earthscope initiative, may be suitable for use in mapping high-wind and gust events, however. It is shown that the seismic channels exhibit well-defined spectral signatures under conditions of high wind, with a variance peak at frequencies of ;0.04 s 21 and an amplitude that appears to scale with the magnitude of observed wind gusts.

Populations of feral domestic cats have increased throughout the United States, affecting wildlife and warranting attention from a variety of management agencies. This contentious issue requires a greater understanding of public attitudes and preferences for population control. We used data from a 2004 mail survey of Illinois, USA, homeowners' attitudes towards wildlife and conservation to investigate support for the trap-neuter-release (TNR) of feral cats and to examine factors (demographic, experience, and wildlife values orientations) that may influence preference for TNR as a management option. Age, gender, and wildlife rights values orientations were significant predictors of preference for TNR, while negative experiences with feral cats were correlated with preferences for management options other than TNR. Investigations of public perceptions of feral cat management can help wildlife managers understand the growing public debate regarding feral cat management and provide appropriate input and educational materials regarding cat management and wildlife.

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