The reappearance and recovery of large carnivores in human‐dominated landscapes creates a need to understand how people will respond to the presence of these animals. We tested a psychological model of acceptance to determine what variables most influence people's acceptance for black bears (Ursus americanus) in an area with an emerging black bear population (Ohio, USA). We hypothesized that people's perceptions of risk and benefit related to bears would mediate the effect of trust (in wildlife management agencies) and personal control (over interactions with and management of wildlife) on acceptance for black bears. We used a mail‐back survey of Ohio residents (n = 9,400; adjusted response rate = 35%) to assess the variables of interest and test the hypothesized model. Based on multiple criteria of model fit, the hypothesized model fit the data acceptably well. The model explained approximately 62% of the variance in acceptance, and perception of risk associated with black bears had the largest impact on the level of acceptance. As large carnivore populations expand and interactions with humans increase, our results will aid managers in designing outreach materials and communications aimed at promoting acceptance for large carnivores. Our model suggests that interventions raising an individual's social trust in the managing agency, or personal control can indirectly raise stakeholders' acceptance by reducing risk perception and increasing perception of benefit from carnivores. © 2012 The Wildlife Society.

The present study examined the feasibility of experimentally manipulating perceptions of benefit and control via communications to increase public acceptance of bears. We assigned subjects to either a pseudo‐control (basic bear biology message) or 1 of 3 treatments adding a benefits message, a perceived control message, or combining messages about both benefits and perceived control. Within‐subjects pre–post t‐tests showed a significant increase in acceptance among those in the benefits and combined treatments. A between‐subjects 1‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a significant difference between the perceived control and combined treatments (where the perceived control message actually decreased acceptance). Our results highlight the importance of including information about benefits stemming from the presence of black bears, as adding this information tended to increase stakeholder acceptance of black bear populations. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

In order to apply plasma metabolite profiling to assess the quality of stopover habitat for migrant birds it is crucial to know how quickly metabolite concentrations change in response to variation in energy intake rate. We fed live mealworms to Wilson's warblers Wilsonia pusilla at rates designed to mimic a low quality (0.58 wet g/h) and a high quality (0.75 wet g/h) habitat. Plasma concentrations of triglycerides and B‐OH‐butyrate were higher and lower, respectively, on the high feeding rate, but plasma glycerol levels did not differ between feeding rates. Birds were then fed at the low rate for five hours, switched to the high rate and blood sampled at various times after the switch. Plasma triglycerides and B‐OH‐butyrate reflected the increase in feeding rate within 10 and 20 min, respectively. Plasma glycerol did not change significantly following the change in feeding rate. We conclude that plasma metabolite concentrations can change very quickly in response to variation in feeding rate, and thus provide a sensitive index of fueling rates near a capture site.