Kevin M. Hunt

Waterfowl hunters participate in hunting for appreciative-, affiliative-, and achievement-oriented reasons. To investigate the influence of achievement-oriented factors on hunt quality, we analyzed post-hunt surveys completed by waterfowl hunters at four Mississippi Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs), 2008–2015. We used these questions to calculate a hunt quality score for each participant and tested whether variation in hunt quality was best explained by total number of ducks harvested, number of mallards harvested, total bag weight, or palatability of ducks. Hunt quality increased with...

Studies conducted during the last 30 years have identified benefits and adverse impacts and have documented increased frequency of fishing tournaments. This study used information provided by state fisheries management agency administrators to measure the frequency of black bass (Micropterus spp.) tournaments in southeastern states and assessed how reported changes in tournament frequency have impacted fisheries management. The average annual number of black bass tournaments reported by 14 southeastern states for 2009-2011 was 41,939, which was a 124% increase from the average annual...

In 2010, we conducted a follow-up survey of anglers who responded to the 2009 Texas Statewide Angler Survey and indicated that they fished for catfish in the previous year or listed catfish as a preferred species. The follow-up survey assessed demographics, fishing methods, areas fished, species preferences, attitudes, and satisfaction of Texas catfish anglers. Only 26% of respondents considered catfish to be their primary species sought. We grouped anglers by their preferred species, but observed few demographic differences among these groups. Most (≥70%) catfish anglers preferred to...

We conducted a five-year study during the 2001-2005 hunting seasons to determine the economic impacts of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) hunting in Mississippi. Activity days for state residents ranged from 2,390,619 to 3,181,957 and for non-residents, 265,103 to 357,253. Total economic impacts ranged from US $761 million to $1.03 billion (in 2007 dollars). Over the five years, number of full- and part-time jobs supported by deer hunting activities ranged from 26,489 to 37,888. Aggregated economic sectors benefiting the most were services, manufacturing, and trade. Statewide...

As hunting participation decreases in the United States, wildlife agencies may consider increasing license fees or creating additional ones to sustain their programs. We assessed Willingness to Pay (WTP) for fall and spring eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) hunting permits in Mississippi using the Contingent Valuation Method. Hunters were willing to pay more for a spring hunting permit than for a fall hunting permit and demand for spring hunting permits was also higher. Median WTP for fall and spring turkey hunting permits was US$11.00 and $36.25, respectively. Revenue...

We used a self-administered mail questionnaire to investigate Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) cooperators' understanding of and satisfaction with this program to identify possible improvements in the quality of educational and technical assistance. Since statewide program inception in 1983, no effort had been made to evaluate the program from a customer's perspective prior to our study. We sent questionnaires to 618 DMAP cooperators immediately after the close of the 2004-05 deer hunting season in Mississippi. We received 391 useable questionnaires. When non-deliverables (N = 57...

Anglers who fished Lake Fork Reservoir June 1994-May 1995 were intercepted during creel surveys conducted by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and asked to participate in a follow-up, self-administered mail survey. Anglers were asked questions about their fishing activity at Lake Fork, and their motivations, satisfaction, and expenditures on the trip they were intercepted. Lake Fork anglers could be characterized as high specialization anglers, indicating they had been fishing in fresh water for an average of 28 years, and fishing an average of 62 days in the previous year....

Philosophies of fisheries management have evolved through time and have affected, and been affected by, traditional uses of various (different) fisheries. Because of historic differences in management and utilization of freshwater and saltwater fisheries, we expected to find differences among freshwater and saltwater anglers in their support for (attitudes toward) management regulations. Using results from a statewide questionnaire of anglers in Texas, basic social and demographic characteristics and attitudes toward management tools were compared for 3 groups of anglers: those who fish in...