Public perceptions and attitudes toward urban wildlife encounters - A decade of change.

Europe is currently undergoing dynamic land use changes causing the expansion of urban habitat, which is driving wildlife species to colonise conurbations, resulting in an increased likelihood of human-wildlife conflict (HWC). Understanding people's attitudes toward wildlife is essential to manage these conflicts. This study assessed people's attitudes toward urban wildlife, the types of conflicts that existed, preferences for managing conflict situations, and determined any changes in perceptions of urban wildlife over a decade. A questionnaire survey of residents of Krakow, the second-largest city in Poland, was conducted in 2010 (n = 721) and repeated in 2020 (n = 887). We found that encounters with certain urban wildlife such as wild boars, red squirrels, roe deer, brown hares, and red foxes had increased significantly in 2020 compared to 2010. Respondents reported that wild boar and beavers did not show fear when encountering humans. Stone martens were considered the most nuisance wildlife species in 2010, while in 2020 wild boar were the most conflictual wildlife species. There were additional reports of conflicts with roe deer and red foxes. The most frequent HWC responses were personal anxiety, intrusion into property and destruction of crops, which increased significantly over the decade, independent of respondents' gender. Respondents preferred nonlethal methods to mitigate conflicts. The study provides valuable information and knowledge on changes in people's attitudes toward urban wildlife that can help with wildlife management in urban areas. Incorporating perception and attitude data from the public, along with a multi-stakeholder approach that includes wildlife professionals, in the planning and design of future urban environments is critical to minimise HWC.

Human-Wildlife Conflicts in Krakow City, Southern Poland.

Efforts to reduce human-wildlife-conflict are integral to wildlife management and conservation in urban habitats. In our study, we identified the HWC situations in urban areas of Krakow city, based on animal-vehicle collisions, intrusion to property, and damages. Hot spot analysis and Moran's Index were used to identify the location of maximum potential conflict. We analysed 2512 incidents in which animals (of which 85% included mammals and 15% birds) were involved in conflict situations between 2007 and 2013. A significant seasonal variation was observed among the animals. We also identified roe deer (50.23%), red fox (22.80%) and wild boar (11.40%), as the three prominent conflicted animals. Getis-Ord Gi* analysis was used to identify spatial clusters of conflict. A significant spatial association was found in the location of clusters of hot spots in specific land-use based on Moran's Index. Hot spots of roe deer and wild boar were high in grasslands and in forest and for red fox in built-up area. The results underscore the notion that conservation and wildlife management efforts must take into account differences in the seasonality of HWC among species. This information can be used to inform mitigation strategies.