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Location
Hot Springs, AR
Start Date
6-4-2003 12:00 AM
Description
The Service and Outreach Program of the Warnell School of Forest Resources at the University of Georgia conducts an annual county agent training program: Forestry: Area Specialty Advanced Training (FASAT). This training is provided to one or more lead agents in each county cluster (2-4 counties) throughout Georgia. At the spring 2002 training, 58 agents were surveyed to assess their needs for wildlife damage management information and programs. Agents were asked to supply information on the type of training programs they would find most useful. Agents were also questioned about the nature of damage calls they received in the past year. In addition to background information on county demographics, they were questioned about the wildlife species group accounting for damage complaints and the number of complaints related to physical landscape (e.g., yard, crops, house, orchard, etc.). Finally they were presented with a list of damage problems and asked to indicate the number of requests they received for each problem. All agents responded to the survey. Agents (52 of 58) indicated that programs in wildlife damage management and food plot management (51 of 58 agents) were most desired. Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) were responsible for most complaints (14% for each). Damage to yards/landscape and gardens (an average of 52 and 36 complaints per agent, respectively) were the categories receiving the most complaints. Agents reported 11,405 complaints or requests for information in 2001. Moles (12.4% of inquiries; 82.8% of agents), armadillo (10.1 % of inquiries; 77.6% of agents) and deer (9.6% of inquiries; 77.6% of agents) ranked highest in total number of inquiries or complaints. Results of this survey will direct efforts in landowner programming, future agent training, and research activities. I will compare this survey to previous agent surveys conducted in Georgia and other states.
Recommended Citation
Mengak, M. T. (2003). Wildlife damage management education needs: Survey of Georgia county fasat agents. In Fagerstone, K.A. & Witmer, G.W. (Eds.), The Tenth Wildlife Damage Management Conference (7-15). Hot Springs, AR: National Wildlife Research Center.
Included in
Wildlife Damage Management Education Needs: Survey of Georgia County Fasat Agents
Hot Springs, AR
The Service and Outreach Program of the Warnell School of Forest Resources at the University of Georgia conducts an annual county agent training program: Forestry: Area Specialty Advanced Training (FASAT). This training is provided to one or more lead agents in each county cluster (2-4 counties) throughout Georgia. At the spring 2002 training, 58 agents were surveyed to assess their needs for wildlife damage management information and programs. Agents were asked to supply information on the type of training programs they would find most useful. Agents were also questioned about the nature of damage calls they received in the past year. In addition to background information on county demographics, they were questioned about the wildlife species group accounting for damage complaints and the number of complaints related to physical landscape (e.g., yard, crops, house, orchard, etc.). Finally they were presented with a list of damage problems and asked to indicate the number of requests they received for each problem. All agents responded to the survey. Agents (52 of 58) indicated that programs in wildlife damage management and food plot management (51 of 58 agents) were most desired. Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) were responsible for most complaints (14% for each). Damage to yards/landscape and gardens (an average of 52 and 36 complaints per agent, respectively) were the categories receiving the most complaints. Agents reported 11,405 complaints or requests for information in 2001. Moles (12.4% of inquiries; 82.8% of agents), armadillo (10.1 % of inquiries; 77.6% of agents) and deer (9.6% of inquiries; 77.6% of agents) ranked highest in total number of inquiries or complaints. Results of this survey will direct efforts in landowner programming, future agent training, and research activities. I will compare this survey to previous agent surveys conducted in Georgia and other states.