- Best Management Practices for Trapping Furbearers in the United States: Trap Testing Research.
- Historical Background: The Fur Trade - A brief historical overview of fur trapping in the United States.
Overview:
State wildlife agencies and trappers are developing "Best management Practices" (BMPs) for trapping furbearers in the United States. A BMP is a method to improve an activity or set of activities by developing recommendations based on sound scientific information, while maintaining practicability. BMPs for trapping furbearers will be provided to state agencies and trappers for voluntary incorporation into trapper education and furbearer management programs.
Why are BMPs needed?
- We must ensure the continued responsible management of wildlife resources
- The process of improving traps and trapping methods needs to continue to maintain and improve animal welfare.
- Real and perceived problems associated with trapping need to be reduced to maintain public acceptance.
- BMPs are necessary to sustain regulated trapping now and in the future, and to maintain the integrity of furbearer management programs throughout the United States.
What will BMPs look like?
- BMPs will be based on regional differences in trapping conditions (e.g., climate, species trapped, and habitat) because these conditions differ throughout the nation.
- BMPs will be developed for specific trapping conditions (e.g., land vs. water) in a given region.
- BMPs will recognize the fact that a given trap may be set to catch several target species(suites).
- BMPs will include descriptions of the best traps, as well as recommendations for setting traps.
Who will develop the BMPs?
- The International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies' Fur Resources Committee is responsible for this project. Professional furbearer biologists from all regions of the country are involved.
- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' Division of Federal Aid and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal Damage Control program are assisting in BMP development.
- Several Experts in the field of trapping (members of the National Trappers Association and Fur Takers of America) and animal welfare (veterinarians from the Universities of Georgia and Wyoming) support this project and are actively involved in all stages.
How and when will the work get done?
- Existing information on performance of traps have been summarized.
- Where information is lacking, new evaluations of trap performance will be done based on the highest needs.
- The evaluations will include animal welfare, efficiency, selectivity, user safety, and practicability.
- BMPs will be published and made available to trapper organizations, state wildlife agencies, as well as any other interested party.
- The preliminary work has already begun. The first version of BMPs is expected by the year 2002.
- BMPs will be continually updated and revised, as new technology becomes available (every 5-10 years).
International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Washington, D.C. - Revised August 1998
