Safe harbor for the red-cockaded woodpecker: Private forest landowners share their views

Abstract

We surveyed North Carolina and South Carolina private forest landowners to learn their attitudes about the Safe Harbor Program initiated by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Environmental Defense Fund. Landowners who own large amounts of forestland near active clusters of red-cockaded woodpeckers (Picoides borealis), whose forest have a high proportion of mature pine, and who practice prescribed burning or chemical or mechanical methods to control understory hardwoods are most likely to sign an agreement to participate. We found that the views of program participants and nonparticipants were similar concerning the Endangered Species Act and the alternatives to the Safe Harbor Program.