Book: Wild Furbearer Management

BOOK UPDATE:
Wild Furbearer Management and Conservation in North America

66 chapters from more than 140 authors
Watch for sets of online chapters published here starting spring 2023
Online chapters will be Early View, and at no cost, to get them into your hands more quickly
We plan to offer a 2-volume set of printed hardcopies near the end of 2023

If you would like to receive email notification of published chapters, please contact us at info@wildlifeecology.org.

We are closing in on completing a very ambitious project - to produce a completely updated version of the book, Wild Furbearer Management and Conservation in North America. The previous version, published in 1987 by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, was a large volume that contained 71 chapters spanning 1,150 pages and is still often referred to as the “bible for furbearer management.” However, having been published three decades ago, it lacks substantial information on contemporary furbearer management, including topics such as DNA data collection and analysis, recent species recovery efforts, advances in damage management, Best Management Practices for Trapping, Agreement on International Humane Trapping Standards, camera-based surveys, occupancy modeling, statistical population reconstruction, and many other topics. In addition, a comprehensive overview of current challenges, such as ballot initiatives, socio-economic paradigm shifts, and increasing anthropogenic effects on furbearer populations, will be incorporated into the text.

To meet this critical need, our team of editors has recruited more than 140 wildlife professionals from Canada, Mexico, and the United States to author 66 chapters. The benefits of this contemporary book will be far reaching for wildlife professionals, trappers and hunters, policymakers, and others interested in furbearer and wildlife management. We are proud and grateful to be leading one of the most substantial projects related to furbearer management and conservation, and arguably within the wildlife profession.

Front cover of the 1987 version.

What's in the book? Check this out!

Table of Contents

General Chapters:

1. Furbearer Management in Canada
2. Furbearer Management in Mexico
3. Furbearer Management in the United States
4. Furbearer Management by Indigenous Peoples
5. Furbearer Conservation in North America
6. Furbearer Population Ecology
7. Harvest Management of Furbearers
8. Habitat and Furbearers
9. Principles of Damage Management
10. The Fur Trade in North America
11. Advancements in Trapping Technology
12. Pelt Preparation, Handling, and Grading
13. North American and Global Fur Markets
14. The Future of Trapping and Furbearer Management
15. Sexing and Aging of Furbearers
16. Harvest Data Collection
17. Survey and Monitoring Methods for Furbearers
18. Parasites and Diseases
19. Genetics
20. Chemical Immobilization of Furbearers
21. Contemporary Statistical Approaches
22. GIS Applications in Furbearer Management
23. Human Dimension Surveys Associated with Furbearer Management
24. Outreach and Communication of Furbearer Management to the Public
25. Trapper Education in North America
26. The Role of Trapping and Hunting Organizations

Trapping tools and technology.

Sex identification and age estimation.

Contemporary survey and monitoring techniques.

GIS and statistical analyses.

Capture, handling, chemical immobilization, radiomarking, and data collection.

Species Chapters:

27. American Badger
28. American Hog-nosed Skunk
29. American and Pacific Marten
30. American Mink
31. American Red Squirrel
32. Arctic Fox
33. Black-footed Ferret
34. Bobcat
35. Canada Lynx
36. Coyote
37. Eastern Spotted Skunk
38. Fisher
39. Gray Fox
40. Greater Grison
41. Hooded Skunk
42. Island Fox
43. Jaguarundi
44. Kit Fox
45. Least Weasel
46. Long-tailed Weasel
47. Margay
48. Muskrat
49. North American Beaver
50. North American Porcupine
51. North American River Otter
52. North American Wolves
53. Northern Raccoon
54. Nutria
55. Ocelot
56. Red Fox
57. Ringtail
58. Sea Otter
59. Short-tailed Weasel
60. Striped Skunk
61. Swift Fox
62. Tayra
63. Virginia Opossum
64. Western Spotted Skunk
65. White-Nosed Coati
66. Wolverine