[Cyclopath]

Washington State University and National Park Service researchers found that when human hikers were present, 16 out of 22 mammal species, including predators and prey alike, changed where and when they accessed areas. Some completely abandoned places they previously used, others used them less frequently, and some shifted to more nocturnal activities to avoid humans. ... While the influence of low-impact recreation is concerning, the researchers emphasized that more research is needed to determine if it has negative effects on the species' survival. "This study does not say that hiking is necessarily bad for wildlife, but it does have some impacts on spatiotemporal ecology, or how wildlife uses a landscape and when," said Alissa Anderson, a resent WSU master's graduate and first author on the study. "Maybe they are not on the trails as much, but they're using different places, and how much does that actually impact species' ability to survive and thrive in a place, or not? There are a lot of questions about how this actually plays into population survival." https://phys.org/news/2023-01-low-impact-human-recreation-wildlife-behavior.amp

[Anne Elk]

This just seems like common sense. The huge growth in the use of the outdoors in the last 3 decades by all manner of enthusiast must be having a huge impact. That's one reason I'm not keen on griz reintroduction to the North Cascades. As a counterpoint, remember how animals began to fearlessly move into urban areas during the height of the pandemic? Photo essay ... Animals take to the streets amid lockdown

[Sculpin]

Based upon my best seat-of-the-pants assessment, the effect seems to be far less pronounced in National Parks. So maybe not just hiking? Maybe hiking combined with another human activity?

[coldrain108]

[thunderhead]

Ya, long time national parks... going back probably 25 bear and deer generations, seem to have much less skittish populations from what I have seen. Id guess thats mostly the result of no hunting, but suppose no dogs also matters. Maybe a bit of the legacy of humans feeding em too. Super overcrowded spots like Yosemite and Zion valleys have a ton of relaxed animals, so id say it has very little to do with just humans.

[Sculpin]

Somebody wrote on a different thread that bear sows in Katmai (IIRC) had learned to stash their cubs under a boardwalk used by humans, since they were less likely to be attacked by adult males there. I feel like I have seen similar phenomena. Just yesterday my wife and I hiked to the top of an open hill in Napa Valley. After we sat down at the picnic table up there we were surrounded by a flock of colorful birds, mostly bluebirds but also goldfinches and Audubon's warblers. We sat very still, and they came up very close. Then all of a sudden there was a lot of chattering, and I looked up and saw a sharp-shinned hawk cruising in. When I looked back down the birds had somehow melted into the backdrop. I'm convinced that some animals have figured out that we are about as dangerous as deer.