More Information

NWRC’s Economic Research Project was created 

in 2001, and staff consists of two scientists and a 

technician. To learn more about the use of economics 

in wildlife damage management, or to consult with an 

economist on incorporating economics into a research 

study, contact NWRC Economic Research Project 

personnel at (970) 266-6000 or visit our Web site at 

www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc.

WS Office Phone Numbers

For assistance with wildlife damage issues in your

State, please call WS’ toll-free number at 

1-866-4USDAWS (1-866-487-3297) or one of the 

numbers listed below.

 NWRC Headquarters (Fort Collins, CO): 

 (970) 266-6000

 Eastern Regional Office (Raleigh, NC): 

 (919) 855-7200

 Western Regional Office (Fort Collins, CO): 

 (970) 494-7443

 Operational Support Staff (Riverdale, MD): 

 (301) 851-4009

United States Department of Agriculture

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Program Aid No. 1931

Solutions Through Science

About Wildlife Services’ National Wildlife 

Research Center

NWRC is a world leader in providing science-based 

solutions to the complex issues of wildlife damage 

management as related to agriculture, property, 

human health and safety, invasive species, and 

threatened and endangered species. NWRC scientists 

strive to find solutions that are biologically sound, 

environmentally safe, and socially responsible. NWRC 

employs more than 120 scientists and support staff 

at its headquarters in Fort Collins, CO, and at field 

stations throughout the United States. NWRC’s 

scientists have expertise in a wide range of disciplines, 

including animal behavior, wildlife biology, wildlife 

sensory biology, chemistry, immunology, epidemiology, 

statistics, population modeling, genetics, toxicology, 

and veterinary medicine.

Photo credits: The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 

(APHIS) image of starlings on a dairy farm was taken by Nick Dunlop. 

Unless otherwise indicated in the brochure, all other images are part 

of the APHIS image collection. 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimina-

tion in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, 

national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital 

status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, 

genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part 

of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance 

program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons 

with disabilities who require alternative means for communication 

of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should 

contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). 

To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office 

of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 

20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 

(TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Revised September 2013

www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc

NWRC headquarters in Fort Collins, CO

“Solutions to problems depend upon 

knowledge, which only research can provide.” 

~ Edwin R. Kalmbach, first Director for the 

predecessor of the NWRC (1940–1954)

Economics of Wildlife Damage 

Management 
Regional Economic Analysis 

Regional economic analysis allows economists to 

estimate secondary benefits and costs associated with 

managing wildlife damage in units of measure that 

are important to the general public, such as revenue, 

income, and jobs. For example, projects that increase 

wildlife populations (the primary benefit) may generate 

measurable consumptive and nonconsumptive secondary 

benefits such as increased tourism. Increases in tourism 

have benefits to the regional economy that can be 

measured using regional economic models. 

Alternatively, if fruit growers are suffering crop loss due 

to birds in their orchards, economists can estimate the 

monetary value of the lost fruit and the cost required 

to control bird damage (the direct impacts). Results 

will indicate how crop losses change gross domestic 

product (GDP) and impact employment in the region. 

These secondary impacts illustrate the broader 

implications of wildlife damage on the community and 

allow the public to better understand how damage 

mitigation efforts can benefit society. 

Benefits of Economic Analysis 

Collecting the right data and identifying and valuing 

costs and benefits are the foundation for credible 

economic analysis. NWRC economists work with 

biologists and wildlife managers to provide an overall 

picture of the costs and benefits of wildlife damage 

management and research. In short, economics is 

one of many tools that wildlife managers everywhere 

can use to enhance decisionmaking, look at long-term 

successes and trends, and maximize government 

efforts in resolving human-wildlife conflicts.

Economists help quantify not only the direct impacts of wildlife 

damage, such as damage prevention costs and crop loss, but also 

indirect impacts, such as lost income and jobs. Netting to protect 

grapes from bird damage (above) and cedar waxwing damage to 

cherries (next page). Photos by Catherine Lindell, Michigan State 

University.

The Problem

Wildlife is a public resource valued by all Americans. 

But when humans and wildlife live in close proximity, 

conflicts frequently occur. Wildlife cause damage to 

agriculture and natural resources and can transmit 

diseases that affect public health. To mitigate these 

conflicts, wildlife managers plan management actions 

based on the best biological information available. 

Often, the economic implications of these plans are 

unknown. Economic analyses are needed to help 

prioritize management efforts by identifying the most 

cost-effective management techniques. 

Within the National Wildlife Research Center 

(NWRC)—the research arm of Wildlife Services (WS), a 

program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal 

and Plant Health Inspection Service—economics 

is an exciting and valuable tool for quantifying the 

benefits and costs associated with wildlife damage 

management. Experts involved in NWRC’s Economics 

Research Project partner with WS employees, State 

and local governments, and universities to develop 

economic research and applications. This leaflet 

describes some of the strategies and methods used to 

integrate economic analyses into daily wildlife damage 

management and research activities.

Science-Based Solutions

NWRC economists utilize a variety of research 

techniques to quantify the economic impacts of wildlife 

damage management. Benefit-cost analysis (BCA) 

is one tool used by NWRC economists and others to 

evaluate government projects. In a BCA, the monetary 

benefits and costs of actions are identified and 

compared. Incorporating BCAs into research studies 

helps biologists direct resources to the most costeffective projects with the goal of protecting resources 

and human health and safety.

The economic impacts of wildlife damage and 

management often extend to the local community 

in the form of employment and economic output 

changes. Regional economic analysis is used to 

estimate these effects, providing a picture of the 

way wildlife damage can affect industries other than 

agriculture.

Benefit-Cost Analysis 

To ensure an effective and insightful BCA, economists 

must first identify and assign values to measurable 

benefits and costs associated with the management 

activity of interest. In wildlife damage management, 

costs are often easier to identify than benefits.

For an activity such as the control and prevention 

of wildlife rabies, total costs may include the cost of 

vaccine baits and their distribution and the labor costs 

of vaccinating or removing wildlife. Benefits usually 

accrue from a reduction in wildlife damage over time. 

Several types of benefits exist: 

Direct (e.g., fewer people requiring vaccinations 

 due to rabies exposure),

 Indirect (e.g., fewer pets requiring quarantine or 

 euthanasia due to rabies exposure), and

 Intangible (e.g., people experiencing less fear of 

 exposure to rabies through wildlife).

In rabies control programs, the benefits frequently 

outweigh the costs.

Once benefits are identified, a monetary value must be 

assigned. This is the most difficult and sophisticated 

part of the BCA and is where economists play an 

important role. Market goods such as cattle or corn are 

bought and sold regularly, so they are easily assigned 

a monetary value. It is more difficult to determine the 

value of a wild animal, a decrease in the spread of a 

disease, or enhanced wildlife viewing opportunities. 

When markets for a benefit do not exist, its value must 

be estimated using nonmarket techniques.

Economists can estimate nonmarket value by using 

monetary figures derived from a variety of sources, 

including:

Contingent valuation surveys, which elicit people’s

 willingness to pay for a nonmarket good (such as

 reduced disease) to estimate use and nonuse

 values associated with wildlife species,

 Travel cost methodology studies, which use costs

 incurred for travel to quantify demand for

 recreational activities linked to a species of interest

 (e.g., visitors to a national park), and 

 Benefit transfers, which assign values derived

 from contingent valuation surveys and travel cost 

 methodology studies in one geographical location

 and species to another location and similar species.

Case Study

Birds at dairy farms can consume and/or spoil large 

quantities of livestock feed, which can result in reductions

in milk production and lost producer income. Less milk 

production causes a decline in producer income and reduces 

the incomes of businesses that depend on milk production 

for revenue. Ultimately, this leads to a decline in economic

growth as losses ripple through the region. 

NWRC economists worked with dairy operators and WS 

biologists to establish low, mean, and high estimates of bird 

damage at dairy farms in 10 counties in Pennsylvania to 

calculate the value of lost feed. This information allowed the 

economists to analyze the indirect regional economic effects of 

bird damage in Pennsylvania. Results indicated that revenue 

and employment dropped by between $4 million and 

$12 million and 43 and 128 jobs, respectively, as a 

consequence of bird damage (e.g., consumption and spoilage).

This type of analysis provides a broader understanding of the 

scope of damage that birds cause dairies, enabling producers

and wildlife managers to target the most economically 

efficient methods of bird control.

Costs Benefits

Decreased Human

Rabies Exposure

Decreased Livestock & 

Pet Rabies Exposure

Decreased Wildlife

Rabies Testing

Rabies

Vaccination Program

Wildlife Population

Control

Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA)

of Coyote Rabies Control