Are you aware of what you are doing? Asking Italian hunters about an invasive alien species they are introducing

The human-driven spread of Invasive Alien Species is a major concern for conservation biologists. Since hunters are spreading invasive Eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in Italy, we investigated their beliefs about the species through semi-qualitative questionnaires in Tuscany, an area where cottontails have been occurring since 2000. Most respondents regarded invasive cottontails as a subspecies of the native European wild rabbit. Native European hares were highly valued as a game and perceived as a declining species, whereas no clear reason explained the hunting of cottontails and their population trend. We found no relationship between perceiving hares as a declining game and supporting the introduction of cottontails, or hunting cottontails. Respondents supported or opposed the eradication of cottontails according to their beliefs about the negative impact of the species over native hares. Hunters seem to have unclear ideas about cottontails and their impact and hold stable and positive attitudes towards the conservation of native hares. Cottontails are unlikely to replace hares as a game in the short term but may become a substitute game in case of a severe reduction in the abundance of hares. Our results could enable wildlife managers to plan eradication schemes to counteract invasive cottontails without fearing any strong opposition by hunters, provided that effective conservation plans are available for native game species. Hunters could also be engaged in large-scale monitoring programs based on hunting bags, as an encouraging number of respondents record killed cottontails on their hunting card. Future studies should broaden the investigation of hunters’ and angler’s perception of invasive alien species, as these two leisure activities are responsible for their spread worldwide