Update to Social Media Survey: Final results!

[queensalmon]

Hi all!

Some of you may recall a post I made in March advertising a hunter survey on the impacts of social media. Some of you requested seeing the final results, and here they are! Please be advised that the final report is nearly 17 pages long, and if you are interested in just the survey results, you can scroll down to the section titled Results and Discussions of Survey. Located there are breakdown percentages of answer selections, graphs, and other visualizations, along with descriptive statistics cross-examining different demographic groups, and some quoted text incorporated directly from open-ended questions in the survey.

From Posts to Pressure: Social Media, Hunter Crowding, and Wildlife Management in Montana and the Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area

From Posts to Pressure: Social Media, Hunter Crowding, and Wildlife Management in Montana and the Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area 4 May 2026 | Department of Land Resources and Environmental Science - ENSC 499R Senior Capstone | Rosalie Sowers Abstract Social media has ...

docs.google.com

(Please let me know if there are any access issues. This is not yet formally published. File also attached as a PDF)

If you are looking for a super quick snapshot, here it is. Social media exposure causes crowding, and crowding causes reduced hunt quality. Crowding also reduces harvest success and opportunity, as well as has negative impacts on wildlife distribution. Multiple states (Arizona, Idaho, Montana, ect) have reduced tags, shortened seasons, and moved to draw systems in response to crowding. Among all respondents in the survey, about half indicated using social media for hunting purposes. Non-residents, younger hunters, and hunters with less than 5 years of experience used social media the most to locate hunting opportunities and public lands. A very high percentage of respondents in these groups also indicated they personally think social media causes crowding, and an even higher percentage outside of these groups agreed. Overall, the general perception of social media was largely negative, especially when influencers utilize social media platforms to generate profit from public lands.

Please note that the results of this survey and the final paper are not intended to single out a specific group or cause any harm. This is not an attack on anyone who may utilize social media for hunting purposes. I am simply presenting the data that I gathered factually without bias, supported by scientific literature. I had a few folks really slander me in the open-ended sections of the survey. Please, this is not necessary, and if you have any grievances with my research, I would be happy to discuss the results with you personally and respectfully.

THANK YOU to everyone who participated in this study. Your experiences and opinions are currently helping improve management of public lands in Montana; these results were passed on to the Forest Service, the Wildlife Society, and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition.

Additional thank you to everyone who gave me feedback regarding the structure of the survey. There were several concerns from respondents who had never hunted or heard of the Hyalite WSA, which is where this project was largely based. Please be assured that I took this feedback seriously and edited the survey programming to disregard any responses from hunters who indicated they had never heard of the WSA.

Overall, I really enjoyed doing this project, and it was a great wrap to my undergraduate career! I graduate this Friday, and I sincerely thank all of you for taking part in my last major milestone in college. Please reach out if you have any questions regarding the results or want to discuss any portion of this study further. Otherwise, cheers! Maybe this year I'll get my first bull with my bow good luck to all!

 

[elkduds]

Excellent! Congratulations on graduating, and best of luck with future plans.

Literature findings suggest a clear progression: social media increases exposure to hunting locations and opportunities, that exposure can concentrate hunters in specific areas, and this crowding contributes to reduced hunt quality, displacement from preferred areas, loss of opportunity, and perceived wildlife impacts. Survey results supported this pattern, with many respondents reporting that social media influenced their hunting decisions and negatively impacted their hunting experiences. Respondents also commonly reported changing locations, avoiding areas entirely, or losing potential opportunities for success due to interference from other hunters. Respondents also observed wildlife responses in crowded areas, including movement into less accessible terrain, reduced sightings, and altered movement patterns.

Spot burning is real. Surprised?

 

[Hunting Wife]

I think you did a fine job with your analysis of a controversial and complex topic. Congratulations on your graduation and best wishes on your future endeavors!

 

[queensalmon]

Excellent! Congratulations on graduating, and best of luck with future plans.

Literature findings suggest a clear progression: social media increases exposure to hunting locations and opportunities, that exposure can concentrate hunters in specific areas, and this crowding contributes to reduced hunt quality, displacement from preferred areas, loss of opportunity, and perceived wildlife impacts. Survey results supported this pattern, with many respondents reporting that social media influenced their hunting decisions and negatively impacted their hunting experiences. Respondents also commonly reported changing locations, avoiding areas entirely, or losing potential opportunities for success due to interference from other hunters. Respondents also observed wildlife responses in crowded areas, including movement into less accessible terrain, reduced sightings, and altered movement patterns.

Spot burning is real. Surprised?

Haha not at all. Within the introduction, there's a section describing spot burning and how influencers contribute to it. Subjectively, it's baffling to me how these folks promote their content in the name of recruitment and conservation when clear data says otherwise.

 

[INMT]

I took the survey, thank you for reporting back and congrats on graduating

Now if you want to PM me the a$$holes that found it necessary to slander you in the open-ended sections of the survey, that would be much appreciated. You didn’t deserve that from those slimy leaches.

Congrats again.

 

[queensalmon]

I was truly baffled about their hostility! Unfortunately, the survey was completely anonymous and their names were not recorded. I'm not sure what got their panties in a bunch, maybe they were aspiring influences lol.

I took the survey, thank you for reporting back and congrats on graduating

Now if you want to PM me the a$$holes that found it necessary to slander you in the open-ended sections of the survey, that would be much appreciated. You didn’t deserve that from those slimy leaches.

Congrats again.

 

[INMT]

I was truly baffled about their hostility! Unfortunately, the survey was completely anonymous and their names were not recorded. I'm not sure what got their panties in a bunch, maybe they were aspiring influences lol.

Aspiring or current, you nailed it.

 

[Pucky Freak]

Impressive, young lady. About 2% of senior capstone projects add any degree of value to the real world. You hit this one out the park. Here’s to a great start to the rest of your professional life.

 

[queensalmon]

Impressive, young lady. About 2% of senior capstone projects add any degree of value to the real world. You hit this one out the park. Here’s to a great start to the rest of your professional life.

Thank you kindly! It definitely helps when you can enjoy and have a personal connection to your research.

 

[Rack Daniels]

Outstanding. I read the whole thing.
It amazes me how many see less motorized access as a solution. While maybe only partly correct, in my opinion, we need more trailHEADS if we want to see distribution. Less motorized trails perhaps, but definitely more trailheads.

Thank you for all the time you’ve taken and returning with the results. Some of the numbers are baffling actually…
And Congratulations! I hope you get your bull with your bow this year!

 

[Johnny Bravo]

Did you use ChatGPT to do this....come on, be honest.... LOL

 

[queensalmon]

Did you use ChatGPT to do this....come on, be honest.... LOL

I spent nearly 80,000 on my education to learn how to write scientifically and 4 months on this paper specifically, so, no, I did not lol. I would be doing an injustice to my own capabilities to write my capstone with AI.

 

[queensalmon]

Outstanding. I read the whole thing.
It amazes me how many see less motorized access as a solution. While maybe only partly correct, in my opinion, we need more trailHEADS if we want to see distribution. Less motorized trails perhaps, but definitely more trailheads.

Thank you for all the time you’ve taken and returning with the results. Some of the numbers are baffling actually…
And Congratulations! I hope you get your bull with your bow this year!

Thank you for reading and interesting take! From reading respondents open-ended responses, the "reduce motorized access" selection seemed to stem from a belief that motorized access makes it "too easy" to get into areas that would be hard to reach on foot. One fella wrote "the more crowded a trailhead gets, the more people buy motorized vehicles to get away from the crowds, and all the sudden it's crowded 10 miles back, especially if the trail remains motorized for an extended mileage." It definitely got my gears turning too!

 

[SAJ-99]

I spent nearly 80,000 on my education to learn how to write scientifically and 4 months on this paper specifically, so, no, I did not lol. I would be doing an injustice to my own capabilities to write my capstone with AI.

Congrats on completing the work and good luck in your hunts and whatever you choose to do.

You may want to reexamine your use of AI as a matter of career-preservation. As you sit for graduation, look around and know those people will be using AI and completing work in less time.

 

[cgasner1]

Outstanding. I read the whole thing.
It amazes me how many see less motorized access as a solution. While maybe only partly correct, in my opinion, we need more trailHEADS if we want to see distribution. Less motorized trails perhaps, but definitely more trailheads.

Thank you for all the time you’ve taken and returning with the results. Some of the numbers are baffling actually…
And Congratulations! I hope you get your bull with your bow this year!

Roads aren’t the problem windshields are. Elk dont care about roads or traffic you can sit up on a ridge and hear utvs from miles away. Most guys wont walk more than a mile or so from the truck. I can think of about 6 elk I’ve killed under 300 yards from a road. My bull last year had a grueling 152 yard pack out. Granted I walked in on a open road shot the bull then went back and got my truck.

 

[queensalmon]

Congrats on completing the work and good luck in your hunts and whatever you choose to do.

You may want to reexamine your use of AI as a matter of career-preservation. As you sit for graduation, look around and know those people will be using AI and completing work in less time. View attachment 407589

While you may be right, I am a believer that not everything has to be made easier for us. The human race has come so far and done so many great things using the excellence of their own minds and capabilities. I'm not so ready to give that up to a robot just yet. But AI is here to stay, and I hope it can be incorporated as a useful tool and not a complete handicap. There is character to be built and lessons to be learned through the academic struggle, but that is my personal outlook. To teach their own!

 

[Rack Daniels]

Roads aren’t the problem windshields are. Elk dont care about roads or traffic you can sit up on a ridge and hear utvs from miles away. Most guys wont walk more than a mile or so from the truck. I can think of about 6 elk I’ve killed under 300 yards from a road. My bull last year had a grueling 152 yard pack out. Granted I walked in on a open road shot the bull then went back and got my truck.

Well, to that I would say, it helps a lot WHERE a person is actually hunting the animals…

funny that you said most people won’t walk a mile and then immediately after say there’s 6 elk that YOU yourself didn’t even go a QUARTER mile.
I’ve never shot an elk with an easy packout. I hiked a total of nearly 21 round trip miles in one day for my only bull

 

[cgasner1]

Well, to that I would say, it helps a lot WHERE a person is actually hunting the animals…

funny that you said most people won’t walk a mile and then immediately after say there’s 6 elk that YOU yourself didn’t even go a QUARTER mile.
I’ve never shot an elk with an easy packout. I hiked a total of nearly 21 round trip miles in one day for my only bull

Im not into walking past elk I guess. Last year I was probably 2 miles in on an open to motor road an just happen to call the bull damn near up onto the road. Seemed silly not to walk back and get my truck after I packed him up to the road

 

[cgasner1]

Well, to that I would say, it helps a lot WHERE a person is actually hunting the animals…

funny that you said most people won’t walk a mile and then immediately after say there’s 6 elk that YOU yourself didn’t even go a QUARTER mile.
I’ve never shot an elk with an easy packout. I hiked a total of nearly 21 round trip miles in one day for my only bull

Let me put it to you this way you and everyone else is looking for a trail head to hike into I’m just looking for a dead end road to walk down. The elk don’t care if it’s open if you don’t drive down it. Most people will just drive by a dead end road and few will actually drive down it because they have to turn around and can’t make a loop. Down where I hunt there is a closed road that will have 2-3 truck on it every day for a little area because the road is marked closed I’ve got a few different spots within 20 min of that same gate I never see anyone on because it’s not closed

 

[Irrelevant]

in my opinion, we need more trailHEADS if we want to see distribution. Less motorized trails perhaps, but definitely more trailheads.

I would say more trailheads means shorter hikes to more areas, which might reduce the most crowded areas, but may also increase the least crowded areas.

We need more land and fewer people.

Elk dont care about roads or traffic you can sit up on a ridge and hear utvs from miles away. Most guys wont walk more than a mile or so from the truck. I can think of about 6 elk I’ve killed under 300 yards from a road. My bull last year had a grueling 152 yard pack out. Granted I walked in on a open road shot the bull then went back and got my truck.

That's just not consistent with research

https://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/research/docs/ELKElkdistributionandmodellinginrelationtoroads.pdf

https://www.fs.usda.gov/pnw/pubs/journals/pnw_2004_rowland001.pdf

Just because you saw elk close to roads does not mean that elk like, or don't care about roads, it's that elk cannot utilize a landscape without getting close to roads.