December, 1958 



Scott: Wii.oi.ii-ii Research 



201 



Our thinking must be projected far 

 into the future in an effort to visualize 

 those areas where knowledge will be most 

 needed. Anticipating the future is ad- 

 mittedly fraught with pitfalls. It seems 

 certain, however, that human populations 

 will continue to increase in Illinois. This 

 increase will be attended by more inten- 

 sive use of land and water, more exten- 

 sive transportation and communication 

 systems, more extensive residential and 

 industrial areas, more exhaustive use of 

 fuels and metals, greater use of atomic 

 energy, more automation, and more lei- 

 sure time. 



From the wildlife manager's point of 

 view, this condition forewarns of an in- 

 creasingly severe competition between 

 wildlife and basic human needs. When 

 it is considered that wildlife must be pro- 

 duced primarily on lands utilized for 

 other purposes, the problems of the fu- 

 ture for wildlife become obvious. The in- 

 creasing demand for human food will 

 make it essential that harvest methods be 

 refined to reduce waste, that more heavily 

 yielding crops be developed, that more 

 marginal land be brought into use, and 

 that more agricultural chemicals be ap- 

 plied. This promises not only to reduce 

 wildlife populations but to force them 

 below minimum survival levels, unless 

 effective provisions, such as wide-row 

 corn may prove to be, are constantly 

 sought out by wildlife managers. The 

 need for refuges to insure the survival 

 of rare species will increase. The relative 

 importance of those wild animals which 

 compete with humans for food by eating 

 or contaminating it will be magnified. 

 Intensive use of water could create a 



pollution problem such as would virtually 

 deny aquatic life outside protected areas, 

 unless pollution control, including provi- 

 sion for disposal of radioactive waste, 

 keeps pace with increased water utiliza- 

 tion. 



The provision of a means for satisfy- 

 ing the psychological needs of a human 

 population with more leisure time and 

 relatively less elbow room comprises a 

 formidable challenge. If the human pop- 

 ulation is to maintain some semblance of 

 sanity, services such as those ofifered by 

 wildlife biology must be given equal 

 recognition with those of the physical 

 sciences. Perhaps the average family of 

 the future will tend to satisfy more of 

 its needs for pleasure in the out-of-doors 

 and for escape from the pressures of civi- 

 lization in its own backyard. Hence, the 

 wildlife manager should contrive to know 

 more about the management of the home 

 landscape for wildlife. It seems certain 

 that an increasing amount of hunting will 

 take place on regulated shooting areas, 

 that is, unless hunting proves to be good 

 in outer space. 



The wildlife manager's problems of 

 the past, considerable as they have been, 

 seem as child's play compared with those 

 looming in the future. The wildlife man- 

 ager is going to need determination, cour- 

 age, ability, compensation, and means such 

 as never before. Perhaps we can ease 

 some of his problems by the effective 

 planning of current research to provide 

 a sound basis for the essential decisions 

 of the future. Indeed, wildlife manage- 

 ment as a profession may well depend on 

 the soundness of today's plans for the 

 future. 



