Specifications include, but are not limited to: The State of Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is seeking proposals to determine the public’s opinions on Maine’s furbearer management program and on the direction the Department’s furbearer management should take. 1. The perceptions of Maine residents, hunters and trappers, and landowners owning greater than 10 acres towards the current and desired future population levels of furbearers. 2. Assess levels of support by Maine residents and hunters and trappers for current hunting and trapping regulations for key furbearer species. Examples of regulatory issues that might be addressed: a. Does a current hunting or trapping season provide adequate opportunity to harvest the target animal? b. Does a furbearer trapping or hunting season interfere with other outdoor activities? c. Is the current fee structure for resident and non-resident trappers fair? d. What is the public’s support for various harvest methods (e.g., killer-type traps, foothold traps, hunting with dogs, shooting over bait). 3. Determine regional differences (e.g., southern Maine, northern Maine, western mountains, Downeast Maine) among Maine residents in their perspectives on furbearer management, knowledge of the natural history of furbearers, and their attitudes about individual species. 4. Gauge public support for various management approaches for controlling animal damage or pet predation problems. For example, for beaver, this could include questions that address: a. Lethal removal of beaver when neither the pelt or carcass is used. b. Use of flow-control devices to control flooding caused by beaver dams. c. Moving problem beaver even if the survival of translocated beaver is low. d. Increasing participation of out-of-state trappers in beaver trapping. e. The public’s preference for beaver management that focuses on reducing nuisance problems vs. maintaining a healthy population of beaver. f. The use of USDA Wildlife Services to control nuisance problems vs. trappers during the normal beaver season. 5. Determine public attitudes and knowledge about predation by furbearers and expectations of the Department to manage predation levels. 6. Determine the interest of non-residents in harvesting furbearers in Maine either by trapping or hunting, and the tolerance of Maine residents for non-resident hunting and trapping of furbearers. 7. Gauge public knowledge and attitude towards trapping in Maine.