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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

My Department is hiring an Assistant Professor of Natural Resource Policy (link in comments)!

Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

"[S]cience, even the highest-quality science, can never tell us what should be done." I don't do this often, but I published an Op-Ed. I guess that's what you do after a pet peeve festers too long!?? mountainjournal.org/grizzly-bear...

mountainjournal.org

Op-Ed: The Forgotten Key to Wildlife Management: Values - Mountain Journal

Science alone won’t get the politics out of wildlife management. We shouldn’t want it to.

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Mark Lubell @envpolicycenter.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

Got a short term project that would benefit from a team of grad students working on it? Apply to be a policy clinic partner. mailchi.mp/ucdavis/requ...

mailchi.mp

Policy Clinic Request for Proposals

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

NYU is hiring two postdocs at the Center for Social Media, AI & Politics: csmapnyu.org/jobs And a grant manager in Sociology with the Social Science Research Hub: uscareers-nyu.icims.com/jobs/15327/g... I'm part of both groups--please share with anyone who is interested!

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

Seeking applicants to a qualitative social science post-doc position - located at Purdue University, but collaborating with me and others on the human dimensions of white-tailed deer and cwd management. www.schooljobs.com/careers/ummi...

schooljobs.com

Job Opportunities | University of Montana, Helena College & UM Western

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Big news in the Metcalf house… Today, Libby was officially named Dean of the College of Forestry and Conservation at the University of Montana & Director of the Montana Forest and Conservation Experiment Station. More to share in coming days, but I’m just so damn humbled to watch this Wonder Woman!

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Good coverage of our human dimensions of wildlife study on the dynamic effects of social identity on attitudes! "Pack Politics: How Political Identity can Twist Perception of Wolves - Study shows that partisan misperceptions about opponents may lead to conflict, even when consensus is possible"

mountainjournal.org

Pack Politics: How Political Identity can Twist Perception of Wolves - Mountain Journal

Study shows that partisan misperceptions about opponents may lead to conflict, even when consensus is possible

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

Solid mix of pride and embarrassment to be featured in the inaugural YouTube episode of A New Angle podcast talking about the human dimensions of wolf and wildlife conservation. "The big (bad?) wolf with Dr. Alex Metcalf" www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VZa...

youtube.com

The Big (Bad?) Wolf with Dr. Alex Metcalf

YouTube video by A New Angle

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

The Conversation U.S. @us.theconversation.com · 06/01/2026

Most Americans actually like wolves, but when researchers reminded people of their political identities, Democrats became more friendly to wolves and Republicans far more opposed. It’s an interesting study in how politics and social identity can fuel partisan polarization. buff.ly/aA10yEP

theconversation.com

Americans generally like wolves − except when we’re reminded of our politics

New research shows how identity-driven assumptions can turn common ground into conflict.

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

In another paper (under review) we show that a very subtle hunter or landowner identity activation suppresses tolerance among hunters & landowners, too... So my view is that attitudes are DYNAMICLY related to social identities, not statically. Hope that helps!

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Being a wolf hunter or large landowner was a strong predictor of tolerance; being an ungulate hunter was a weak, but significant predictor in the final model. Figure 5 from that paper:

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Thanks @nikolaj-bi.bsky.social - we didn't here, but we did recently in another paper. Found a really interesting (and unique?) increase in ungulate hunters' tolerance of wolves in MT, but a persistent lack of tolerance among wolf hunters. conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

The real trick (beyond isolating and demonstrating this effect) is to overcome it...we show some progress on this front, too.

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

TL;DR: Americans across the political spectrum generally like wolves - quite a bit, actually - UNTIL reminded of their politics, at which point they dramatically polarize into assumed camps of "for" and "against." Those assumptions are the problem.

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Ironically on January 6th, we have a new paper out about political identities and how they divide us on the topic of wolves. doi.org/10.1111/cobi...

doi.org

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 20/12/2025

I just reviewed a paper with a pile of made up citations - flagged to editor and their question was: “well were the claims in the paper supported or not?” ??!! 🤦🏽

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

We hear lots of discussion about private land & public wildlife, but I’d never seen a census of ownership - hopefully these facts add to the dialogue. The implications for wildlife are interesting & likely positive, but consequences for public trust beneficiaries (the public) is more complicated…

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

The landowner population grown 22% since 2004 = parcelization. But it’s the medium parcels that are getting cut up, not the largest properties (those are growing in size, slightly). You can see that properties 100-1,000 acres are shedding aces to smaller properties:

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

You can see out of state ownership is about 17% of the private land, up from 13% in 2004. (This is likely an underestimate since many corporate entities can have a MT mailing address even if they’re actually out of state; but we don’t know how much this happens).

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Here’s another way to look at it. There are 370,000+ landowners in MT, some own small lots, about 125,000 own properties >640 acres. But most MT private land is on the largest of properties. ~300 owners control over 25% of the private land. ~3,000 owners control about 2/3rds of the private land:

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Perhaps more astonishing to me was how concentrated private land is in a few ownerships. Massive properties don’t just account for an important part of the landscape, they dominate the landscape. Here’s a view of how much land in the state is owned by the largest 10%, 1% and 0.1% owners 2004 - 2023:

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

The answer to my OG question is that in 2004 corporate entities owned 44% of the private land but now they own 56%. Ranching interests dominate the corporations, but LLCs are on a dramatic rise both in number and in acres owned.

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

I’ve also been working with spatial landownership data for a long time and have been frustrated by the typical figures researchers generate. So we took this opportunity to play with some different visualizations. Here are a few that show our most relevant findings:

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

A couple years back I started to wonder how much of MT is owned by corporate entities, the role of really big properties, & the consequences for public trust wildlife management. Today we published some answers and how things have (and haven’t) changed over the past 20 years:

doi.org

Private Ownership of Public Trust Wildlife Habitat in Montana, U.S.A. (2004–2023) - Environmental Management

Habitat ownership in the U.S. is primarily private, complicating management of public trust wildlife. Under this configuration, the rights and interests of private landowners can be at odds with those...

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

Quite simply: wolves don’t seem to live up to their big bad reputation and, over time, people notice. [Stay tuned for a related paper, in press, that explores the divisive consequences of those media narratives about conflict and our false assumptions about division…] #humandimensions 4/4

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

So why is tolerance on the rise? Our analysis suggests as Montanans have lived for years with wolves, the majority of their interactions with wolves are self-described as positive! These positive interactions (& perhaps the lack of meaningfully negative interactions) bolster people’s attitudes. 3/

conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

In MT, people also tolerate wolf hunting & lethal control - this sets MT apart from Europe & elsewhere. Wolf controversy is real, but those opposed to wolves & against wolf hunting/control are in distinct minorities. These minorities can, however, have outsized impacts on wolves. 2/

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

🚨 New Lab paper! 🚨 Contrary to assumptions & media narratives, most people have positive attitudes toward wolves & are tolerant of them. This is true around the world & even here in MT where 74% of Montanans are tolerant or very tolerant of wolves. 1/ conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Increasing tolerance of wolves in Montana, United States (2012–2023)

There is little reliable human dimensions data on people's attitudes toward wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains despite global interest in wolf management in the area, and limited information glob...

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Absolute rock star Claire McAtee presenting her senior honors thesis in human dimensions of Wildlife Biology!

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 16/11/2025

Consider that MT is 40% public land. This means animals are harvested on public land at 150% the rate of private. Thats assuming an even distribution of animals across ownerships - which is false. If we could account for the concentration on private, the rate would be higher.

montanaoutdoor.com

Half of successful Montana elk hunters fill their tags on public land

Five bull elk stood just out of reach on public land, a reminder that in hunting, luck and licensing often decide success...

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Paul Fairie @paulisci.bsky.social · 06/11/2025

A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women 🧵

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 06/11/2025

The so-called debunking of “cult psychology” from the recent paper on When Prophecy Fails is misleading. Check out the comments on this thread, where philosophers point out where the key premises of the book replicate in the vast majority of similar cults & a huge replication of dissonance theory.

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

AI, while generally overrated, does have some uses…

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

When I first read this quote years ago it made no sense to me. I wish that hadn’t changed.

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Society for Conservation Biology @society4conbio.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Registration is NOW OPEN for the Conservation Marketing (ConsMark) Conference 2025! 🗓️ Date: December 3 & 4 🔗 Register today: lnkd.in/eBbCVZUu #conservation #marketing #conference

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Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD @metcalfhdlab.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

Everything in academia just seems to be moving so slowly these days. I’ve complained about journal reviews, but grant announcement and reviews, hiring paperwork, student issues, accounting processes, policy changes … it’s like everything is in quicksand.

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Kristian Steensen Nielsen @kristiansn89.bsky.social · 15/10/2025

🔥 The never-ending narrative… This week, I’ve once again heard prominent climate researchers dismiss individual action as either irrelevant or a distraction instigated by the fossil fuel industry. Here’s a 🧵 on why this argument frustrates me to no end and why I think it misses the bigger picture.

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Reposted by Alexander L. Metcalf, PhD

Wilhelm Hofmann @wilhelmhofmann.bsky.social · 11/10/2025

Further robust evidence suggesting green nudges at the individual level are unlikely to make a difference. As we recently suggested, it is time to abandon the prevailing success focus and rather think of this body of evidence as pointing to the many structural constraints people are facing, and

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