The Attractiveness of Freshwater Species Correlates Positively With Conservation Support

ABSTRACTThe attractiveness of a species influences human perceptions and attitudes toward it, while flagship species play a significant role in shaping public conservation interests. This research investigated how humans perceive the attractiveness of and their willingness to protect vertebrate and invertebrate aquatic representatives. The study focused on endangered and invasive fish and crayfish species presented to the participants through pictures shared via an online questionnaire. Participants rated the attractiveness of the species and indicated their willingness to protect them using a 7-point scale. The analysis was conducted based on 118 responses from men and women whose backgrounds varied in terms of their age, education, and knowledge regarding biological invasions. The findings indicate that the perceived attractiveness of a species was the primary factor influencing the participants’ willingness to protect the species: the more attractive a species was rated, the greater the willingness to protect it. Overall, endangered fish and crayfish species received higher willingness-to-protect scores than invasive species, with crayfish species being perceived as significantly more attractive than fish. Using attractive or flagship aquatic species, such as crayfish, in the conservation efforts of endangered freshwater taxa can enhance public, stakeholder, and policymaker awareness, thereby potentially contributing to the conservation and restoration of freshwater ecosystems and the protection of native biota.KEYWORDS: Aquatic invasionsbiological invasionsconservationcrayfishfishhuman–animal interaction AcknowledgementsSpecial thanks go to Goran Poznanović and Mayra for correcting the language of the manuscript. The contribution of the anonymous reviewers is also appreciated.Disclosure StatementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.Additional informationFundingThe research was supported by the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of the Republic of Serbia, Contract No. 451-03-47/2023-01/ 200007. P.P. was also supported by the Operation Program of Integrated Infrastructure for the project UpScale of Comenius University Capacities and Competence in Research, Development and Innovation, ITMS2014+: 313021BUZ3, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.