On-Site Wildland Activity Choices Among African Americans and White Americans in the Rural South: Implications for Management

Executive Summary: We compare wildland act ivi ty choices for a sample of rural African Americans and Whites who visited wildland settings in and around the Apalachicola National Forest. We also look at intra-racial (same race, different gender) variations for activity participation. This research extends previous research focused on the visi t /not visi t wildland quest ion by examining activity choice by race and gender for those who do visit. Our results show no racial differences for consumptive activities like fishing and hunting; however, African Americans are significantly less likely than Whites to participate in most forms of nonconsumptive activities like camping and hiking. Greater gender differences in activity participation were found for Whites than for African Americans. We discuss management implications and ways forest managers may attract more African Americans to participate in forest-based outdoor recreation. This includes target marketing strategies that promote fishing and group activities on the Apalachicola National Forest .