TWS pubs in the news

The New York Times recently covered a study published in The Journal of Wildlife Management titled, “Rehabilitating tigers for range expansion: lessons from the Russian Far East.”

If you haven’t read The New York Times article yet, I encourage you to do so. The author delivers a feel-good story ripe for the holiday season. Underlying the “unlikely love story” and fairy tale prince, though, is a novel success in big cat reintroductions with wide-ranging conservation implications. You can read the full study here. Members of The Wildlife Society receive free access to all papers published in The Journal of Wildlife Management.

After reading The New York Times article, our journal team started wondering about other studies featured in the news. With a little help from our friends at Wiley and the magic of Altmetric® data, we can look back at the influence of TWS journals in 2024.

So far this year, studies published in TWS journals have been mentioned 455 times in news articles covering 108 days, 46 weeks and all 12 months of the year. In 2024, there was a good chance you saw our science in the news. So which papers received the most media attention? Let’s take a look.

Top 10 mentioned papers from TWS journals in news outlets:

Status and distribution of wild turkeys in the United States in 2019, Wildlife Society Bulletin, May 2022 – Mentioned by 46 news outlets

Survival and cause‐specific mortality of male wild turkeys across the southeastern United States, The Journal of Wildlife Management, December 2023 – Mentioned by 40 news outlets

Wildland fires ignited by avian electrocutions, Wildlife Society Bulletin, June 2022 – Mentioned by 40 news outlets

Effects of translocation on American crocodile movements and habitat use in South Florida, The Journal of Wildlife Management, June 2023 – Mentioned by 30 news outlets

Use of Supplementary Feeding Dispensers by Arctic Foxes in Norway,The Journal of Wildlife Management, February 2020 – Mentioned by 25 news outlets

Singing silver‐haired bats (Lasionycteris noctivagans), Wildlife Society Bulletin, December 2023 – Mentioned by 25 news outlets

Polar bear attacks on humans: Implications of a changing climate, Wildlife Society Bulletin, July 2017 – Mentioned by 23 news outlets

Experimental test of the efficacy of hunting for controlling human-wildlife conflict, The Journal of Wildlife Management, January 2023 – Mentioned by 19 news articles

Rehabilitating tigers for range expansion: lessons from the Russian Far East, The Journal of Wildlife Management, November 2024 – Mentioned by 13 news outlets

The influence of fence design on the movement patterns of eastern long‐necked turtles, The Journal of Wildlife Management, August 2024 – Mentioned by 7 news outlets

Media coverage plays a crucial role in disseminating scientific knowledge to the general public. While TWS journals help further our scientific understanding of wildlife management along sound biological lines, articles like the one published by The New York Times help transform a complex topic into something accessible for the masses—a relatable story. This fosters greater awareness of current wildlife issues, highlights the importance of wildlife professionals, builds public trust in scientists and the scientific process, and hopefully inspires members of the next generation to pursue a career in wildlife science.

It should come as no surprise that TWS values media coverage that builds a more informed and engaged public. In fact, earlier this year, TWS Council approved a new strategic plan that prioritizes TWS’ external influence with goals like, “increase public engagement and interest in wildlife by expanding TWS’ communications and member exposure,” and “support and coordinate with organizations focused on increasing public engagement and interest in wildlife through communications and education.” As we enter 2025, we hope to build upon the success of this year and bring even more attention to our members and the science being published in our journals.   

Our Altmetric® assessment also reveals a wealth of other equally exciting data. In 2024, TWS journals were cited in at least 159 government reports, management recommendations and plans and other policy documents in five different countries. This includes publications from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the USDA Forest Service, the Scottish Government, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Publications Office of the European Union, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the California Fire Science Consortium.

Finally, while our journals didn’t quite hit trending status on social media, like this TWS post on Instagram, we did see some traction. In 2024, TWS journals were mentioned in over 1,655 posts on the social media platform X. This includes 749 X mentions for the paper, Insect pollinators: The time is now for identifying species of greatest conservation need, published in the Wildlife Society Bulletin, in July 2024.  

Thank you to all of the authors, reviewers, editors, field crews and others who contributed to the advancement of wildlife science this year. The Wildlife Society would not exist without your efforts.  Wishing you all a happy new year! 

Are you publishing your science in a Society-owned journal? For many nonprofit, professional societies like TWS, publications are crucial to the mission and operations of the organization. By publishing in a Society-owned journal you are not only contributing to the advancement of science but also supporting the organizations that help advocate for science, provide resources to professionals, uphold professional ethics, build stronger communities, and recruit the next generation of professionals.