Integrating Expert Perceptions into Food Web Conservation and Management

Decision-makers often rely on expert knowledge, especially in complex and data-poor social-ecologicalsystems (SESs). However, expert knowledge and perceptionsof SES structure and function vary; therefore, understanding how these perceptionsdiffer is critical to building knowledge and developing sustainability solutions. Here, we quantify how scientific, local, and traditional knowledgeexperts vary in their perceptionsof food webscentered on Pacific herring—a valuable ecological, economic, and cultural resource in Haida Gwaii, BC, Canada. Expert perceptionsof the herring food webvaried markedly in structure, and a simulated herring recovery with each of these unique mental models demonstrated wide variability in the perceived importance of herring to the surrounding food web. Using this general approach to determine the logical consequencesof expert perceptionsof SES structure in the context of potential future management actions, decision-makers can work explicitly toward filling knowledge gaps while embracing a diversity of perspectives.