ABSTRACT
Predator restoration is a recent phenomenon in wildlife conservation. Merely 3 decades ago, any suggestion to restore an extirpated predator would have been considered environmentally destructive, ludicrous or even evil by a majority of people. However, awareness that predators have important cultural and biological values (Kellert 1986, 1987) has been growing during the last 25 years. This awareness has been largely fostered by pioneering studies of large mammalian predators, studies such as those on the timber wolf (Canis lupus, Mech 1966, Peterson 1977), the puma (Felis concolor, Hornocker 1970, Seidensticker et al. 1973), the tiger (Panthera tigris, Schaller 1967), the lion (Panthera leo, Schaller 1972) and the hyena (Crocuta crocuta, Kruuk 1972).
