MODELING HUNTING DEMAND IN THE PRESENCE OF A BAG LIMIT, WITH TESTS OF ALTERNATIVE SPECIFICATIONS

Bag limits complicate the measurement of consumer surplus from hunting because the point at which hunters cease taking trips is not necessarily the point at which they are unwilling to pay for additional hunting trips. We develop and apply an econometric model which accounts for bag limits to data of deer hunting in California, and we employ several alternative models that do not account for the bag limit. We conduct non-nested testing of the models, and estimate welfare measures at existing conditions and after a quality improvement. Confidence intervals are provided for the welfare measurements. © 1992.