People's perceptions and willingness to pay to protect saproxylic species in Alpine production forests

European forests managed for timber production are generally characterized by a lack of tree microhabitats and deadwood that could compromise the survival of saproxylic species. Many studies investigated the positive impacts of integrated forest management strategies (e.g., the realization of veteran tree islands) from an ecological perspective. At the same time, there is a gap concerning the socio-economic perspective. To partially fill this gap, this study investigates people’s perceptions and willingness to pay (WTP) to increase the number of specimens of three saproxylic species (Black woodpecker, Western barbastelle, and European stag beetle) in Alpine production forests. An online survey was administered to a sample of 306 Italian people by posting the link on some social network pages. A Discrete Choice Experiment was implemented to estimate people’s perceptions and WTP to increase the number of the three saproxylic species. The results show that the average individual WTP for Black woodpecker is €2.80 for a medium and €3.79 for a high level of specimens. At the same time, for the other two species, non-significant (Western barbastelle) or significant but negative (European stag beetle) preferences were found. This study pointed out that positive emotions and perceptions towards the species are key variables to understanding the individual WTP. This study’s results may support Alpine forest managers in defining conservation strategies for saproxylic species based on citizens’ WTP.