Alaska begins wolf killings to boost caribou for hunters

[VenusRising]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2009/03/state-begins-al.html

Hunters armed with big-caliber guns have been swooping over wolf packs in the Upper Yukon region of Alaska in one of the biggest aerial wolf hunts the state has undertaken to help boost the number of caribou. Already, at least 30 wolves have been killed in the program that began over the weekend.

...

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game, aiming to boost the survival of caribou calves, wants to kill up to 328 wolves, leaving behind at least 88 to 103. Killing them, state officials say, will allow the Fortymile caribou herd, ravaged by three years of bad weather and heavy snow, to expand from its current level of 40,000 animals to as many as 100,000.

There are several problems with that, according to the park service. First, park officials believe there aren't nearly as many wolves as state officials estimate, and that killing so many could devastate the packs. Second, the Fortymile herd hasn't approached 100,000 since the early 1900s. And preserve Supt. Greg Dudgeon fears some of the preserve's collared wolves, along with others that typically make the preserve their home, could be shot.

more at link above

[valerief]

1. So assholes get to kill both the wolves AND the caribou. Assholes. nt

[VenusRising]

4. Yep.

Nice, huh?

[Motown_Johnny]

2. So, they are killing animals so that they will have more animals to kill. Brilliant

I can't believe that 88-103 wolves would be a viable breeding population (not thatI am an expert)

this is bat shit crazy to me

[VenusRising]

3. They are going with full force Palin logic.

I don't get it either.

[flvegan]

5. One of the logical fallacies of certain breeds of hunters.

The seal hunt in Canada is based much in the same thing, except the Alaska hunters can't use the fur.

[VenusRising]

6. I saw in a related article that Washington and Oregon are doing the same with seals.

See, the seals eat the salmon that the fishermen over fish, so killing the seals means more salmon for us. Well, not me. I HATE salmon. Yuck.

[flvegan]

7. Eliminating competition isn't "hunting." It's fucking shameful.

[ShadesOfGrey]

8. This is heartbreaking...

These greedy assholes have ZERO respect for nature. :cry:

[tangent90]

10. Well you can't just let nature run wild...

:eyes:
Remember that pearl of wisdom?
:grr:

[backscatter712]

9. Anybody forget to mention how much I hate Sarah Palin? n/t

[EstimatedProphet]

11. This is an extremely bad idea on biological grounds

And it's been shown to be so. Here's an article that verifies a similar effort in northern Arizona in the early 1900's:

http://www.pressekatalog.de/Was+Aldo+Leopold+Right+about+the+Kaibab+Deer+Herd/ARTID_10.1007/s10021-005-0100-z.html

In brief, a bounty was placed on mule deer predators in the Kaibab region, which reduced their numbers dramatically and resulted in an overpopulation of mule deer. The majority of the mule deer population died off from disease in just a couple of years. I've always felt that when man takes predators out of the population, he'd better be ready to step up and take their place. However, in cases like this, he simply isn't capable of doing the job. This is going to end badly.