Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Letter to the Ed: Current laws deal well with problem wolves

In study after study, wolves have been found to be successful only about 10 percent to 20 percent of the time in their hunting efforts. When researchers have chances to examine carcasses, often a weakness in the prey is found: a lameness, poor condition, etc. Said another way, healthy prey get away from wolves almost all of the time.
People who complain that wolves don’t just kill the weak and the sick are right. Sometimes they kill the unlucky. But mostly there is a reason wolves can kill. We must remember large game animals aren’t immortal. They get sickness. They age and weaken. Wolves mostly take those animals.

In Minnesota and other Great Lakes states, wolves can be killed by government agents if they pose a danger to livestock or pets as well as people. This program is working. Plenty of wolves are killed. Wisconsin and Michigan both have exercised the authority to kill a wolf if there is a demonstrable but not immediate threat. For example habituated wolves in “town” have been killed even though no one, not even a pet, was injured, harmed or threatened.

Delisting wolves would only mean a return to the trophy hunt, which is cruel, unnecessary and unwanted by most Minnesotans. Studies have shown that trophy hunts destabilize wolf families and causes more livestock predation.

Chris Albert
Lebanon Junction, Ky.

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