Culling coyotes
- Derek Quann, a resource conservation manager with Parks Canada, said there were only two "coyote-human encounters" reported at the Cape Breton Highlands National Park this summer, neither of which involved aggression.
"I would say on the coyote conflict front, it has been ... relatively quiet," Quann said. "Let's say an improvement over the past two summers or actually probably an improvement over the past several years."
It also seems there are fewer anecdotal reports of individuals having run-ins with coyotes across the province. That's reassuring for those who enjoy the outdoors.
But provincial officials could interpret that trend two ways as the October to March trapping season approaches.
On one hand, Natural Resources Minister Charlie Parker could conclude that the reason there are seemingly fewer coyote-human encounters is because the province's coyote "pelt-incentive program" or cull during the 2010-11 trapping season worked and so should be offered again this season.
On the other hand, he could reckon that the cull isn't needed simply because there have been fewer encounters.
The cull was one aspect of the province's "four-part plan" to deal with aggressive coyotes, following two incidents in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park — a 19-year-old woman was fatally attacked by coyotes in 2009 and a 16-year-old girl was bitten on the head by a coyote in 2010 — as well as other reports of coyote encounters across the province.
In addition to the cull (paying trappers a $20 incentive per coyote killed), the other aspects of the provincial plan were hiring a wildlife conflict biologist, distributing information on how to deal with coyotes, and training 13 trappers to target aggressive coyotes in specific areas.
Take away the cull and the plan makes perfect sense. That's how officials at the Cape Breton Highlands National Park are dealing with the issue. They're posting safety messages, stepping up patrols and trying to kill specific problem animals. And it appears to be working.
On the other hand, science doesn't support general culls, because coyotes can compensate. "The normal number of babies that a female coyote has is about five or six," said retired Nova Scotia biologist Bob Bancroft. "But what happens when the coyote population is dropped by trapping or hunting is they'll have up to 19 young."
Advocates for a cull argue that the practice discourages coyotes from settling in more populated areas, but targeting specific animals could well serve the same purpose.
Payments to trappers participating in last season's cull cost taxpayers $52,860 for 2,643 coyotes killed. The previous season, with no bounty, 1,736 coyotes were reported killed in Nova Scotia. And might there have been less incentive to report coyotes killed when no bounty was offered?
Parker should consider converting his four-part plan to a three-part plan, sans cull.
It also seems there are fewer anecdotal reports of individuals having run-ins with coyotes across the province. That's reassuring for those who enjoy the outdoors.
But provincial officials could interpret that trend two ways as the October to March trapping season approaches.
On one hand, Natural Resources Minister Charlie Parker could conclude that the reason there are seemingly fewer coyote-human encounters is because the province's coyote "pelt-incentive program" or cull during the 2010-11 trapping season worked and so should be offered again this season.
On the other hand, he could reckon that the cull isn't needed simply because there have been fewer encounters.
The cull was one aspect of the province's "four-part plan" to deal with aggressive coyotes, following two incidents in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park — a 19-year-old woman was fatally attacked by coyotes in 2009 and a 16-year-old girl was bitten on the head by a coyote in 2010 — as well as other reports of coyote encounters across the province.
In addition to the cull (paying trappers a $20 incentive per coyote killed), the other aspects of the provincial plan were hiring a wildlife conflict biologist, distributing information on how to deal with coyotes, and training 13 trappers to target aggressive coyotes in specific areas.
Take away the cull and the plan makes perfect sense. That's how officials at the Cape Breton Highlands National Park are dealing with the issue. They're posting safety messages, stepping up patrols and trying to kill specific problem animals. And it appears to be working.
On the other hand, science doesn't support general culls, because coyotes can compensate. "The normal number of babies that a female coyote has is about five or six," said retired Nova Scotia biologist Bob Bancroft. "But what happens when the coyote population is dropped by trapping or hunting is they'll have up to 19 young."
Advocates for a cull argue that the practice discourages coyotes from settling in more populated areas, but targeting specific animals could well serve the same purpose.
Payments to trappers participating in last season's cull cost taxpayers $52,860 for 2,643 coyotes killed. The previous season, with no bounty, 1,736 coyotes were reported killed in Nova Scotia. And might there have been less incentive to report coyotes killed when no bounty was offered?
Parker should consider converting his four-part plan to a three-part plan, sans cull.
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