What had been a fantastic road to recovery for Pumas in the Black Hills and Custer State Park in South Dakota is being eviscerated by the state biologists that occupy the offices of the South Dakota Game & Fish Dept.........The most eastern reservoir of breeding Pumas in the USA and what could and should be the source population for eventual dispersal and recolonization into the midwest and beyond is being "torched" by the nimrods that are responsible for wildlife management.............Perhaps 200+ adult Pumas occupy South Dakota and they are about to face a firing squad that could reduce their population by 50%..............Madness this is as the folks at COUGAR REWILDING and other responsible wildlife groups have yelled out loudly about............ This hard take of Pumas is the type of attrition that threatens the long term persistence of the "Cats" in a region; a region that took decades to re-establish a breeding population.........So many "1 STEP FORWARD AND 2 STEPS BACK" at every juncture for our carnivore populations..............Will sound science, morality and the health of the land ever weigh heavy in our quest for ecosystem services rewilding?

South Dakota Game & Fish proposes dogs for Custer lion hunt

Earlier season, more liberal quota, more hunters being sought to reduce lion population  

GFP proposes dogs for Custer lion hunt

The South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission has proposed more liberal regulations for mountain lion hunting this coming season including limited dog use in Custer State Park, higher quotas and an earlier start. Pioneer file photo

By Bob Mercer; Black Hills Pioneer.com

MILBANK — Mountain lion hunters in South Dakota could be getting quite the Christmas present for the coming season
The state Game, Fish and Parks Commission voted unanimously Friday morning to accept recommendations from state Wildlife Division biologists that would greatly liberalize the 2013 season.
  One would let the hunt start the day after Christmas. Another would let hunters harvest up to 30 more lions in 2013 than they were allowed in 2012. There also will more hunters permitted into Custer State Park. There will be five groups of 30, plus 12 others who will be allowed to use dogs in the park. Special drawings will be held for the park permits.

The Custer changes are part of a more concentrated effort to reduce lion numbers inside the park and take pressure off the elk herds."I think that's the most efficient way to do it," commissioner Jim Spies of Watertown said about using dogs.--such a smart man Mr. Spies is--NOT!!!!-blogger Rick

A public hearing will be held on the proposed rule changes during the afternoon of Oct. 4 at the commission's next meeting, set for Deadwood's AmericInn. Hunters would be allowed to kill up to 30 more lions during the Black Hills season. The recommended limits are 70 females or 100 total, whichever is reached first. The 2012 season limits were 50 and 70.--lets just keep killing them until they truly are "ghost cats"; sickening this is!-blogger Rick

Hunters legally killed 73 lions, however, after the hunter who took the 70th lion didn't report his kill until the following day.That allowed hunters to remain in the field one more day. They took three more lions on March 1.Altogether hunters harvested 27 males and 46 females during the 2012 hunt.
To encourage more hunting, the biologists' recommendation calls for the Black Hills season to be five days longer for 2013 and start Dec. 26, 2012, rather than Jan. 1, 2013. It would run until one of the limits was reached or March 31, whichever comes first.--killing pregnant females,,,another smart move to allow late winter hunting when females are carrying unborn kittens--horrible!-blogger Rick

In another important recommendation intended to promote more harvest, licensed hunters could kill lions throughout the year outside the Black Hills any place they were allowed to hunt.--kill baby kill mentality is just insane mgmt policy-blogger Rick

Lions taken outside the Black Hills don't count toward the season limits. In 2012 there were three. Currently only landowners on their own property can take lions outside the Black Hills.

Another piece of the liberalization package would allow hounds to be used by hunters for the first time. They would be restricted to special hunts within Custer State Park.--"fair chase????--blogger Rick

Hunters are otherwise prohibited from using dogs to pursue big game in South Dakota.--someone from anothe planet would read all of the above and conclude rightly that humans are deviant and perhaps are not a race of beings that should continue to be part of the "federation of planets--blogger Rick

The biologists also outlined a sophisticated series of temporary-access hunts in Custer State Park. The access permits would be free but would be available on a limited basis.There would be five sets of 30 hunters allowed into the park for the special-access hunts for specific periods of 14 to 16 days each to pursue lions without using dogs.

There also would be three sets of four hunters allowed into the park for periods of seven days when they could use dogs there.

The changes recommended by the biologists come in response to some current and past members of the commission who favor further reducing the Black Hills population of lions. Public opinion has seemed to deepen in that same direction during the past year or so.

The biologists told the commission Thursday their revised estimate, based on results of the 2012 season, put the Black Hills lion population at about 200 adults and sub-adults and about 100 kittens for the 2012 season.

The commission's goal has been a population of 150 to 200 lions in the Black Hills.
Biologist Andy Lindbloom said the population would decrease to about 70 adults and sub-adults and about 30 kittens by 2016 if the 100 limit is followed for the next three seasons.--genocide at play--blgger Rick

He showed the commission a variety of data that suggested in some ways that perhaps the current 70/50 limit should remain and in other ways indicated more lions can be taken without eating too deeply into the genetic pool. Adopting the 100 limit for 2013 would put the population at an estimated 130 adults and sub-adults and 50 kittens heading into 2014."We're not going to wipe out all the lions we have in the Hills," Lindbloom said.--doubletalk and B.S. of thehighest order--blogger Rick

The 2012 hunt saw 35 lions killed in January and 35 killed in February, followed by the three March 1 after the hunt normally should have been shut down. So far this year the biologists know of 20 lions that died in other ways such as vehicle collisions and removals from populated areas.
Hunters killed their limit of 50 lions in the 2011 season, and another 44 were known to have died, including 13 by removal and 12 in crashes.

South Dakota State University's wildlife researchers have 43 lions currently wearing radio collars. They are 11 males and 32 females.More will be collared in the months ahead. Researchers for SDSU and the Wildlife Division have been documenting predator behavior by lions in the Black Hills.One of their findings is that deer have been the prey at 81 percent of some 1,400 feeding sites. Another is tracking lion predation on elk calves.--that is what they eat,,,,deer!,,,,,is the reporter a complete shill for the Game Commission???????????????--blogger Rick





In Custer State Park the researchers put radio collars on 36 of the calves and 20 have died or lost their collars, including 12 that were killed by lions.

In another hunting unit there were 36 calves collared and four of those have been lost to lions. Wyoming's quota for lions as part of the broader Black Hills and related range was 40 in 2011. All 40were taken, along with five lions from unlimited hunting areas. The 2012 quota is set at 61.---Wyoming on a death quest for all Pumas, Wolves and Bears--blogger Rick