Sunday, March 27, 2011

VERMONT---Despite the 3rd snowiest Winter on record(2010-11).................Despite the fact that on average there are a good 6000 Eastern Coyotes(Coywolves) calling Vermont home...........Vermont hunters recorded a robust Whitetail Deer Harvest this seaon with over 15,500 "hoofed browsers" taken out of the Forest--up 2% over the 2009-10 hunt.................At the end of the day, while both Eastern Coyotes and Bobcats take a % of fawns in Spring and both take and scavenge adult deer(especially in Winter), neither of these Carnivores truly fills the historical ecological niche of the currently extirpated wolf and cougar.................The Vermont woodlands would have optimum regeneration and biological diversity(as we have discussed in previous postings) if wolves and cougars were restored to the landscape

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BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Vermonters are still digging out from a winter storm that is taking its place in the record books .   The National ...

Our friend, Canadian Biologist Brent Patterson was recently invited to give a talk on Wolves and Coyotes in Ontario............He spoke to the Ontario Federation of Hunters and Anglers on the canid soup of Gray Wolves, Eastern Wolves and Eastern Coyotes that inhabit Ontario at this point in time..................Give yourself a good 20 minutes and click on the link below to expand your knowledge on this stimulating topic

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below here is the link to Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH)conference held over the weekend---where Dr. Brent Patterson prese...

Buttermilk Creek in Texas, Meadowcraft Rock Shelter in Pennsylvania and a slew of other archaeological sites are proving that Man existed in the Americas 2000 years earlier than 20th Century wisdom had previously suggested......The prevailing evidence a decade ago weighed in that the so-called Clovis People had colonized the Americas about 12,500 years ago............Buttermilk Creek and Meadowcreek Rockshelter excavations are now revealing that men(perhaps by boats and not through the Bering Straight) colonized both North and South America as long as 15,500 years ago..........In my opinion, this adds credence to the blitzkreig theory that states that Man(along with changing climate and perhaps introduced diseases) brought the rapid extinction to the megafauna(sabertooth cats, dire wolves, short faced bears, etc, etc) that occupied the Americas during the Pleistocene

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Arrowheads Found in Texas Dial Back Arrival of Humans in America By JOHN NOBLE WILFORD For many years, scientists have thought that the f...
Saturday, March 26, 2011

Washington State Representative Hans Dunshee is rightly sighting Dr. Robert Wielgus's findings at the LARGE CARNIVORE CONSERVATION LAB at Washington State University which state that hunting Cougars with hounds gives rise to an influx of younger male cougars, which are more likely to get into trouble with people and livestock.....We are applauding Mr Dunshee who is insisting on Science over economics or politics as the determining factor in saying yea or nea to hunting cougars with dogs

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Cougar-hunting bill still faces House opposition By MOLLY ROSBACH OLYMPIA, Wash. — A House lawmaker is leading a renewed effort to stop a Se...

Once again, our sloppy and careless husbandry practices encourage habituation of Wolves to cattle and people--Open pit "boneyards" where Ranchers dispose of dead cattle end up a fatal lure for Wolves in Alberta, Canada.............The Boneyards are close to Ranch homes and calving areas.......Talk about temptation personified..........Almost impossible for the Wolves to avoid preying on such an easy target

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By Hanneke Brooymans  EDMONTON - Wolves are eating more cattle in southwestern Alberta than previously known, according to researchers from ...

In my opinion the Nova Scotia $20 Coyote bounty will end up being a failure in it's goal of reducing the Cape Breton's Songdog population.............As we have seen again and again, Coyotes tend to respond to persecution with increased litter size..................We kill them,,,,,,,,,,,they have a flood of pups................Juveniles can and do get into more conflicts with people than adult Coyotes........Better to focus on the "4-step plan" of how to scare and coexist with Coyotes, also mentioned in this article

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N.S. $20 per coyote pelt incentive ends March 31 with the year's trapping season By: The Canadian Press HALIFAX -   Nova Scotia's $...
Friday, March 25, 2011

Brooks Fahy at PREDATOR DEFENSE sent me a teriffic article on the range expansion and success of the Coyote,,,,,,,,,penned with aplomb by his friend, Chris Ketcham(recently published in Orion Magazine).........Some Natural World observers would say that the Coyote is the ultimate weed species,,,, able to reproduce quickly, disperse widely when given a chance, tolerate a fairly broad range of habitat, take hold in strange places, succeed especially in disturbed ecosystems, and resist eradication once they're established..................I would counter that the Coyote is the ultimate NATIVE exhibiting American Exceptionalism.............Taking on all comers..........Adapting, problem solving, growing bigger, stronger and more resilient day by day................GO COYOTES,,,,you are an example of what we admire in the best of ourselves.......Persistance under fire!!!!!

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New Dog in Town The coyote as city dweller, and what it means for the country by Christopher Ketcham Photographs by Trish Carney WILD COYO...
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Judge Molloy is hearing the Wolf delisting arguments(both pro and con) and will soon render his decision to support or deny delisting in Montana and Idaho

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Groups lay out opposition to proposed wolf settlement By EVE BYRON  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service A gray wolf resting in tall grass. ...
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BIRDS OF A FEATHER, DO NOT FLOCK TOGETHER" when deer and other herbivores are at unchecked densities......This entire week we have delved into how whitetail deer are not being controlled quantitatively and qualitatively by hunting to allow for adequate forest regeneration and perpetuation of other forest dwellers...............Today we look in at how deer densities over 10 per square mile(colonial deer densities) knock out ground dwelling birds by as much as 70% versus woodlands not overbrowsed by deer....If in the end, the State Fish and Wildlife folks default to the argument that managing deer is all about optimizing human deer hunting because it is a big profit center for States. then we are doomed to perpetuating bloated herbivore populations and "Silent Spring" Forests

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Deer Decreasing Forest Bird Populations From: "jimoran" Large populations of deer are edging out forest birds in North America, ...
Thursday, March 24, 2011

Wolf Biologist Cristina Eisenberg checking in with us on her thoughts about the October 2009 Coyote(s) that killed Taylor Mitchell in Nova Scotia.......Cristina is constantly in the field doing her research and I agree with her statement that when you are around large carnivores, "you need to learn to read their cues, treating them with respect, being humble, and changing your behavior as needed".......... "It also involves never letting your guard down and assuming that these animals are harmless"..............."Unfortunately, when you encounter a carnivore in the wild, you usually have no way of knowing what their previous experiences were with humans".................Cristina is accomplished in her first hand knowledge of our large charismatic Carnivores and her message that follows is prudent, pragmatic and realistic in its outlook and tonality

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From: Meril, Rick Sent: Wednesday, March 23, 2011 5:50 PM To: 'Eisenberg, Cristina' Subject: RE: Post about Taylor Mitchell's...

THE HOWLING FOR JUSTICE BLOGSITE has been doing an excellent job of cross-examining the 10 mainstream Environmental Groups that cut a deal to delist wolves in Montana and Idaho----Below is both the reasons why the deal is flawed(Howling) and why the deal is sound and strong(DEFENDERS OF WILDLIFE).........Now it is up to Judge Molloy to begin hearing the testimony and determining whether to put his approval on the Delisting deal..........Stay tuned!

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                                   HOWLING FOR JUSTICE BLOGSITE OPINION "Tomorrow wolves will be front and center in Judge Molloy...