I applaud all of the above authors for their written observations of the plight of our wildlife and their honest opinion of ways to curb it so we don't loose a valuable resource. I agree with all observations and have experienced it for decades. It is time that we all (in mass) voiced our opinion in open forums. It is really like everything else in life - you can't depend on anyone else to take care of what is dear to you.
I have lived and hunted in the states of Missouri, Virginia, Idaho, Utah, and Washington and hunted in Wyoming, and Montana for the past 60 years. I have also fished for salmon and steelhead mostly alone in Washington State and British Columbia. I have hunted again mostly alone and have successfully taken moose, sheep, goats, antelope, deer, mountain lion, bobcat, and coons. I bet there in not many folks in this forum that own coon dogs. My best friend is a pack frame and alfalfa sack.
I have met some wonderful folks in the process. This includes landowners, biologists, game wardens, forest rangers, representatives of state departments of fish and wildlife. In fact I have participated in game counts, depredation hunts, and have been associated with a department of fish and wildlife for a number of years.
My opinion is that the problem is too many people, company and individual greed, too much advertisement, too few biologists, too few game wardens, too few judges, and the lack of Mass Public Opinion. Funding for the preservation of wildlife and habit is the last item in the state's budget and has the least pressure for approval.
Following are some examples:
*) Fish and game tickets are the last items on the judge's dockets. With all of the crime in our society, it is no wonder that the fish and game trials get put off for months, and the fine/punishment is usually minimal so it won't be contested. What does this do to the morale of the game warden?
+) Have you ever seen how few game wardens the states have, and can you believe the extent of land that they have as their jurisdiction?
+) As we all know the introduction of the wolves by the federal government has decimated the deer, elk, and moose populations. And the states have had to expend huge sums of money and time of their staff to accommodate this federal mandate.
+) Introduction of the Atlantic salmon fish farms off the coasts of WA state and BC have devastated the returns of the smolt from most west coast rivers due to the parasites they pick up from visiting the farms for an easy meal.
And the list goes on as you all have documented above.
Well, so as usual if we are going to stop this carnage, it will be up to us. I don't have a solution, but we have all noticed it, and it is time to let the politicians and corporate folks our displeasure. But it needs to start at the local level with the state agencies and law enforcement.
