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| MONDAY October 2, 2000 Vol 4, # 62 |
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| MONDAY October 2, 2000 Vol 4, # 62 |
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| Site Search | Support Yellowstone! Discussion Free Internet, Email, More Email Newsletter | |
YELLOWSTONE ROAD
REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
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 PROTECTING YELLOWSTONEby Bruce Gourley Yellowstone is a national treasure which is owned by the American public. Protecting Yellowstone is the responsibility of the American public. This weekly feature will help identify and explore the issues which are crucial to the ongoing, healthy existence of the "Crown Jewel" of America's National Park system. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (YNET) -- The World Conservation Union recently listed the 2000 edition of its Red List of Endangered Species. The last previous listing was in 1996. The findings of this study are stunning: over 11,000 known plants and animals are in grave danger of disappearing forever. And even at that, scientists acknowledge that probably less than 10% of all plant and animal species on earth have yet been identified. Many of the unknown 90% may well become extinct before they are ever identified. An even more startling conclusion of the report is that the current extinction rate is 1000 to 10,000 times higher than what it should be under natural conditions. The primary reason? Humans. The growing expansion of cities, deforestation, agriculture and fishing are some of the main human activities that are contributing to the phenomenal rate of plant and animal extinction. What does all this mean? The answer is uncertain. As thousands of species disappear in the next few decades, how will the earth be affected? At the very least, it will not bode well for the earth and her inhabitants (including humans), and at worst, the disappearance of species might eventually lead to hardships which could threaten the very existence of humanity. In the United States, the Yellowstone ecosystem is a reflection of the struggle to save plant and animal species. Many of the Park's most prominent inhabitants, such as the grizzly, bison and wolf, face an uncertain future. The Yellowstone ecosystem is critical in that it contains some of the largest remaining wild populations of these and other species in the lower 48 states. The future of Yellowstone hangs in the balance, as does the future of the world. Yellowstone deserves the full support of the American public and Congress officials. (Yellowstone Net provides you opportunity to voice your opinion regarding the various Yellowstone issues to your congresspersons and to editorial sections of magazines and newspapers by clicking here.) |
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Ralph Maughan
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PREDATOR
CONSERVATION ALLIANCE AT MAMMOTH YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- The Predator Conservation Alliance will be meeting at Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone October 6-8. The conference, which will explore the role of native predators, is entitled "Predators, People and Places." It will address the ecological, economic, cultural and spiritual benefits that native predators such as wolves, mountain lions and grizzlies bring to the Northern Rockies. The keynote address will be brought by Dave Foreman, environmentalist and co-founder of Wildlands Project. A number of other professionals will also speak. Registration is $30 and includes breakfast and lunch on Saturday. For more information, call the PCA at 406-587-3389 or click here. |
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| WOLF UPDATE News Brief MONTANA -- Under the Wolf Reintroduction Program which led to the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone National Park in 1995, wolves that repeatedly kill livestock can be killed. As a result, eight members of one pack of wolves which repeatedly attacked and killed Montana livestock during the spring and summer were killed. Another died while trying to avoid capture. Now, the three remaining pack members, all juveniles, are undergoing experimental treatment to try and prevent them from killing livestock in the future. Currently in captivity at Ted Turner's Flying D Ranch, the three wolves are being zapped with an electric shock via a collar whenever they approach livestock. The experiment has resulted in the wolves not harming calves, even when the calves were locked in a half-acre enclosure with the wolves. The wolves are scheduled to be re-released into the wild later this month. Animal Rights and Environmental groups are divided over the experiments. The Defenders of Wildlife is supportive of the efforts to train wolves to stay away from livestock, but the Humane Society and Fund for Animals have voiced opposition. |
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| NPCA CRITICIZES LATEST
BISON PROPOSAL News Brief The National Park Service and other pro-bison organizations are criticizing the government's Final Environmental Impact Statement pertaining to the Yellowstone bison slaughter. The plan is viewed as being flawed because it still gives primacy to cattle over bison on national public lands near Yellowstone, allows government agents to continue to kill bison as they leave the Park in the winter months, and fails to establish a minimum bison herd size. In recent years, over a thousand bison have been slaughtered by the Montana Department of Livestock over fear that they might spread brucellosis (a disease some wild bison carry) to nearby domestic cattle. Although there is no evidence to substantiate such claims, in the winter of 1997 alone, 1100 were killed. At one point, the federal government sided with the DOL in the killing of Yellowstone's bison, but during the past year the federal government has been seeking to persuade the DOL that killing the bison is not the answer. However, the government appears unwilling to completely oppose the bison slaughter. |
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