Living with wildlife; a
growing concern
|
|
October 4, 2011 |
By Mike Weland
At 7 p.m. Thursday, October 20, Idaho Fish and
Game biologist Becky Haag, on behalf of the
Friends of the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge, is
going to give a presentation and answer
questions on a subject gaining much national
attention lately; living with wildlife.
With the population in our rural areas
increasing, interactions between people and wild
animals are on the rise, and as recent events
here show, something isn't working according to
plan.
A Bonners Ferry man found himself in deep
trouble when he woke to find bear, which turned
out to be a threatened grizzly, going after the
pigs in his back yard on Highway 1, far removed
from the areas of Boundary County set aside in
the late 1970s, shortly after the implementation
of the Endangered Species Act, where it was
assumed such bears would want to be.
Not knowing where his kids were, he used, what
was at hand, a "plinking" rifle ... his
daughter's .220, to defend his family and his
property. When that bear turned to follow his
mother and sister, Jeremy Hill turned his
attention to the safety of his family, but the
wounded bear turned back, and Jeremy turned and
shot him again.
Rather than leaving an injured animal, Jeremy
fired a third shot, putting the animal out of
its misery.
He immediately called authorities and reported
it, and set off a national furor.
Even while that furor was underway, two hikers
were killed in Yellowstone National Park, home
of the fictional Yogi and Booboo.
And before a month had passed, a man, Steve
Stevenson, died a few feet east of the
Idaho/Montana line, victim of mistaken identity
and another grizzly bear attack, one in which he
died a hero, saving the life of his 20-year-old
hunting partner, Ty Bell, a young man who grew
up in those mountains and was, as his uncle
said, "an experienced mountain man."
They were up in "no man's land," where it's
illegal to build roads or trails but where
hunters and outdoorsman from around the world
come to experience the outdoors.
When Ty called for help, it took a lot of hard
working, frustrated people, especially medics,
hours to get there. With no back roads open to
them, they had no
choice but to hike in.
"I was amazed by how many people actually go up
there," said Boundary County Sheriff Greg
Sprugnl. "There are trails and tracks
everywhere."
Border Patrol, the Boundary County Sheriffs
Office, the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office,
search and rescue teams from both sides of the
border and ambulance service providers did their
best ... but the terrain and restrictions
prevented them from being able to get to such a
remote place in time.
"When someone needs help, and we can't get there
due to some regulation, for whatever reason,
it's demoralizing," Sprungl said.
Until this year, a class like "Living With
Wildlife," would have been one that would have
been snickered at by most locals.
In recorded local memory, no human has ever died
to an attack by a bear, though bear are common
here. They tear up trash, eat dog food off the
back porch, make a nuisance ... but always run
off when confronted by the bright lights of
people.
There've even been a few stories of people,
mostly new to the area, who've been attacked by
wild animals, and in some cases injured ... but
that's mostly moose. And those are mostly
because the people injured did something dumb.
Moose like apples, but they don't like people
feeding them apples.
We've had problems with squirrels in bird
feeders, deer eating gardens, black bear on the
back porch eating pet food, etc. Up here, it's
not uncommon to look down and say, "Why yes!
This is bear scat! And look ... it is in the
woods!"
There's no question that the environmental
movement of the 1970s, when Richard Nixon
established the Environmental Species Act, has
made a difference. Many would argue that the act
has ruined the economy of the country ... a
place of great natural resources ... while local
people have argued all along that the only true
wealth we have is what we grow and foster. It's
an argument unbalanced by the Endangered Species
Act ... which gives the benefit of the doubt to
the critters, and the sense to save them to
people who have no idea what to do but answer
the loudest voice.
Nobody local was surprised that the idea of
establishing caribou habitat in Boundary County
would fail; caribou rarely, if ever, vistied
this part of the woods; they were content with
the lichen in Canada. Officials instisted, and
Canada sent us many of those docile creatures,
right in the middle of habitat set aside for
grizzly bear.
No matter the science, stupid doesn't work.
But it did close off and shut down the economic
engine of the Northwest ... and open the way for
"tourism."
And cut off any hope we have of saving the
tourists who flock here who might find
themselves in trouble.
What's funny is that the people we might one day
save are most liable to sue.
At 7 p.m Thursday, October 20, you'll have the
opportunity to hear from an expert, and maybe
... no ... probably not.
It might be more likely that the locals in the
audience will show the difference between bear scat
and bullshit. |
|
Questions or comments? Click
here to
email! |
|
|
|
|
