Posted on 04/13/2015 1:06:04 PM PDT by Citizen Zed
WASHINGTON— New data from the highly secretive arm of the U.S. Agriculture Department known as Wildlife Services reveals it killed more than 2.7 million animals during fiscal year 2014, including wolves, coyotes, bears, mountain lions, beavers, foxes, eagles and other animals deemed pests by powerful agricultural, livestock and other special interests.
Despite increasing calls for reform after the program killed more than 4 million animals in 2013, the latest kill report indicates the reckless slaughter of wildlife continues, including 322 gray wolves, 61,702 coyotes, 580 black bears, 305 mountain lions, 796 bobcats, 454 river otters, 2,930 foxes, three bald eagles, five golden eagles and 22,496 beavers. The program also killed 15,698 black-tailed prairie dogs and destroyed more than 33,309 of their dens.
“It’s sickening to see these staggering numbers and to know that so many of these animals were cut down by aerial snipers, deadly poisons and traps,” said Amy Atwood, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “These acts of brutality are carried out every day, robbing our landscapes of bears, wolves, coyotes and other animals that deserve far better. Wildlife Services does its dirty work far from public view and clearly has no interest in cleaning up its act.”
Agency insiders have revealed that the agency kills many more animals than it reports.
Many animals – especially wolves, coyotes and prairie dogs – were targeted and killed on behalf of livestock grazers or other powerful agricultural interests. Wildlife Services does not reveal how many animals were wounded or injured, but not killed.
The new data also show that hundreds animals were killed unintentionally including 390 river otters, as well as hundreds of badgers, black bears, bobcats, coyotes, foxes, jackrabbits, muskrats, raccoons, skunks, opossums, porcupines and 16 pet dogs.
The data show that the federal program has refused to substantially slow its killing despite a growing public outcry, an ongoing investigation by the Agriculture Department’s inspector general, and calls for reform by scientists, members of Congress and nongovernmental organizations.
“Wildlife Services continues to thumb its nose at the growing number of Americans demanding an end to business as usual,” said Atwood. “This appalling and completely unnecessary extermination of American wildlife must stop.”
Just since 1996 Wildlife Services has shot, poisoned and strangled by snare more than 27 million native animals.
They needed to prove they are a legitimate law enforcement agency.
And maybe a grizz.
They should add politicians to the list of public pests.
...and a partridge in a pear tree.
...and a partidge in a pear tree." ♪ ♫ ♬
(That's a lot of Brunswick Stew.)
The federal government could make a lot of money by “selling” most of these kills to hunters. Let hunters pay for a license to kill nuisance wildlife. It’ll bring in money and allow the feds to reduce the size of their “Wildlife Services” department.
Yes!
I’d pay a lot of money to add a couple “Politician” tags to my hunting license.
Here, a decrease of 33% killed animals is a bad thing.
(4 million in ‘13 vs. 2.7 million killed in ‘14)
If first time unemployment applications rise by 33%, it is a sure sign of of a “robust economy” and that the unemployment rate should be decreased.
... and a partridge in a pear tree!
School lunch program ‘mystery meat’?
They may have killed 1,000 Elk in Rock Mountain National Park. The can’t sell extra Elk licenses and let them be eaten they had to incinerate them.
LOL!
Love that tag line (and it has nothing to do with the subject of the thread lolz!)
Do you mind if I use it kiryandil?
... Wildlife Services reveals it killed more than 2.7 million animals...
It then says:
The data show that the federal program has refused to substantially slow its killing...
What? 1.3 million reduction, or about 32%, sounds like a healthy decrease in just one year.
The program also killed 15,698 black-tailed prairie dogs and destroyed more than 33,309 of their dens.
Of course, their dens are a real pain for cattlemen trying to raise livestock to feed this country, but, hey, we don't need food, do we?
...other animals that deserve far better.
Deserve? Probably one of the most over-worked words in TV and other advertising. What did they animals do to "deserve" better? Deserve means to "perform or doing something worthy of reward". To me, this is like saying deadbeats deserve free a cell phone from productive members of society.
...a growing public outcry...
Really? I must have missed it. Seems to me there are bigger fish to fry...so to speak.
“This appalling and completely unnecessary extermination of American wildlife must stop.”
Because? To me, this person is making it sound like the Wildlife service has nothing better to do than go out and randomly kill animals. My guess is that there is a reason and you have marshaled no facts about those reasons. A cogent argument requires presenting both sides of the issue(s) and then logically showing why the other side is wrong. You may actually be right, but this hand-wringing, emotional, harangue is not the right approach.
There’s a place for all of God’s creatures, right between the mashed potatoes and the biscuits.
The prisons should be well stocked with meat.
That's a little more than two dens per prairie dog.
If these animals could each afford more than one den, then they were probably members of the prairie dog elite, the "1%", and they deserved to be killed...
I’m with you. Dismiss 3/4 of the people working for the Federal Wildlife Program, and let the farmers and hunters weed out the animals instead.
I thought it was “...and a cartridge in a bare tree”
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