Posted on 10/11/2004 9:14:08 PM PDT by Coleus
N.J. to test drugs to curb rising bear population
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Seeking alternatives to hunting, the state is set to begin testing a series of contraception and sterilization drugs on a captive black bear population living in the safari park at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson.
Scientists plan to round up about a dozen black bears that live in the safari park on Oct. 19. Females will be injected with the vaccine PZP, a contraceptive. PZP, which stands for Porcine Zona Pellucida, is a protein that wraps itself around the egg in the uterus and prevents fertilization.
In the second phase of the experiment, scientists will inject several male black bears with the drug Neutersol, a chemical castration agent that the federal government has approved for use on puppies, but has never been tried on bears. Once injected in a large enough dose, Neutersol causes the male genitalia to permanently atrophy.
The experiments are being overseen by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which is responsible for wildlife management. DEP Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell is opposed to holding a second black bear hunt in December, and is seeking alternative means of controlling the state's growing black bear population.
New Jersey held its first bear hunt in 33 years last December, and hunters killed 328 black bears. The state Fish and Game Council has voted in favor of holding a second black bear hunt, scheduled for Dec. 6 to 11. But Campbell has refused to issue permits to hunters, prompting a power struggle between the DEP and the Fish and Game Council over who has the authority over wildlife management in New Jersey.
Dante DiPirro, the legal counsel for the DEP, said the department was confident that Neutersol would work on the black bear population.
"It's not a question of whether it will work, but just how big a dosage will be needed," DiPirro said.
Hunting opponents were pleased that after years of talking about contraception and sterilization, the DEP finally seemed committed to finding out if they will work.
"This could be a real breakthrough moment," said Stu Chaifetz of the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance.
Hunters were not so sure the experiments would work. "They're only going to be testing around six to eight bears," said Joe Crouch, director of the New Jersey chapter of Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America. "That's hardly a representative sampling. Plus, these drugs have never been tested on a free-roaming population."
Dick Strobel, president of the Sussex County Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, pointed out that contraceptives have been tried on New Jersey's deer population, with very limited success.
"Why can't we use both contraceptives and hunting as a means of population control?" he said Friday.
Boom.
I hear McGreevey's into "bears." He posted on a website stating that he was looking for a bear at the Vince Lombardi highway rest stop.
We need to get some bears into certain sections of Paterson, East Orange, Newark and Plainfield. Will they come out alive?
Hunters will pay for a license, and all their own equipment and will sterilize bears with lead, proven effective for centuries.
Instead, to prevent hunters from using evil guns, the state is spending millions on dubious technology.
Think about this folks, if you were a bear would you rather take a chance on getting shot or have an injection so that your genitals would atrophy--with God knows what side effects. I bet those are some very uncomfortable bears.
try a 12 guage
You beat me to it, And the hunters could even eat the meat and maybe even use the hide for something useful as well. Man are these people dumb.
"Seeking alternatives to hunting, the state is set to begin testing a series of contraception and sterilization drugs on a captive black bear population living in the safari park at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson."
I guess passing out free condoms didn't work?
I don't think this is a good idea. This would anger the bear more.
People up here feed dogs salmon. Nothing brings bear in quicker than fish hanging on racks. Everyone puts up extra fish, planning on bear getting some. Bear anywhere near your house are just shot on sight; a widely accepted and time proven practice across rural alaska.
Let a bear pull some kid down and watch it all change.
I can cure the bears with one pill, if they'll let me...
Can we try it on Hitlary and Janet Drano, and...
Oh my! I just today finished a book called "Mark of the Grizzly" by Scott McMillion I bought last week while in Glacier Natl. Park and it scared the snot out of me! It is actual accounts of grizzly bear attacks and what they went through (if they lived to tell) and I can tell you that it the author and interviewees say that tests show the spray to repel bears seems to not work on black bears and that they consider those bells folks wear as "dinner bells" for bears. The bear specialist at the Elderhostel I attended says that the best spray is called "Counter Attack" I think.
I will see that my mtn biking son reads this book!
Right about this time of year the bear are getting ready to hibernate, and there will always be one around that didn't put on enough weight and are driven into confrontations with man. Often a sow with cubs that fed her cubs and is starving herself. Those are the ones that break into meat/fish caches; and are shot. The natives call them winter bear cause they form a coat of ice over their fur and are hard to kill with 30-30's; what most natives use by tradition.
I taught in a native village and we would have grizz walk thru the village every week or so. We even kept a 338 mag in school office for playground protection; just in case. The natives didn't feed the village dogs much, and they were quite aggressive and from time to time, killed and ate each other. The elders told me never feed the dogs, as they kept the bear out of village. You'd hear all the dogs barking and look out the school window and here would be a bear heading out of village with about 10 dogs pestering the heck out of him. Those dogs were the best bear warning.
Anyway, I know and have seen the scars on several people that have been mauled, but most bear only bother humans when we pretty much invite them in. Up here they are just shot when they start coming around anybodys house and if they did that in NJ; there wouldn't be any problems. Only one out of a hundred bear are really problems.
Wow. That's for the insight. I am still reading bear books now. It is very fascinating.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.