Issue: Wildlife Management

Present: Once protecting wildlife became a matter of national interest at the end of the nineteenth century, the U.S. federal government began working with state-run agencies to enhance habitats and ensure the survival of native plant and animal species. [1] One way these agencies have provided for the conservation and propagation of native species is by setting up wildlife refuges across the country.[2] As a way to increase participation in wildlife dependent recreation activities and balance population equilibrium, many of these refuges allow hunting, fishing and trapping on their grounds.[3] Hunters and fishers must buy licenses and tags to partake in these activities, and the proceeds from these purchases go toward the operating costs of wildlife refuges.[4] These wildlife management policies have faced criticism from groups arguing that hunting and fishing are no longer necessary for human survival,[5] that ineffective hunting methods harm animals, and that hunting unnecessarily disrupts migration and hibernation patterns. Despite ethical concerns with wildlife management techniques, no major changes or anti-hunting policies have passed on a federal level.[6]

Past: The first federal action to protect wildlife transferred the Yosemite Valley from the public domain to the state of California in 1864. By the end of the nineteenth century, a group of writers, thinkers, and scientists had formed the Boone and Crocket Club to lobby Congress to preserve wildlife. [7] One member of the group, Teddy Roosevelt, started the National Wildlife Refuge System in 1903,[8] and since refuges began allowing hunting in 1934, the sale of hunting tags has raised over 700 million dollars for the refuges.[9] It was not, however, until Bill Clinton signed an executive order on wildlife management that the Secretary of the Interior began treating environmental protection and wildlife management as pressing issues and allocating funds accordingly.[10]

Future: Though the Department of the Interior wants to increase the number of hunters on wildlife refuges over the next ten years[11] and has added species to hunt lists,[12] scientists argue that using a trap, neuter, and return method is the most effective way to manage populations.[13] Some communities have already begun using immunocontraception, a form of animal birth control, to balance population equilibrium. Scientists, lawmakers, and animal rights groups are now looking to birth control tactics as a more humane solution to wildlife management.[14]

 

Footnotes:

[1] “Fish Division Mission.” Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. N.p., 30 July 2015. Web. 17 Oct. 2015. <http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/>.

[2] National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (National Wildlife Refuge System 1966). PDF.

[3] “Why Are Hunting, Fishing and Trapping Allowed on National Wildlife Refuges?” National Wildlife Refuge System. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 8 Nov. 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/refuges/hunting/whyAllowed.html>.

[4] United States. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. National Wildlife Refuge System. Your Guide to Hunting on National Wildlife Refuges. PDF.

[5] National Research Council, “Science and the Endangered Species Act” (Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1995) 21.

[6] “Why Sport Hunting Is Cruel and Unnecessary.” PETA. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.peta.org/issues/wildlife/wildlife-factsheets/sport-hunting-cruel-unnecessary/>.

[7] “NWRS History, Overview, and Introduction.” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/refuges/history/over/over_main_fs.html>.

[8] “History of the National Wildlife Refuge System.” National Wildlife Refuge System. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 8 Nov. 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/refuges/friends/history.html>.

[9] “Introduction to the National Wildlife Refuge System.” National Wildlife Refuge System. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 21 Nov. 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/refuges/hunting/featured_articles.cfm?heid=11>.

[10] “History of the National Wildlife Refuge System.” National Wildlife Refuge System. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 8 Nov. 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/refuges/friends/history.html>.

[11] United States. U.S. Department of the Interior. U.S. Department of Agriculture. Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council Charter. By Sally Jewell and Tom Vilsack. PDF.

[12] Bean, Michael. “2015-2016 Refuge-Specific Hunting and Sport Fishing Regulations.” Federal Register. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 25 Aug. 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/08/26/2015-20472/2015-2016-refuge-specific-hunting-and-sport-fishing-regulations>.

[13] Jason R. Boulanger et al., “Sterilization as an Effective Deer Control Technique: A Review,” Human-Wildlife Interactions 6(2012):273–282.

[14] Foderaro, Lisa W. “A Kinder, Gentler Way to Thin the Deer Herd.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 July 2013. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/06/nyregion/providing-birth-control-to-deer-in-an-overrun-village.html?_r=0>.