Don't you just love headlines that scream out things that aren't true?
Open Season on America's last Wild Bison
Montana issues 44 tags for Bison that wander out of Yellowstone National Park which has around 4000 head of Bison, and people want to call that open season. A little overboard, isn't it? The problem is, how many people believe it with out even thinking.
A capacity for going overboard is a requisite for a full-grown mind. Dawn Powell
Thursday, November 29. 2007
Headlines
Monday, October 15. 2007
Near Record Numbers
I see that the Bison in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) are near record numbers at almost 4700 head. Here we have all these Bison running around the park and nowhere do we hear talk about too many bison and over grazing the park. Nowhere do we hear that the Park needs to bring in a predator to control the numbers of Bison. All we hear about is how the evil Montana ranchers are having the Bison shot coming out of the Park by a new Bison hunt in Montana.
Do people realize that the Bison wouldn't be leaving the Park if there was enough food to eat? There would be enough food to eat if the Federal Government would do something to control the numbers of Bison in the Park instead of leaving it to the states that the Bison wander into to control the numbers. The Feds are shirking their responsibility here. I know it is not Politically Correct to talk about responsibility but that is what this is about. Check out this.
The plan for Bison control with YNP allows for slaughter without testing if the Bison numbers exceed 3000. This is an admission that 3000 Bison is about the right numbers for the Park. Does the Park take responsibility to control the numbers to maintain a healthy herd and healthy environment? No. They just expect the states surrounding the Park to shoulder the burden of the extra Bison.
I will guarantee you something, if you overgraze land year after year like the park service is, you damage your grasslands beyond recovery. Don't give me no bull about the Bison is a natural wild animal where the cow is domestic animal so the cow overgrazing is worse than the Bison over grazing. The grass could care less what animal over grazes it. Ever taken a close look at the forage cover left in a prairie dog town after a few years? There is not much grass left. Lots of weeds and undesirable grasses due to over grazing.
The Park needs to take responsibility for the herds under their control. The Bison numbers are too high for the pastures they have and it is hurting not only the Bison, but the land itself. I wish these Bison lovers would understand this concept. By pushing for the Bison not to be controlled they are actually causing more problems for the land and the herd than they are solving by protecting the Bison. Proper herd management of any herd of animals means making the tough choices about carrying capacity of your land and culling the herd of undesirable animals. The Park Service needs to do this with the Bison to have a healthy, stable herd. Responsibility, not a lot of fun but necessary.
Freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility. For the person who is unwilling to grow up, the person who does not want to carry is own weight, this is a frightening prospect. Eleanor Roosevelt
Do people realize that the Bison wouldn't be leaving the Park if there was enough food to eat? There would be enough food to eat if the Federal Government would do something to control the numbers of Bison in the Park instead of leaving it to the states that the Bison wander into to control the numbers. The Feds are shirking their responsibility here. I know it is not Politically Correct to talk about responsibility but that is what this is about. Check out this.
Meanwhile, state and federal agencies are gearing up to deal with the possibility that bison may wander.
A plan approved in 2000 is intended to reduce the risk that bison will transmit brucellosis to cattle outside the park. The plan allows bison to be captured, and sometimes be sent to slaughter without being tested for the disease, if the population is greater than 3,000.
The plan for Bison control with YNP allows for slaughter without testing if the Bison numbers exceed 3000. This is an admission that 3000 Bison is about the right numbers for the Park. Does the Park take responsibility to control the numbers to maintain a healthy herd and healthy environment? No. They just expect the states surrounding the Park to shoulder the burden of the extra Bison.
I will guarantee you something, if you overgraze land year after year like the park service is, you damage your grasslands beyond recovery. Don't give me no bull about the Bison is a natural wild animal where the cow is domestic animal so the cow overgrazing is worse than the Bison over grazing. The grass could care less what animal over grazes it. Ever taken a close look at the forage cover left in a prairie dog town after a few years? There is not much grass left. Lots of weeds and undesirable grasses due to over grazing.
The Park needs to take responsibility for the herds under their control. The Bison numbers are too high for the pastures they have and it is hurting not only the Bison, but the land itself. I wish these Bison lovers would understand this concept. By pushing for the Bison not to be controlled they are actually causing more problems for the land and the herd than they are solving by protecting the Bison. Proper herd management of any herd of animals means making the tough choices about carrying capacity of your land and culling the herd of undesirable animals. The Park Service needs to do this with the Bison to have a healthy, stable herd. Responsibility, not a lot of fun but necessary.
Freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility. For the person who is unwilling to grow up, the person who does not want to carry is own weight, this is a frightening prospect. Eleanor Roosevelt
Wednesday, December 27. 2006
Bison And Brucellosis
"For Yellowstone bison to be involved in the big picture of bison conservation, they've got to be brucellosis-free," said Tom Roffe, a wildlife veterinarian and biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. And that's why the animals here are being corralled and handled, poked and prodded.
Roffe has been pushing his agency for the past year to take a new approach to the way it manages the handful of bison herds on refuges around the West.
"We're just starting to broach that topic," he said. The goal is not specifically to create more bison, but to ensure their genetics are diverse and preserved, to keep the species healthy, to keep the options open if the time comes to open more land for bison.
For decades, people have called for restoring bison, for returning them to their natural role on the prairies. But the shaggy giants are never going to repopulate the American West, Roffe said. They'll never again wander from Texas to Montana and back.
There are just too many roads, fields and people now. But that doesn't mean there are no places for the bison, although those places haven't been identified yet. And if bison from the park are to play a part in any of that, they've got to be free of brucellosis.
I enjoyed this article. It's good to hear a federal official admit that Brucellosis is a factor in the Bison picture of Yellowstone Park. The Federal Government requires the states to control Brucellosis it is only right for the Federal Government to control the Brucellosis in the herds it controls.
You will note that what the article talks about is not a proposed solution to the Brucellosis problem in the park. It's to be used to get Brucellosis free Bison out of the park to other areas. I'm not opposed to this at all, it sounds like a decent plan. I do question where they want to start up new herds.
Are these areas where cattle do not run? If they want to keep the bison genetically pure, no cattle genes, how are they going to keep the bison from interbreeding with cattle. They are genetically similar enough to breed together. I've been told that the last bison in my area were hunted down for just this reason, they were breeding with the cattle.
This whole thing is interesting but the most interesting thing was the feds admitting that Brucellosis is a problem. It's nice to hear.
Hear reason, or she'll make you feel her. Benjamin Franklin
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