A fascinating video by George Monbiot detailing how the re-introduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park restored a badly degraded ecosystem, even changing the rivers.
What Monbiot left out was how those wolves came to be eliminated in Yellowstone initially. That was us. We got rid of the wolves and almost ruined this great park in the process. Over the intervening 20 years ranchers and others repeatedly sought to again eradicate the wolves but they failed.
And, yes, most of us know that those wolves were brought in from Canada.
There have been similar observations with other species. Reefs are healthier where sharks prowl, for example. Predators are necessary.
ReplyDeleteWolves bring out a big difference between Canadian ranchers and their American counterparts. Canadian ranchers, for the most part, will go around their property and shoot one or two wolves per season. The wolves learn where is safe and where not. American ranchers are satisfied with nothing less that extermination of the specie. Of course, this is a generalization but there is some truth to it. Some years ago I had a long lunch with a Conservation Officer who told me that they try to work with ranchers to achieve minimum impact on the wild species. In doing so, they leave most ranchers to solve their own problem.
I listen to right wing US radio for balance!
ReplyDeleteLars Larsen was talking of wolves a few weeks ago.
He is an advocate of large scale wolf kills because they, each, eat a deer or elk per day!!
Ignorant twatt.
TB