Alaska Starts Mass Slaughter of Grizzly Bears
to Boost Moose Populations
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by Reuters April 8, 2005
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ANCHORGE — For the first time since Alaska became a U.S. state, hunters will be allowed to
use bait to lure and kill grizzly bears under a program intended to
boost moose populations in parts of interior Alaska.
The
Alaska Department of Fish and Game began issuing permits last week
for a predator-control program aimed at clearing out the majority of
grizzlies in a 3,000-square-mile area of brushy terrain and tundra
near the Canadian border.
The program, launched on April 1,
allows permitted hunters to use bear-attracting food to lure the
animals to spots where they can be shot. The practice, though used
in the distant past, was not permitted during the 46 years of
Alaskan statehood.
Alaska hunters have long been allowed to
use bait to lure black bears, but that practice was never extended
to the larger and less plentiful grizzlies and coast-dwelling brown
bears.
Critics say it is unethical and dangerous because it
acquaints bears with human and pet food, such as the stale pastries
and bacon grease used at bait stations. Alaska voters last fall
rejected a ballot initiative that would have outlawed the practice.
The Alaska Board of Game, a panel appointed by Republican
Gov. Frank Murkowski, has determined that the grizzly bear-killing
program is needed to increase residents' opportunities to
successfully hunt moose, said Fish and Game spokeswoman Cathie
Harms.
"The moose population is depressed. It's at densities
not quite but close to half of what the board had held as an
objective," Harms said.
Critics say the program could
devastate the grizzlies, animals with slow reproductive rates, with
no real benefit to the moose.
"It's unconscionable, as far
as I'm concerned," said John Toppenberg, director of the
Anchorage-based Alaska Wildlife Alliance, "There's no real science
to back that up. What you have is some people complaining that
there's not as many moose to shoot as there were in the 40s, and so
on."
Harms said state officials have concluded that in this
part of Alaska, grizzlies are the main source of predation on moose,
followed by wolves and black bears.
An estimated 135 grizzly
bears live in the targeted area, and the program seeks to have up to
81 of those killed, state officials said. The target area is
included in a program that has allowed aircraft-assisted hunters to
kill 266 wolves since November, according to Fish and Game
figures.
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Source: Reuters
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