A government plan to weaken regulations for hunting wolves and coyotes would do little for the moose populations it’s meant to protect
By all accounts, eastern wolves (one of which is pictured here) and
coyotes are difficult if not impossible to distinguish in the field. File photo
A canine predator that travels in packs in
remote areas of North America is called a wolf. Most people know this,
yet by all accounts the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and
Forestry (MNRF) seems to think it’s a goat — a scapegoat.
A plan to weaken regulations for hunting
wolves and coyotes in Northern Ontario treats these predators as
scapegoats, with the MNRF claiming the changes will help reduce declines
in the moose population. Yet moose, wolves and coyotes have lived
together in complex predator-prey relationships for thousands of years.
The ministry itself notes, “Predation rates on moose by wolves tend to
increase in tandem with moose numbers. This naturally regulates the
density of the moose population and is ultimately beneficial to moose
and the ecosystems they rely on.”
Wolves and other predators occupy an important
niche in nature. Science is clear that our zest for killing such
animals has resulted in significant unintended consequences and
ecosystem damage. For example, removing predators can cause deer
populations to increase, leading to changes in natural vegetation
patterns and increased disease transmission.
A recent report by the Raincoast Conservation
Foundation describes humans as “super-predators” and cautions that
“although grizzlies, wolves, and cougars occasionally kill one another,
it’s rare. They have not evolved as prey. More enlightened wildlife
management would recognize that this reality can make carnivore hunting
risky business.”
The MNRF claims the new proposal will have
neutral results, yet it may well harm a species at risk, the eastern
wolf. The proposed changes would apply to an area abutting Algonquin
Park and adjacent townships where, to protect the eastern wolf, hunting
wolves and coyotes is not permitted. By all accounts, eastern wolves and
coyotes are difficult if not impossible to distinguish in the field. In
effect, it would be open season on eastern wolves when they venture
outside the protected zone.
Most appalling is the fact that scientists,
including scientists on the ministry’s own team, agree that wolf and
coyote control is not a long-term solution to address declines in prey
populations.
MNRF background information states that
removing just a few wolves from each pack will not decrease overall
predation on moose and that only wiping out wolf packs in their entirety
will achieve this. (Pack eradication is most often done by aerial
killing or poisoning — thankfully these options aren’t on the table.)
There are many uncertainties around the causes
of recent moose declines. Climate change might be playing a role, as
might disease (often exacerbated by climate change). One thing is clear,
though: hunting by humans is having the most significant impact on
moose populations, with ever more moose being killed as hunting-related
technology improves.
Citizens throughout Ontario are left wondering
what is going on. Why is a ministry responsible for protecting
Ontario’s rich biodiversity putting wildlife at risk? Why is a province
that advocates tolerance and diversity fanning the age-old flames of
intolerance against predators, and advancing harm to the native
biodiversity of Ontario?
This regulation has not yet been passed.
There’s still time for the province to abandon the proposal and base its
policy and approaches to wildlife management on science. If the MNRF
wants to please hunters by making it easier for them to kill predators,
with less oversight, it should be clear that this is the motivation for
the proposed regulation. To suggest that it is to help moose populations
is simply senseless.
Rachel Plotkin is the Ontario Science Projects Manager at the David Suzuki Foundation. Anne Bell is the Director of Conservation and Education at Ontario Nature.
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