Sunday, February 7, 2016

Politicians Refuse to See the Big Picture

by Rachel Tilseth, the founder of the Wolves of Douglas County, Wisconsin
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Please take action to protect wolves in Wyoming, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan from anti-wolf legislation  that would not only delist wolves but prevent any judicial review. Politicians from WI, Ribble and Johnson, are pushing these bills that claim to be saving livestock producers, loggers, and hunters from hungry wolves. Nothing could be further from the truth. These politicians can’t see the forest for the trees; they fail to see the bigger picture. Wolves are essential for the health of our ecosystems as seen in How Wolves Change Rivers. More cattle die due to weather related deaths than from wolf depredation. Human hunting and rough winter kill more deer than wolves. People can learn how to use non-lethal deterrents to prevent problems with wolves and still be able to live alongside wild wolves.

The real reason these WI senators want wolves delisted and back in the hands of state management is money. The fact is that they can’t touch the land where the wolves live  because wolves and their habitats are protected under the ESA. Loggers, miners, oil and gas special interests want that habitat to use without conscience or consequence.
 

Photograph is of the Brule River boreal state forest. Northern Wisconsin is home to one of the oldest and largest boreal forest in the world.

Before wolf delisting in 2012, while conducting  night-time wolf howl surveys the forests were so thick,  that at times I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face.   After wolf delisting and in less than three years time, the result is devastating to view because, that same 10 miles stretch of forest has been clear cut.

Please take action for wolves in Wyoming, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. Contact your senators using this link Democracy.io 


In one swipe of the hand all progress made for wolf recovery could be gone destroying all hope for future generations. Two dangerous anti-wolf and environment bills are The Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act and Senator Ron Johnson’s (R-WI) amendment to remove wolves from the endangered species list without any judicial review. These bills will destroy all gains made in wolf education, awareness and advocacy over the last 40 years.


Wolf advocates, it’s time to stand for the Endangered Species Act. 

The following organizations are what I’ve come to call “the big five” for their leadership in the fight to protect wolves, read on:

Humane Society of the United States has been and is a leader in the fight to protect the wolves in the Great Lakes Region. Along with the following organizations, Center for Biological Diversity, Born Free USA, Defenders of Wildlife, and Earthjustice lead the charge in the fight to protect America’s wild wolves.

 
Ask the president: @POTUS, We need you to #VetoExtinction. stop the legislative attacks on the ESA. 

Take action today to protect wolves!  

Featured image is a Wisconsin wolf photograph from WDNR

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