yellowstone park and bison management
With More Bison Sent to Slaughter, Schweitzer Calls for Summit
By Dana Green, 5-23-06
What to do about the bison?The wild-and-woolly bison herd in Yellowstone, now around 4,900 strong, is once again in the news, as the number slaughtered sharply rose to 889 this year, officials announced.
According to state and federal policy, if the animals can’t be hazed successfully back into the park when they wander, they are captured, tested for brucellosis – and then slaughtered if the test comes back positive.
Gov. Brian Schweitzer isn’t convinced the plan is the best strategy – and plans to hold a meeting with state and federal officials a.s.a.p. to discuss potential management options, which could mean purchasing outright grazing rights on lands near the park where ranchers are running cattle, or allowing bison to roam greater distances.
It’s not going to be easy – ranchers want reassurance that their cattle won’t catch brucellosis (while they have never proved it can pass from bison to cattle, that hasn’t eased worries). Meanwhile, environmental groups insist they want to see the bison get a foothold in Montana, with an established habitat where they are able to roam.
Meanwhile, officials announced they do plan to hold another hunting season in Montana for bison that stray from park boundaries. A three-month season was revived last year, with 40 bison killed during the hunt.
It was all a lot simpler when the 1,800-pound beasts roamed in the park in prehistoric times. No ranchers, no cattle, just a few bow-and-arrow wielding humans to deal with.
[End of article]
CORRECTION: The Yellowstone bison population WAS around 4,900... before November. Now, due to mass slaughter and harassment, the population is at a shameful low of 3,500 or less.
Cattle have NEVER contracted brucellosis from wild bision, even where they co-exist. Brucellosis originated in cattle; they originally infected bison, elk, deer and other native wildlife with this disease, and the responsibility and burden should be placed upon the cattle industry - not the country's wildlife. Brucellosis is a non-issue in reality, as Wyoming's refusal to shut down elk feed grounds contents to. As does Montana's willingness to allow elk and deer to roam freely throughout the state. Grass... that's what this is all about.
Montana, the feds and the livestock industry continue to slaughter and harass the country's last wild buffalo and attempt to justify it with scare tactics. The truth is, they are all interested in one thing: CONTROL.
In prehistoric times there was no park, no lines in the sand, and the bison roamed the continent freely. The humans coexisted with buffalo, respected and revered them; everyone and everything benefitted. Now there' nothing but a shameful mess thick with arrogance and ignorance. When will the people re-learn? Bison are a gift of abundance, symbol of powerful spirit, ecologically critical, and an integral part of nearly all of North America - not just Montana, and not Montana's to do with as they choose. The government - and the industry they protect - continue the persecution of the country's last wild bison with lies and greed.
Schweitzer's willingness to find alternatives to the draconian Bison Management Plan is applaudable. Purchasing cattle grazing leases is a completely sensible first-step approach.
Here's what your tax dollars are paying for: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org.