Obama admin. turning back endangered species...

[Green_Lantern]

The Obama hope message doesn't offer much for endangered wolves. He's allowing these beautiful animals to be butchered.

Mind you this decision is up to his administration, not anyone else.

From NOW on PBS:

Last year the Obama Administration removed federal protection from some of the wolves that had been restored to the northern Rockies under the Endangered Species Act. The move paved the way for controversial state-regulated wolf hunts.

Wolf advocates strongly oppose the administrations decision saying the three states in the region, Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming need a cohesive management plan that allows for a much larger wolf population. "It was very disappointing when Secretary Salazar in the Obama Administration, signed off on this rushed-through Bush administration delisting package for wolves," said Doug Honnold, a lawyer with Earthjustice, who is representing conservation groups challenging the government's decision.

The return of the gray wolf to the northern Rockies is considered to be the most successful wildlife reintroduction project in the history of the 27 year old Endangered Species Act. In 1995 and 1996, 66 gray wolves we relocated from Canada to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. Today there are more than 1,600 wolves in the region.

For its part the federal government says that just 300 wolves are needed for legitimate recovery in the region. "Wolves are back and there's plenty of them in plenty of places. They're never really going anywhere," said Ed Bangs, the Northern Rockies Wolf Recovery Coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

More than a dozen conversation groups have sued the Interior Department to return federal protection to the northern Rockies wolves. Some believe the result of this legal debate is a litmus test for the Obama Administration's overall approach to wildlife issues and the Endangered Species Act.

http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/609/index.html


Obama is being pretty disgraceful allowing this to occur. We don't need to be wiping out animals that are already close to being wiped out.

One day when the only animals we see are at a handful of zoos we'll look back and say "We should've protected the animals."

Ironically we do such silly things to control animal population of nearly endangered species yet do little to control dog and cat overpopulation.

[mitchtv]

1. I read in my local fish wrap that the sage grouse

was denied protection for at least a year

[MadHound]

2. Just one more reason not to support this administration anymore

They're not even bothering to throw us a few crumbs, they're simply doing what their corporate masters want.

Well, if they don't support me and my issues, why should I support them?

[earth mom]

26. +1000!

My kid is going to be devastated to hear this news. :cry:

[katandmoon]

3. Of course it is! More ObamaCo fuckery.

[Robb]

4. Sounds like the wolves are doing well

...at what population would you suggest we remove them from the Endangered Species list?

[Green_Lantern]

10. well the wolf experts NOW interviewed said there are only 1600

Gray wolves and we need at least 2000 for the species to thrive. The question how close must they get to extinction before we get worried?

[Robb]

30. The fish & wildlife guy they talked to said only 300 were needed to thrive.

Which is it? And which number is the trigger for the Endangered Species Act?

I should add, since I'll probably be attacked for even asking, I'm a fan of the wolf and a big dog person as well. Also not a hunter or a rancher or any other of the usual categories people who ask questions about this sort of thing get lumped into.

[quaker bill]

33. They were not extinct or even close

they were extirpated. There is a major difference. Extirpation occurs when a species is hunted to the extent that they are removed from a suitable but isolated habitat. The point of reintroduction is to develop stable populations in suitable habitat areas where animals have been extirpated. They got the animals from Canada, where populations still thrive. The point of developing more stable and relatively isolated populations from a species perspective is to provide a buffer that prevents disease and famine in one population from threatening the existence of the entire species. The point from an ecosystem perspective is to restore top predators to the local food web, probably for better management of white tailed deer over population.

You needed to "get worried" when there were 0 or perhaps when there were only 60, you can be less "worried" now that there are 1600.

[Mojorabbit]

15. This is an issue close to my heart

and I have been a supporter of defenders of wildlife for years. I was amazed when this administration did this. I thought my letter writing days on this issue would be over when a Dem got elected. These packs have intricate relationships and none of this is being accounted for. Taking out the alpha wolves can put a pack cohesiveness and survival in jeopardy. Female wolves with youngsters are being hunted. It breaks my heart.

[G_j]

18. thank you

there is no reasonable defense for this whatsoever.

[G_j]

5. **Wolves under attack

(posted this last week)

http://www.defenders.org /

Right now, the wolves we’ve fought so hard to return to the Greater Yellowstone and the northern Rockies are dying -- victims of the Obama administration’s decision to prematurely eliminate life-saving federal protections these magnificent animals need to help reclaim their place in the American West.

Please watch the special video that Defenders board member, actress and activist Ashley Judd has recorded for you, take action to save our wolves and help spread the word.

Hundreds of wolves have been killed in Idaho and Montana since March 2009 -- more than 230 during wolf hunts that began in September and continue in Idaho even now because of the Obama administration’s action.

Idaho has already extended its hunting season, putting even more wolf families in the crosshairs -- even pregnant wolf mothers that only give birth in the spring.

To stop the killing, I need you to do three things today…

#1. Watch the video.
Check out Ashley Judd’s powerful new video and learn what’s at stake in our fight to save the wolves of the northern Rockies and Greater Yellowstone.

#2. Take action.
Help us send 40,000 messages to President Obama by Friday, March 5th.

#3. Spread the word.
Use email, Facebook and/or Twitter to encourage at least 3 other people to take action too.

Defenders of Wildlife is in court right now fighting to restore life-saving protections for these magnificent wolves and ensure that Endangered Species Act protections are determined by sound science, not political boundaries and political manipulation of special interest groups.

The federal judge who will rule on the case indicated last year that Defenders’ case is likely to succeed on its merits. Unfortunately, court victories take time… and our wolves are being killed right now.

President Obama can fix this mistake and save our wolves, but he needs to hear from you. Please watch Ashley Judd’s new video, take action and spread the word today.

[Rhiannon12866]

13. Done! Thank you... Urge President Obama to End the War on Wolves:

https://secure.defenders.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=1691&JServSessionIdr004=l0or3vqer4.app223a

[saracat]

6. Add that to the list. of course some don't really care.

[saracat]

7. Gee, maybe Barrack's friend Sarah can get more hunting in now!

[otohara]

36. When Did Palin Become Friends

with President Barack Obama?

So disrespectful - at least try to spell his name correctly.

[saracat]

37. Geez , it was a typo. And killing the wolves is an interest they seem to share .

I didn't mean actual "friends" but at this point, I wonder? Protecting the endangered animals sure isn't high on his list.The only thing is she is too stupid for him to be friends with.

[Robb]

40. What endangered animals?

Are these wolves still endangered? What do you think the word means?

[spoony]

8. Amazing that people are unreccing this.

Fucking sniveling bots.

[Green_Lantern]

11. they like Obama more than the wolves....

nt

[tekisui]

25. Obama can do no wrong, dontcha know?

I admit Obama can do right. They deny Obama can do wrong, even though he has repeatedly. To the point of expectation now.

[ima_sinnic]

35. any exposure of what is really going on must be squelched

as though a few unrecs on an Internet forum are going to hide the ugly truth of what this administration is really about and who and what are really important to it. The mole-whackers are far outnumbered by the "moles"--but what do they care? that just ensures their steady paycheck.

[belpejic]

9. More change we can believe in.

Obama is proving to be an enormous disappointment when it comes to environment-related issues.

[G_j]

12. Anyone who knew anything about Ken Salazar,

was terribly dismayed when Obama appointed him.

[Bobbieo]

20. I'm one of them and this is all on Salazar!!!!

[G_j]

22. there are no words

why??

[EFerrari]

24. And we were told we were wrong. Oops.

[Bluebear]

14. The wolves never were "with" Obama, so that's what they get.

:silly:

[Green_Lantern]

16. wolves need to form a corporation...

Then Obama will protect them.

[Bluebear]

17. but NOT a Union. nt

[jgraz]

19. THEY ALWAYS HATED HIM!!!

Fucking PUMA wolves.

[amborin]

21. k&R nor for the Sage Grouse, etc.....................

[nashville_brook]

23. what's the point of electing Dems who do nothing different than GOPers?

[w4rma]

27. Half his damn administration is made up of former Bush administration lackies. (nt)

[scarletwoman]

28. Exactly! We gritted our teeth through the last 8 hellish years of Repug dominance, only to find out

that putting Dems in charge changes nothing.

[quaker bill]

29. Alligators were once endangered too

now they are hunted to reduce the over population. The hunts have been insufficient to control the population. So now there is a small industry of nuisance gator trappers to control these animals that occasionally consume pets and more rarely, children, and a bit more rarely, adults. The recovery plan for this species has gone quite well.

We biologists are working to put habitat back together. This occasionally means lots of mice. Lots of mice generally means lots of snake food, which makes lots of snakes. People occasionally call me concerned that there are snakes in the conservation lands next to their house. I have been known to suggest that if one is afraid of snakes, perhaps deciding to live with a swamp in you backyard was not the best option for them, but no, I am not going to remove the snakes or allow it to happen.

When any plan goes well, there comes a time to remove the special regulatory protection. The entire point of the endangered species act and the recovery plans formulated under it, is to cause enough recovery to remove species from the list. Occasionally, the ecologists are successful.

[Robb]

31. This was my impression as well.

I don't understand the hand-wringing on this. I did some reading, it doesn't appear Obama or Salazar tampered with the recovery plan that was put in place when the wolves were listed to begin with. Once you meet the goal, you de-list them, right?

We have a lynx re-introduction program out here, quite near where I used to live. I was lucky enough to see one once, I've not seen a more hauntingly magic looking creature. :hi:

[quaker bill]

32. It is not just my impression

Enforcing environmental regulation is what I do for a living. The consequence under law of getting a species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is a requirement for the US Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a recovery plan with the consultation and cooperation of state and local agencies which obtain Federal funds for this purpose. After a long process of peer review and public hearings, the final plan is adopted and implemented.

Monitoring and adjustments are then made as results indicate they are necessary. Sometimes the plans work quite well, occasionally they fail, most often the results are mixed, with some recovery but not as much as hoped for.

Top predators, such as wolves, are generally rare in a balanced ecosystem. This has to do with the position of top predators in the energy dynamics of any food web. Some energy is lost at each step up the web, so by the time you get near the top, the carrying capacity in absolute number of organisms in any ecosystem declines. In short, a balanced ecosystem will contain many more deer and rabbits (primary consumers) than it will wolves (top predators). 1600 wolves could easily be enough for balance.

In my 20 years of experience at this, biologists and ecologists do their best work when rather isolated from political pressure, left or right. Most prefer to toil away quietly and without notice. If they wanted such attention, they would have chosen another, generally far better paid, and more respected line of work.

[Robb]

34. Thank you. I appreciate the insight. nt

[Cetacea]

38. Another poor political move.

Considering a solid majority of Americans are animal lovers and/or pro-environment.

[Odin2005]

39. EPIC FAIL, Mr. President.

[Cetacea]

41. Think of it as Endangered Species Reform

(not that I blame Obama entirely for what's happened to HCR)