I need help arguing hunting to an anti crowd
- Thread starter Fallenrock2
- Start date
I'm all for grizzly hunitng when you have a sustainable population, but I'm not sure Albertas is.
I odn't know much about it, but from media reports, there is less than 1000?
Which is not a population that shoudl be hunted, in my opinion.
Hopefully some of the Albertns that really know hte issue can chime in!
I odn't know much about it, but from media reports, there is less than 1000?
Which is not a population that shoudl be hunted, in my opinion.
Hopefully some of the Albertns that really know hte issue can chime in!
It depends where you are talking about. Banff south has problems.........people problems. I lived up in the northern part for 10 years and there were lots of grizzlies in the Wilmore, Grande Prairie and north country.
The seasons are set for a minimal kill at the best of times.
When you leave the mountains and get into the taiga/boreal forest type areas, they are very difficult to hunt. No open slopes or slides to glass. You have to hope to spot one on an oil or gas pipeline. Also, 1000 grizzlies might not sound like a lot, but remember that most of Alberta, probably two thirds, is non-grizzly country where grizzly bears haven't existed for probably a century and never will again.
The current grizzly population is along the Rockies and up through the Peace Region. There is also a population in the Swan Hills. If you look at a map of Alberta, you will see that leaves vast areas that really don't fit into the picture as they are not grizzly territory.
I can see them stopping the hunt in the southern most areas around Banff, as public pressure will eventually force it. But further north really shouldn't be a problem for a minimal sustained harvest. Unfortunately I think that public sentiment is slowly going to force the issue. It will happen in BC to....just give it time. You already have outfitters, like Leonard Ellis from the Bella Coola area, selling their guiding territories to 'green' groups that will stop grizzly hunting.
It's just the tip of the iceberg. The anti-hunting......well especially the save the grizzlies and the wolves types......are a large segment of the Vancouver population. It is also getting that way in Calgary and more recently Edmonton is showing the same signs.
The seasons are set for a minimal kill at the best of times.
When you leave the mountains and get into the taiga/boreal forest type areas, they are very difficult to hunt. No open slopes or slides to glass. You have to hope to spot one on an oil or gas pipeline. Also, 1000 grizzlies might not sound like a lot, but remember that most of Alberta, probably two thirds, is non-grizzly country where grizzly bears haven't existed for probably a century and never will again.
The current grizzly population is along the Rockies and up through the Peace Region. There is also a population in the Swan Hills. If you look at a map of Alberta, you will see that leaves vast areas that really don't fit into the picture as they are not grizzly territory.
I can see them stopping the hunt in the southern most areas around Banff, as public pressure will eventually force it. But further north really shouldn't be a problem for a minimal sustained harvest. Unfortunately I think that public sentiment is slowly going to force the issue. It will happen in BC to....just give it time. You already have outfitters, like Leonard Ellis from the Bella Coola area, selling their guiding territories to 'green' groups that will stop grizzly hunting.
It's just the tip of the iceberg. The anti-hunting......well especially the save the grizzlies and the wolves types......are a large segment of the Vancouver population. It is also getting that way in Calgary and more recently Edmonton is showing the same signs.
You are looking at a 10yr wait for a Grizz tag. So that should tell you how many are given out. I have lived in Southern Ab and currently by Grande Prairie and there are lots of grizz in both places. They are an elusive creature as most of us know and I would guess that F&W saying there are only a 1000 is being very conservative. In one season I saw 2 boars and a sow with 3 cubs and not in a park so would that make me the luckiest person around. To see 6 bears out of a 1000 in a year?
Stalker....you are right. In fact, they don't know how many are out there. they do guesstimates based on the type of habitat and what it can support, based on 'models' that they have designed or borrowed from others.
More recently they started doing the hair strand/DNA identification with bait sites and barbed wire around it to collect samples. It was used previously in BC for grizzly and .......funny thing, they found that there were way more bears in some areas than they had thought.
I lived up north of Grande Prairie and I saw lots of grizzly bears by chance as well. Of course, the one year I drew a tag the snow was so deep it made it impossible to hunt the area I had drawn in. By the time I could get in there the season was over.
More recently they started doing the hair strand/DNA identification with bait sites and barbed wire around it to collect samples. It was used previously in BC for grizzly and .......funny thing, they found that there were way more bears in some areas than they had thought.
I lived up north of Grande Prairie and I saw lots of grizzly bears by chance as well. Of course, the one year I drew a tag the snow was so deep it made it impossible to hunt the area I had drawn in. By the time I could get in there the season was over.
Ironically enough as far as I see the only place grizlly are in trouble is in the parks. Places I have hunted in k-country regularaly get shut down because of bears.
But the biggest argument for a hunt is that the removal of a few boars will help cub recruitment since boars, are the biggest predators of cubs. The more cubs that make it to adult hood the more stable the population will be.
I saw a study out of africa that found the same things with lions removing the older males helped alot. Though with lions it was easier to tell ### and guage age (somthing about the color of the nose blacker = older)
But the biggest argument for a hunt is that the removal of a few boars will help cub recruitment since boars, are the biggest predators of cubs. The more cubs that make it to adult hood the more stable the population will be.
I saw a study out of africa that found the same things with lions removing the older males helped alot. Though with lions it was easier to tell ### and guage age (somthing about the color of the nose blacker = older)
The last time I heard a discussion about this on talk radio, a non-government biologist stated that the likely population was more like 3000 IIRC.
There seems to be a lot of conflicting info on this subject.
Here is a quote from the government hunting website:
The Fish and Wildlife Division estimates the provincial population (in Sept.) to be between 500 and 1000 animals (excluding the national parks). Work is ongoing on a population model and an inventory based on DNA information from field work in Bear Management Areas.
It is good and important to note that Banff, Jasper and Yoho National parks comprise an awful lot of prime Grizzly habitat...
There seems to be a lot of conflicting info on this subject.
Here is a quote from the government hunting website:
The Fish and Wildlife Division estimates the provincial population (in Sept.) to be between 500 and 1000 animals (excluding the national parks). Work is ongoing on a population model and an inventory based on DNA information from field work in Bear Management Areas.
It is good and important to note that Banff, Jasper and Yoho National parks comprise an awful lot of prime Grizzly habitat...
