No its true,Its going to be on the News in a couple of weeks I bet,Read this he wants to shoot a wolf himself for fun!!
Read it and tell me what is wrong with this world
The restoration of the gray wolf in the northern Rockies is one of America's greatest environmental success stories. Wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone and the central Idaho wilderness in 1995 after being exterminated by settlers, trappers and the federal government. Since then, these new populations have increased to 1200 or so animals. Wolves play a crucial role in the ecosystems of the northern Rockies, helping to preserve riparian forests and maintain healthy populations of raptors and coyotes. They are also a boon to the region's economy, generating tens of millions of dollars in tourist revenue each year.
But Rocky Mountain wolves are not out of danger. A new Bush Administration proposal would allow the slaughter of nearly 600 gray wolves in Greater Yellowstone and Central Idaho as early as this winter -- while they're still on the endangered species list. This plan would trigger an airborne assault on hundreds of wolves in the northern Rockies. Entire packs of gray wolves could be gunned down from airplanes in minutes. In Idaho, the governor himself recently boasted, "I'm prepared to bid for that first ticket to shoot a wolf myself." Wyoming's plan ****fies wolves as "predatory animals" in most of the state. As predators, wolves could be shot on sight anywhere by anyone at anytime.
By proposing the slaughter of wolves while they're still protected by the Endangered Species Act, the Bush Administration is catering to the hunting community, which wants the ease of hunting elk in the same places and in the same numbers that they've grown used to. There are close to 300,000 elk in this region, and only 1,300 wolves. Elk populations are at all-time highs across the northern Rockies. In fact, the game and fish agencies in this region are taking steps to reduce their elk surplus.
But wolves are being targeted because of a few cases where elk herds have shrunk. Those declines have been caused by many factors, including drought, shrinking habitat and human hunters -- not just wolves. Under the Bush Administration's plan, wolves alone will be blamed for any and all declines in a few elk populations. And that will be grounds enough for slaughtering hundreds and hundreds of wolves across two states. Wolves will be exterminated for doing what they are supposed to do: maintain a healthy ecosystem by preying on elk.
Instead of killing wolves, Wyoming and Idaho should be redoubling their efforts to protect them in the face of mounting development and other habitat destruction. The Bush Administration should continue protecting wolves under the Endangered Species Act until the states have plans in place to ensure that wolf populations will flourish in the future. They should make certain that connections are maintained between the three populations in the northern Rockies so that these populations remain genetically healthy. These ecological bridges are increasingly important as rural sprawl and industrial development continue to fragment wolf habitat throughout the region.
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