Migration initiative on the ropes

[BuzzH]

Trump’s ‘liquidation plans’ could wipe out Wyoming research group renowned for migration work - WyoFile

Fate of the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit’s science faculty — Matt Kauffman, Anna Chalfoun and Annika Walters — unclear as president orders deep cuts.

wyofile.com

 

[rogerthat]

Probably another illegal action by this admin but putting Humpty Dumpty back together will be nigh near impossible as slow as the wheels turn in the judicial branch. But hey everything will be okay right?

 

[Big Fin]

This would be a complete train wreck for hunters and the research being done on migration, habitat, and the consequences of human involvement/development/encroachment. They try their best to work with those groups bringing human pressures to these vulnerable landscapes. Wildlife is going to pay the price if this goes through.

WMI gets the largest share of our cash donations each year. They are at the top of my charitable donation list. I've met with Matt K, Greg N., and some of their other people. I've had them and Dr. Kevin Monteith on the podcast. Those guys know more about migratory mule deer and pronghorn than any people I've ever spent time with, by a mile.

I will be asking my delegation to keep that funding in place. To help fill gaps, I'll be ramping up my personal donations.

This is terrible news if it comes to reality.

 

[rogerthat]

This would be a complete train wreck for hunters and the research being done on migration, habitat, and the consequences of human involvement/development/encroachment. They try their best to work with those groups bringing human pressures to these vulnerable landscapes. Wildlife is going to pay the price if this goes through.

WMI gets the largest share of our cash donations each year. They are at the top of my charitable donation list. I've met with Matt K, Greg N., and some of their other people. I've had them and Dr. Kevin Monteith on the podcast. Those guys know more about migratory mule deer and pronghorn than any people I've ever spent time with, by a mile.

I will be asking my delegation to keep that funding in place. To help fill gaps, I'll be ramping up my personal donations.

This is terrible news if it comes to reality.

So far the delegation has been okay with ceding their power of the purse to the executive branch. If you can get them to step up, you’re the man. I’m proud of Montanas senators and reps for voicing their stance on public land sales. I would be even prouder if they stepped up and said “that’s our job” when it comes to many other things. I think we are a long way from that day. We will see. However, thanks for all you do in these types of topics.

 

[BuzzH]

This bullshit is getting out of hand.

 

[Irrelevant]

This bullshit is getting out of hand.

What buzz you don't love all this #winning?
Shots of lib tears for everyone, on the house!

...incredibly frustrating, those guys (and gals) are doing absolutely stellar work to give us common folk the knowledge and tools to protect the wildlife we love.

 

[Treeshark]

Complex situation as wildlife is a state resource- I am hopeful that the affected states are able to step up.

 

[Big Fin]

This bullshit is getting out of hand.

It is, completely.

Yet, we're gonna hear bitching that tag numbers are low. Yeah, when we wipe out all the science that helps mitigate the impacts our society places on resource demands in wild places, we should expect wildlife to take the hit. And very few of us will do shit to try sway things to the favor of wildlife. We'll bitch and blame it on wolves, weather, or some other bullshit.

The folks who want grizzly delisting, of which I am one, better readjust our sights. The courts seem to have a lot more spine than Congress and they aren't real keen on delisting species without science, data, and monitoring that is being RIF'd.

Hunters are going to bitch about waterfowl numbers. When DOGE inefficiency takes full effect we don't have hardly any people left manage refuges, work on habitat, and coordinate the programs that help keep waterfowl numbers from dropping further. We best expect to not have as many ducks in the sky, shorter seasons, and lower limits.

I could go on and on about very important programs that benefit us immensely as hunters. In 3-10 years we're gonna hear hunters bitching, looking around and blaming predators for all the problems as to why they didn't fill their tag, or maybe even why they weren't able to draw a tag.

We're gonna hear complaints that tags got cut even further. Where we hunt as nonresidents we are going to see shrinking percentages, as residents want to save what dwindling opportunity remains as opportunity for themselves. Eventually we'll feel lucky if we get allocated 5% as nonresidents, as more states will go closer to 0% nonresident allocation as these resources shrink.

My tolerance for complaining and criticizing without taking action is completely gone. Never in my life has wildlife, and the infrastructure that gives us these amazing opportunities, been shown so little priority from elected officials. And never have hunters been this apathetic, with the average Hunt Talker being way outside the bell curve when it comes to activism among hunters.

Seems that collectively, too many of us are afraid to offend someone we voted for. That as a group, we're too afraid that we'll be labeled with some tag by our circle of social media "friends" if we speak up. Mostly, as a collective group we've set a high watermark for being uninformed/misinformed, entitled, and politically sensitive.

We're gonna get the wildlife abundance/scarcity, and corresponding hunting opportunity, that we earn. Always been that way and always will.

I'll wait to send Congressional letters in the morning in hopes my temperament improves.

 

[SAJ-99]

Why do I immediately think of this versus the thread on CO Mountain Lion ballot initiative? Is that a valid comparison? I have never heard anyone say anything negative about the Migration initiative, but I wonder what a GoFundMe for it would raise.

​

 

[BuzzH]

Why do I immediately think of this versus the thread on CO Mountain Lion ballot initiative? Is that a valid comparison? I have never heard anyone say anything negative about the Migration initiative, but I wonder what a GoFundMe for it would raise.

​

I think a person should consider this in your gofundme calcuation:

We had to work like hell to raise 200K to open up 8 million acres for corner crossing. For the record, about 15.9 million hunting licenses sold in the U.S. each year.

I don't think a migration initiative gofundme would raise much if that's any indicator.

In both of those cases, if each of those purchasers added 1 dollar to their licenses...well, you can do that math.

That kind of money can make a lot of things happen and provide a lot of influence, but its just asking "too much" to pitch in a whole dollar.

 

[SAJ-99]

I think a person should consider this in your gofundme calcuation:

We had to work like hell to raise 200K to open up 8 million acres for corner crossing. For the record, about 15.9 million hunting licenses sold in the U.S. each year.

I don't think a migration initiative gofundme would raise much if that's any indicator.

In both of those cases, if each of those purchasers added 1 dollar to their licenses...well, you can do that math.

That kind of money can make a lot of things happen and provide a lot of influence, but it’s just asking "too much" to pitch in a whole dollar.

The corner crossing fund is another great example. Completely agree. I doubt a GFM would raise much. I just can’t figure out what motivates people to give. Have to have a clear antagonist? I doubt it would take long to get burned out on the GFMs, too.

 

[jryoung]

I just can’t figure out what motivates people to give.

Alcohol? Booth babes? Chance to win a cheap POS gun? Guided coot hunt?

 

[Treeshark]

This bullshit is getting out of hand.

I just had a bit of time to read up on this more. The amount of federal dollars being spent on “state managed” wildlife is WAY more than advertised by some.

Wildlife as a state-owned resource is often held up as an explanation as to why residents deserve full privileges over establishing tag allocation. Understandable. Why then, though, do we not expect the states to accept financial obligations of managing the wildlife resource as well?

Mixed feelings about this one. Should things like this really be federally funded in the first place?

 

[rtraverdavis]

Should things like this really be federally funded in the first place?

How about if the data collected benefits other states? It's not like the information learned by programs like the Migration Initiative has to stay in Wyoming. The work done by the Migration Initiative has influenced policy here in Oregon, even though those studies weren't done here.

 

[El Jason]

Mixed feelings about this one. Should things like this really be federally funded in the first place?

When the federal government is conducting large scale efforts, like opening millions of acres to drilling, I think it is entirely appropriate for them to be funding and involved in research like the migration initiative.

 

[Treeshark]

When the federal government is conducting large scale efforts, like opening millions of acres to drilling, I think it is entirely appropriate for them to be funding and involved in research like the migration initiative.

You are conflating two separate issues. Wildlife is owned and managed by the state. Federal land is owned by the federal government.

 

[Treeshark]

How about if the data collected benefits other states? It's not like the information learned by programs like the Migration Initiative has to stay in Wyoming.

Agreed- it would be perfectly appropriate for Wyoming to either sell this data to surrounding states and/or solicit a co-funding agreement for future projects.

This would help protect the sanctity of state-owned wildlife management against federal overreach.

 

[rogerthat]

You are conflating two separate issues. Wildlife is owned and managed by the state. Federal land is owned by the federal government.

No he isn’t. Wildlife and wildlife habitat is a resource concern that has to be considered by federal managers.

 

[Treeshark]

No he isn’t. Wildlife and wildlife habitat is a resource concern that has to be considered by federal managers.

What do you mean specifically when you say it needs to considered?

Managed? Paid for? Just spend a bit of time thinking about it?

 

[El Jason]

You are conflating two separate issues. Wildlife is owned and managed by the state. Federal land is owned by the federal government.

No kidding. And federal land management directly impacts wildlife.