Nemont, heres another angle on this issue:
BACKGROUND:
After a few years of declining fawn survival, the Fish and Wildlife
wanted to institute coyote control on the refuge to protect antelope fawns
that were being killed by coyotes. Lawsuits from environmentalists delayed
coyote control. Today the highest fawn survival ever recorded have been
documented--all without coyote control--demonstrating how a few years data
can't be used to dictate wildlife policies. All wildlife numbers vary from
year to year--but most studies are at most a few years long.
Subject: [RN] FWD: Hart Mt. Pronghorn fawns Press Release
> Subject:
> Hart Mt. Pronghorn fawns Press Release
> Date:
> Mon, 30 Jul 2001 11:49:41 -0700 (PDT)
> From:
> Joy Belsky <
[email protected]>
> To:
>
[email protected]
>
> For immediate release, July 26, 2001:
> Joy Belsky, Oregon Natural Desert Association, Portland, 503-228-9720
> Brooks Fahy, Predator Defense Institute, Eugene, OR, 541-937-4261
>
> Another Bumper Crop of Pronghorn Fawns on Hart Mountain Refuge
> Third year of high fawn survival proves that coyote control was never
needed
>
> PORTLAND, OR: Pronghorn antelope fawns can be seen in large numbers
> on Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. The Refuge's mid-July
> aerial count of pronghorns show that fawn survival and total
> pronghorn numbers are at record high levels for the third year in a
> row, in spite of no coyote control. Pronghorn fawn survival is at its
> highest level in 25 years, and total pronghorn numbers are at their
> fourth highest level since systematic counts were started in 1955.
>
> The total number of pronghorn on the refuge in 2001 is 1617; the
> average number of pronghorn on the refuge from 1955 - 1991 was 617.
> Cattle were removed in 1991.
>
> The number of surviving fawns in 2001 was 66 fawns/100 does
> (pronghorn does produce twins each spring); the average number of
> fawns surviving from 1971 - 1991 was 32 fawns/100 does.
>
> The refuge is continuing to delay the release of their new Pronghorn
> Management Plan, which was due in August, 1999. According to refuge
> managers, their Plan was to call for coyote control to protect
> pronghorn fawns. The delay might be due to
three years of high
> pronghorn fawn counts on Hart Mt., showing that the killing of
> coyotes is unnecessary to protect fawns.
>
> From 1995-1999, Hart Mountain NAR tried to institute coyote control
> on the refuge, blaming one year of low fawn survivorship on coyote
> predation. Research on the refuge showed that the low number of
> pronghorn fawns in 1995 was related to severe weather conditions and
> poor diet quality. In spite of these results, the refuge continued to
> call for coyote control, which was stopped by lawsuits by ONDA and
> PDI.
>
> "This year's high fawn survival and dramatic increase in pronghorns
> confirm that there was never any reason for the refuge to kill
> coyotes. If refuge managers had carried out their plans to kill
> coyotes, they would now be claiming that the recent high numbers of
> fawns were due to coyote control. By not killing the coyotes, we now
> have important data on natural pronghorn survival" said Dr. Joy
> Belsky, Staff Ecologist, Oregon Natural Desert Association.
>
>
Bill Marlett, Executive Director of the Oregon Natural Desert
> Association, added "The high pronghorn numbers show that the removal
> of cattle may have been the best thing that could have happened to
> pronghorn at Hart Mt. Refuge".
>
> Brooks Fahy, Executive Director of the Predator Defense Institute,
> stated "These numbers bear out what we've been saying for the last
> four years. Population fluctuation is natural, and the main
> controlling factors in pronghorn populations, as in all wildlife
> populations, is weather and habitat".
>
>
> Hart Mountain-Sheldon Refuge Complex phone number = 541-947-3315
> Joy Belsky, Ph.D.
> Staff Ecologist
> Oregon Natural Desert Association
> 732 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 407
> Portland, OR 97204
>
> Ph: 503/228-9720 (503 is part of local number and must be dialed)
> Fax: 503/228-9720 (please call first)
>
[email protected]
>
www.onda.org
