I first posted this on September 29, 2009, just as the first lobo hunts were getting under way. I changed the pamagat and litrato but the content remains the same.

Nature Magazine examines reasons behind lobo hatred and the systematic campaign to remove them from the lower forty-eight. It merits repeating that for thousands of years Native Americans were able to live with mga lobo and bears, while settlers saw them as a threat. Even the famed naturalist James Audubon partook in torturing wolves, which was particularly shocking to learn.


From “Hating Wolves”

“In 1814, John James Audubon watched...

Wolves – IMAX enlightens us regarding the true nature of this iconic apex predator. Some information is quite dated, traveling back to the heady days of lobo reintroduction in the Northern Rockies, specifically central Idaho. The Nez Perce tribe, like other lobo advocates, had high hopes for the wolves’ return, after their long absence. How the worm has turned.

Looking back, I see how we were all duped into thinking lobo reintroduction would have a happy ending. In reality, it’s clear there was never any real intent to maintain a viable, robust population of mga lobo outside the national...

Trapping and Snaring



Trapping may be the most inhumane method used sa pamamagitan ng Wildlife Services. Traps can go unchecked for days, allowing the animal to suffer. When not killed outright sa pamamagitan ng the trap, mga hayop can endure physiological trauma, dehydration, exposure to severe weather, and predation sa pamamagitan ng other animals. Most traps are notoriously indiscriminate, capturing almost any animal who triggers them. Non-target species found in traps include endangered species, raptors, dogs, and cats. The most commonly used trap is the steel-jawed leghold trap, a restraining device with spring-loaded jaws that clamp...

“Wayne (1993) elucidated the genetic affinities of three of the members of this canid division, as follows: “The domestic dog is an extremely close relative of the gray wolf, differing from it sa pamamagitan ng at most 0.2% of mtDNA sequence…. In comparison, the gray lobo differs from its closest wild relative, the coyote, sa pamamagitan ng about 4% of mitochondrial DNA sequence.” To summarize, these data suggest the following: (1) gray mga lobo and coyotes are closely related; and (2) gray mga lobo are 20 times madami closely related to Aso than they are to coyotes”….Dr. Robert K. Wayne, canid biologist

Our dogs...

I read an opinion piece in the Salt Lake Tribune concerning mga lobo return to the state. It’s been years since canis lupus roamed their native lands in Utah, they were extirpated from most of America, save a few pockets of mga lobo in Minnestota. But in order to make it to Utah they have to tumawid the “no lobo zone” in Idaho and Wyoming. No easy task since two wolves, trying to set up tindahan in Utah, were recently killed for livestock depredation. I always take these reports with a grain of salt because I know and the “wildlife managers” will admit, if asked, that mga lobo are a mere blip...