Tough Winter for Montana Buffalo
by Mike Mease, Buffalo Field Campaign Organizer
While the state of Montana has faced continued fiscal crises, its
Department of Livestock (MDOL) budget to "manage" buffalo last year
was over 1.3 million dollars.
Dr. Mary Meagher has studied Yellowstone's native bison herd for
thirty-five years. At a workshop in April 2002, Dr. Meagher stated
that the current MDOL Buffalo Management Plan proposal to arbitrarily
cap the population to 3,000 animals is not based on science. Setting
an arbitrary number for wildlife herds can be very dangerous because
of large natural fluctuations in population.
According to James Derr, of Texas A&M, the Yellowstone herd is
genetically distinct and pure. The application of livestock management
serves only to increase the possibility of these bison losing their
long term evolutionary potential.
In September, rangers at Yellowstone National Park counted over 4,000
wild buffalo. So this winter could be as tough as the winter of
1996-97, when 1,084 buffalo were gunned down, causing public outrage.
In early October of this year, MDOL captured and sent three bull
buffalo to slaughter, citing concerns of disease transmission to
livestock. "In the last five years that the Buffalo Field Campaign
(BFC) has been here, this is the earliest they have killed buffalo",
stated Mike Mease. "These were all bulls and even the Animal Plant and
Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recognizes that they do not pose a
threat. The fact that cattle left last week and will not return until
June next year just goes to show the world this has nothing to do with
disease control."
The Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) is the only group working in the
field, everyday, to stop the slaughter of Yellowstone's wild buffalo.
Volunteers defend the buffalo on their traditional winter habitat and
advocate for their protection. Daily patrols stay with the
buffalo and document every move made against them.
Contact stop-the-slaughter@wildrockies.org or go to
www.wildbison.org
for more information, or
www.wildrockies.org/Buffalo/politico00/sendmail.html
to send a message to the Secretary of Agriculture.