Thank you, Rachel, for being a voice for all creatures.
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Re: wolf bag-limit more than doubles (the News, August 13):

Wolves are being murdered (again) because of human mis-management. Susan Desjardins from the Alsek RRC claims that "In the past, predators
were controlled through trapping". She claims it's important that the wolf population be kept "in check," so there should be more hunting to replace the disappearing traplines. Is she not interested in the real reasons that the ungulate population has declined? Like over-hunting, industrial activity, foreign head-hunters (big game outfitters), urban sprawl, habitat destruction, climate change?

Legally killing wolves from August 1 to March 31 every year isn't enough, is it? And legally, with the use of bait, trappers can kill an unlimited number of wolves on their trap-line through either trapping or shooting. This isn't enough either?

To egg the hunters on, Gord Zealand from the Yukon Fish and Game Association claimed that "You would have to be a very good hunter" to kill more than three wolves a year (News, August 13). How many wanna-bes are going to rise to the occasion to prove themselves "very good hunters" in Zealand's eyes? And actually, all you have to do is want to kill, which is easy. It doesn't take great skill to kill, especially with bait (which is legal to use on wolves and coyotes in the Yukon) and modern weapons. These people call themselves real hunters?

The department of environment have not yet given any public explanation for the decision to raise the "murder-limit" from 3 to 7 wolves. I have already asked the department of environment in an open letter (News, August 8) to explain this decision. If in fact the population of ungulates is drastically low, why not
have a moratorium on hunting (instead of expecting wolves to fast, or be killed)? It is clear to me that Yukon's wildlife managers will not (or cannot) explain the real reason why wolves, again, are being used as scapegoats for human mistakes.

Why the need to kill? It is morally and ethically unacceptable to kill without necessity. But it appears that the lust to kill is the greater urge. I leave you here with a quote from some fella who called my answering machine, and didn't have the courage/spine to leave his name or write to the
papers: "If you wanna protect the wolves, then maybe we should start having an open season on Greenpeace." He made just about as much sense as the Department of Environment and the Alsek and Teslin RRCs: it's so easy to blame (and kill) a scapegoat for our mistakes. Kill wolves today to save ungulates for our freezers and wall mounted trophys tomorrow.

And the killing continues!