I must say that it is extremely disheartening to hear that once again Honourable Murray has decided to go ahead with the cull.
Last fall when I first heard of the cull I wrote to her expressing my concerns on this issue and asked her to change her mind. Apparently she recieved many letters in this regard and decided to hold off on the cull and search for other methods of dealing with the situation.
She then decided that a sterilization program may be a better way to deal with predator encroachment on marmot habitat. I wrote her again explaining that this was not a reasonable option either.
I am confused by the many conservation groups that want to protect all of the animals involved here. On one side you have the Marmot groups who state that Gray Wolf populations have never done better and that they are making huge comebacks in areas where they haven't even been re-introduced. On the other side you have the Wolf groups who have been studying the Wolves for years and state that Wolf populations are dwindling!
It is difficult to figure out what to believe. I do know this, I feel that killing the wolves and cougars is NOT the answer. There has to be some other way of protecting the Marmot. I also know that writing letters helps a great deal! The citizens of BC need to put their pens to paper and let Honourable Murray know how we feel about the cull. This must be a difficult situation for her. Let's help her with her decision and write to her voicing our concerns, the more people that write the better. Here is her email address: joyce.murray.mla@leg.bc.ca
I have to admit I do not know much about the plight of the Marmot on Vancouver Island and I will be reading up on it as soon as possible. I do know a little about the plight of the Gray Wolf. In 1999 my son and I sponsored a Gray Wolf named Storm through the Central Rockies Wolf Project. He was a radio collared wolf who was tracked to monitor his migratory habits, eating habits and all other aspects of Wolf life. Especially his progress in an area where wolves had been virtually erased by mankind.
Yesterday I found out that he had been trapped and killed in January of this year. There are now only two wolves left from his pack ( The Bow Valley Pack). IT seems as though the Wolves are not doing as well as depicted in the letter Emma recieved from Andrew Bryant of the Marmot recovery Foundation. Here is the site for the Central Rockies Wolf project it is very informative and shows many years of studies. www.graywolf.ca