News came out last week that taxpayer-funded and woefully misnamed Wildlife Services killed five wild wolves in central Idaho for alleged livestock depredation—another in a long line of such wolf-killing actions by this secretive government agency. Wildlife Services, which Congressman Peter DeFazio calls “one of the most opaque and least accountable agencies” in the federal government,…
Gardiner- A weekend long event titled, Speak for Wolves: Yellowstone 2014 is scheduled to take place in Gardiner, Montana from June 27-29, 2014. Organizers are describing it as an opportunity for the American people to unite and demand wildlife management reform and take steps toward restoring our national heritage. The festivities include prominent speakers, live…
This memo shows that Wildlife Service not only sees that its job is to work for ranchers, not the general public, but that they view public oversight to be a major problem. USDA wolf depredation investigation memo pdf file – – – – – – – Note that we received this memo as a pdf file…
This is a guest editorial by Wendy Keefover, Director of the Carnivore Protection Program at WildEarth Guardians- The New York Times editors largely got it right when they recently editorialized critically about the cruel work of a little known program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that annually spends over $100 million to kill some…
More dollars to deal with these destructive invasives might get into federal budget- The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) gives the good news that federal appropriations might go up this year for feral hog control despite sequesters, debt limit confrontations, austerity programs, etc. USDA-Wildlife Services, an agency which most conservationists have a low opinion, would…
The Albequerque Journal is reporting that a USDA Wildlife Services employee is under investigation for the killing of an endangered Mexican gray wolf in the southwest corner of New Mexico. According to the Journal USDA Wildlife Services issued a statement claiming the employee mistakenly identified it as a coyote. A Wildlife Services spokesperson stated “While…
Some recent stories about wildlife certainly deserve to be mentioned, and with a link if possible. Trap set for wolf gets a cougar instead, then a Park employee- It was set on the Glacier National Park boundary, and a cougar stepped on it and was found caught by a Park Service employee. The cougar was…
Graphic photos published to a self-proclaimed USDA Wildlife Services employee’s Facebook page and Twitter account were recently brought to light by wildlife activists. Some of the photos, placed in a Facebook album called “work” and some from a public Twitter account, depict the employee’s dogs attacking defenseless coyotes, raccoons, and bobcats caught in a leg-hold…