Coastal First Nations http://www.coastalfirstnations.ca/
Humane Society International/Canada http://www.hsi.org/world/canada/
The Spirit Bear Youth Coalition. http://www.spiritbearyouth.org/
The Great Bear Rainforest (together with the Haida Gwaii)
holds the largest area of intact coastal temperate rainforest in the world.
This ecosystem has become so rare, it now covers less than 1% of the planet’s
entire land mass. It supports many threatened and unique species, such as
wolves, grizzly bears, and black bears. It is also home to the extraordinary
spirit bear, which as Krista explained, is a genetically distinct subspecies of
the black bear with white fur due to a recessive gene. However, this habitat and
the species living there are facing many threats…
Only 50% of the Great Bear Rainforest is protected from
logging, and the BC government says they need until 2014 to increase that to
70%.
The government also allows trophy hunting of black bears and
grizzly bears within 98% of the spirit bear’s range, including protected areas. People come from all over in search of the biggest kill. Although it is illegal to hunt the spirit bear, the black bears that are
carriers of the white fur gene are fair game. When the proper gene pool is
intact, 1 out of every 10 black bears are spirit bears. If these bears were to
become endangered, it would be extremely difficult to increase their numbers through
captive breeding, due to this fact. That is why it is exceptionally important to
conserve the delicate ecological balance that has allowed the spirit bears to
survive for thousands of years. This senseless slaughter threatens the genetic
diversity of these unique populations. The spirit bear is the icon of our
province. It is so rare to begin with, we should be doing everything we can to
preserve this celebrated animal. How are we supposed to save the spirit bear,
if there are no black bears to carry the gene in the first place?
Even though the grizzly bear is not as renowned as the
spirit bear, it is still an important part of BC. This is one of the few places
in North America where the grizzly bear has not been extirpated, but it is
still a threatened species. Yet, approximately 300 grizzly bears are killed per
year in BC by trophy hunters.
Countless organizations have made it their mission to
protect the Great Bear Rainforest, save the spirit bear, and end trophy hunting
in this area. Pacific Wild, The Spirit Bear Youth Coalition, Humane Society
International/Canada, Coastal First Nations, and Sierra Club BC (to name a few)
have been educating the public and fighting to increase the protection of the
Great Bear Rainforest. People
would rather watch these beautiful creatures in their natural environment,
instead of see them hung on walls as trophies. To learn more, please visit the above websites to see
what they are doing to support this cause.
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These videos also summarize the issues quite well (but I am
warning, you will feel depressed after).
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/v/DOPWZ8gOAO8?version=3&f=playlists&app=youtube_gdata
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteYou bring up a very valid point I had not thought about before, in that conversations about hunting should not just focus on the population size, but also consider the genetics. I doubt that most individuals involved in the hunting debate are quick to consider the biology of recessive genes, and I think this is where it is crucial to have individuals from all sectors (including those with substantial knowledge of biology and genetics) involved in the debate. Thanks for bringing this topic to attention!
Whoa, this is very upsetting. I completely agree with everything you said about stopping trophy hunting etc. I also agree that it is much better to watch an animal in its wild, natural habitat (no matter which animal it is) opposed to have them hanging on the wall, dead, for few people to see. Thank you for bringing up this topic and expanding on what Krista said!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great blog. It is so easy for those who don't understand the genetics to see black bears as just another black bear. It is encouraging to know there are many organizations fighting the "good" fight. You scared me off watching the videos ;-) I'll wait to hear about them in class.
ReplyDeleteWow. I hate trophy hunters. Nothing they do is good. Many even just take the pictures and leave the animal there. What meaningless deaths. This is a sad story but hopefully it will have a good ending. I hope that these organizations that consider the genetics will be able to stop the senseless hunting.
ReplyDelete-Christina
Great blog Ashley, it raises a lot of troubled feelings. I am interested to see just exactly how the BC government is planning on increases the protected area to 70% while they are still actively logging that area. Protecting clear-cuts sounds like a silly thing to do.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't conservation specialists involved in regulating the hunting and fishing regulation synopsis each year?
Well you made some really good points in your paper!! And ya since the spirit bear is so rare and is completely recessive for that gene they need the black bears to give them genetic diversity!!! So I really hope that they make more the the Great Bear Rainforest into no logging and ban the trophy hunting!!
ReplyDeleteLike I posted on Krista's blog, are there any side effects to being a spirit bear? Are these bears less fit than their dark counterparts? Or is it just their coat colour that is different? If the gene did in fact make them weaker, it will make them harder to protect. -Erik Vliegenthart
ReplyDeleteI think I came across something that the spirit bears are sometimes better at catching salmon during the daytime because the fish are not as scared of a white object in the water.
DeleteWhen you mentioned that trophy hunting of black bears and grizzly bears is allowed within 98% of the spirit bear’s range, including protected areas do you know if it is controlled through a hunting-draw?? Fish & Wildlife allows trophy hunting of some species in certain protected or unique areas each year but it is often that trophy hunter's are required to put their name in for a draw. Only a certain number of names are selected and allowed to hunt in these areas by way of the draw. A specific calculated number of animals (calculated by biologists/experts based on current population numbers)are allowed to be harvested by trophy hunters without significantly affecting a population. I'm not a hunter, but I don't think all trophy hunting is bad. I think that it does need to be regulated and that it shouldn't just be a free for all for everyone but trophy hunting can actually be beneficial to some populations. An instance would be when species when numbers become too over-populated and their habitat cannot properly sustain them or when their is a need for predator control because more predators are present in an area then prey that is available.
ReplyDeleteIt is controlled, but from what I understood, the population estimates may not be all that accurate, so they may actually be hunting more than is sustainable. But the main problem is, the spirit bear is protected, but their genes are not, so it seems counter-productive to protect one and not the other.
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