CDN Kayaker Fights Off Wolf With Knife

Wolves are one reason why russian cosmonauts have guns in their Soyuz capsules. When they land in the wilderness, it can take some time until they are picked up.
 
mete said:
The lion then turned around and sprayed the woman !!!
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I've seen the same thing in the Central Park Zoo. People insist on getting the animal's attention. Not a good idea.

I spent some time on occasional visits sketching the lions and never had a problem. I stood near them, but quietly, head down, glancing at them then back to the sketch pad.

Some people have to yell at them, throw peanuts or bang on the cage's bars. The keepers usually get them out in time. :)

People underestimate animals. I was at the Bronx Zoo watching a young man teasing a leopard. He was tossing his glove up in the air again and again. The leopard was crouched in the cage watching each time the glove went up. Finally, it went up close to the bars. The leopard popped straight up in the air about 10 feet, flicked out a paw and snagged the glove with a claw. I was surprised; it was an amazing feat. But cats in the wild will leap up and snag a flying bird.

He dropped down and went to work chewing and tearing at the glove. The man was stupid enough to get a keeper and insist he get the glove back. Keeper laughed at him.
 
Girl, 14 fights off wolf in provincial park

SAULT STE. MARIE, ONT. ~ Emily Travaglini-Wright, 14, displays wounds she suffered while fighting off a wolf that attacked her and four other members of her family. The attack occurred Monday at Katherine's Cove each in Lake Superior Provincial Park, south of Wawa. None of the injuries was serious. Park officials shot the wolf which is being tested for rabies. Police do not know what prompted the attack.

The Canadian Press as it appeared in the Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday, Sept. 6/06 - A10
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Pack of wolves stalk B.C. residents walking dogs

PRINCE RUPERT, B.C. - Northwestern B.C. conservation officers are expressing concern after Prince Rupert walkers found themselves being stalked by a pack of wolves last week.
Sherry Hilborn and several friends were walking their dogs on the coastal island city's golf course on Friday when they spotted eight wolves.
When they screamed for help, other golfers arrived with clubs and the wolves fled.
Later that evening, a local lawyer and his golfing partner were chased off the course by the wolves.
Conservation Officer Chris Price said it was the first time he had heard of groups of people being approached by a pack.
"We certainly are aware there's a pack of wolves on Kaien Island between the dump and the golf course, but not that they've approached people as a group," he said. "We need to see if this is a one-time occurrence or if there's a pattern of conditioning."
Moe Hays has been the golf pro at the course since 1972. The occasional wolf is nothing new, he said.
"The lone wolf is not of any significance or anything to fear but when they're in a pack, that's when they're serious," he said.

The Hamilton Spectator, August 2, 2006.
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Family of wolf-attack victim waiting for answers
Last Updated Mar 7 2006 08:02 AM CSTCBC News

The family of a young man who died after an apparent wolf attack in northern Saskatchewan is angry and demanding answers about how it could have happened
Kenton Carnegie of Oshawa, Ont., died at Points North Landing four months ago, while he was on a university work term. The engineering student may be the first person in North America to be killed by wild wolves in their natural habitat. The local coroner, Rosalie Tsannie, has no doubt wolves are to blame for the Nov. 8, 2005, death and she talked about the case at the scene where Carnegie's body was found – near Points North Landing about 750 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon. "Based on the tracks and activity and blood around here this is where the wolves had taken him down," she said. However, it's the government's chief coroner who has the final say on the cause of death and four months after Carnegie was killed, the province isn't saying what happened. "I think that we really need to wait for the coroner's report to understand the circumstances and what the cause of death really is," said Environment Department deputy minister Lily Stonehouse.
The lack of information is infuriating, according to Kenton Carnegie's father, Kim. He thinks his son's death may have been preventable, and is demanding change. CBC News has learned that wolves are drawn to Points North by an unregulated dump. It's an easy meal for wolves, but brings the predator and humans together. Carnegie believes it created a very dangerous situation for his son. "My worst-case scenario is that his life and his death are going to go unnoticed and nothing is going to change, and that would be a waste," he said. So far, Carnegie's death hasn't led to change at the mining supply camp. The landfill is still unregulated. And there are fresh wolf tracks everywhere.
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Here's a few I know about.

I also used to spout the oft repeated "There has never been a single documented................". I don't any more. :(

Doc
 
Esav Benyamin said:
I've seen the same thing in the Central Park Zoo. People insist on getting the animal's attention. Not a good idea.

I spent some time on occasional visits sketching the lions and never had a problem. I stood near them, but quietly, head down, glancing at them then back to the sketch pad.

Some people have to yell at them, throw peanuts or bang on the cage's bars. The keepers usually get them out in time. :)

People underestimate animals. I was at the Bronx Zoo watching a young man teasing a leopard. He was tossing his glove up in the air again and again. The leopard was crouched in the cage watching each time the glove went up. Finally, it went up close to the bars. The leopard popped straight up in the air about 10 feet, flicked out a paw and snagged the glove with a claw. I was surprised; it was an amazing feat. But cats in the wild will leap up and snag a flying bird.

He dropped down and went to work chewing and tearing at the glove. The man was stupid enough to get a keeper and insist he get the glove back. Keeper laughed at him.
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Have you seen the video of the African park rangers trying to release a leopard, and the driver poking it with a stick? Bet he won't do that again.:rolleyes: :cool:
 
Saw that video !! DUH !...In NYC kids went into the zoo after hours . They threw rocks at polarbears , then CLIMBED INTO the cage . The bears took car of the problem. Sadly the bears were then destroyed.
 
mete said:
Saw that video !! DUH !...In NYC kids went into the zoo after hours . They threw rocks at polarbears , then CLIMBED INTO the cage . The bears took car of the problem. Sadly the bears were then destroyed.
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Absolutely not the bears fault. If he was in the wild there is justification for killing them. When they are in our custody and people provoke or decide they want to test the bears in their cage. Sorry, you made a serious breach of the idiot clause in your human club membership paperwork. No reason to kill to kill the bears. There is no reason that I shouldn't be able to see those bears or that they should be sacrificed in that case. None.

Just my $.02,
KR
 
That bear incident happened twice.

Many years ago, one New Years Eve, three drunk party-goers snuck into the Central Park Zoo to tease the bears. I think they dropped something in the cage, so the woman waved her handkerchief to distract the bear and one of the men reached in, The bear pretended to be distracted, then whirled on the man and bit down on his arm. The police came and shot the bear to release the drunk.

More recently, kids climbed in the old polar bear cage and again the police had to come and shoot the bear. I had read about this but hadn't really focused on the timing of it. I was in the area and dropped in and wandered around the zoo. When I got to the bear cages I saw it: the now-empty polar bear's cage was covered with condolence cards from schoolkids.

Darwin wins every time. Bears are no fun to play with. Just stand back and enjoy the sight. A couple of male grizzlies in the Bronx Zoo even killed the female in their enclosure. These are powerful animals, and all humans are not particularly intelligent.
 
Lot more excitement on this topic than I would have thought. Things happen....

Really, when you think of all the disasters that would more likely happen to that kayaker this only catches our interest because of its rarity. If the article said: 'Kayaker finishes 4 d journey into the wilderness only to be killed in a car accident on his way home' - so what. 'Kayaker drowns when the sea decided to get pissed off' - yeah so. 'Kayaker went to take a piss, lost his bearings and wondered off into nowhere not to be heard of again' -snore... 'Kayaker gets bit by a wolf' ---ooooh the wild is so dangerous!

We need to keep shooting animals so they learn to be wary of humans? Sorry - don't buy that one bit. I'm not a gunphobe, but I think a gun should be used for hunting not protection. Besides, dead animals don't learn very well.
 
kgd said:
I'm not a gunphobe, but I think a gun should be used for hunting not protection.
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Tell me that we're not going to have to go down this road again. :rolleyes:

The truth of the matter is, if you think you need a gun to protect yourself from wildlife, then you probably shouldn't go to wherever it is that you're thinking about going. Wild animals are exceptional hunters, can be very aggressive, and have a lot experience gathering food. The average human being, on the other hand, has a lot of experience heading out for a Big Mac. So if a wild animal such as a mountain lion or a grizzly thinks you're lunch meat, chances are you're probably going to be lunch meat.

The good news is, these things happen so rarely in North America that when they do happen we get all excited about it.

But that doesn't mean you shouldn't defend yourself, or carry a gun to defend yourself, even in the woods. Two legged predators are out there as well as four. So if you want to carry a gun for self defense, I say great, the more the merrier. The more guns there are in the world, the fewer predators there will be who want to attack people.

That said, just don't be surprised if that little .38 you brought on your backpacking trip does squat against the rampaging grizzly. Or if you never even get to draw it against that mountain lion that attacks from behind....
 
Bulgron - I agree with your statements. I was probably a little fired up when I wrote my response. I just hate to see the angle of culls being brought up because humans keep encroaching on wilderness and destroying habitat. I love the wilderness but also recognize its risks. That's what makes it kind of sexy. I also accept those risks when I venture out.
 
kgd said:
I just hate to see the angle of culls being brought up because humans keep encroaching on wilderness and destroying habitat. I love the wilderness but also recognize its risks.
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What about people who don't particularly love the wilderness and don't want to face its risks? With natural populations expanding -- and humans are also a natural population -- we will either cull the wild or cull the human.

In some countries, and the US is one of them, the wild is being increasingly expanded and protected, and the predator populations are thriving. I could think of two ways to protect my daughter from predation, and keeping her locked indoors all the time was not my first choice.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
What about people who don't particularly love the wilderness and don't want to face its risks? With natural populations expanding -- and humans are also a natural population -- we will either cull the wild or cull the human.

In some countries, and the US is one of them, the wild is being increasingly expanded and protected, and the predator populations are thriving. I could think of two ways to protect my daughter from predation, and keeping her locked indoors all the time was not my first choice.
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So you like trees but not a functioning ecosystem?
 
So ... what?

How do you get what you said from what I said? Non sequitur.

What I said was, we are reviving and extending formerly trashed habitat and the wildlife populations are growing. Human populations and the areas we inhabit are also growing. There are increasing conflicts.

I do like the idea of functioning ecosystems, hard as it may be to make them self-maintaining in some places. I do not volunteer myself or my family and friends as fodder.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
What I said was, we are reviving and extending formerly trashed habitat and the wildlife populations are growing. Human populations and the areas we inhabit are also growing. There are increasing conflicts.

I do like the idea of functioning ecosystems, hard as it may be to make them self-maintaining in some places. I do not volunteer myself or my family and friends as fodder.
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I agree that conflicts increase with human population increases and encroachment. Where do we draw the line though and at what price do we pay for unlimited human pop growth. In North America its not so much growth in numbers of people but the way we sprawl. Instead of building up, we build out and all demand increasing amounts of personal space with time.

What little tree lots are left in my area the local land use planners eye greedily and sell to the big developers when they can. The draw of multi-million dollar houses next to the woodlots is a tax base they can't resist. Around here, a conservation lean only means that the city is waiting for the next big customer. As the big mansions engulf the little woodlot - they then want their gated community. Pretty soon the lot isn't public access anymore, trees are taken down to 'help with the view'. Deer start eating peoples gardens. Bears went extinct in the area a long time ago - but due to the same issues above. Only for the bear, with its much larger home range, it is much more sensitive to loss of habitat.

Getting back to the story - this guy went into the deep wilderness. He wasn't in a city park. There weren't only wolves, but grizzlies there as well. He knew the risks and even stated that he didn't want this to turn into a man vs. beast media show by failing to comment to the reporters.
 
I was just watching Shark Week and they were talking about Tiger shark attacks. They said that over the past 40 years there have been outbreaks of attacks at various times, and due to public outcry they culled the population of Tiger sharks in the area.

Guess what happened? The attacks continued. Not only that, but removing the apex predator from the environment also let other, smaller sharks' numbers grow. The smaller sharks ate all of the fish in the area and the economy suffered.

Coexistance, anyone?
 
To some extent, areas like yours and the northeast US are a separation point, where extensive habitat is less available to wildife, but in other areas the conflict is significantly less.

I don't know how to say "encroaching" without feeling that we are privileging wildlife. With humans making the decisions, humans as a whole, as societies, this is unrealistic. If we can preserve viable and extensive haitat away from the great urban conglomerations, both humans and wildlife will have their place.

Building up is not always a great answer. The psychology of living in a concrete canyon is oppressive in ways that destroy respect for humanity AND wildlife.
 
kgd said:
What little tree lots are left in my area the local land use planners eye greedily and sell to the big developers when they can. The draw of multi-million dollar houses next to the woodlots is a tax base they can't resist. Around here, a conservation lean only means that the city is waiting for the next big customer. As the big mansions engulf the little woodlot - they then want their gated community. Pretty soon the lot isn't public access anymore, trees are taken down to 'help with the view'. Deer start eating peoples gardens. Bears went extinct in the area a long time ago - but due to the same issues above. Only for the bear, with its much larger home range, it is much more sensitive to loss of habitat.
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Hey kgd, you don't, by chance, live in the Hamilton-Wentworth area, do you?

Doc
 
Doc, I live in Windsor - where those bits of trees are becoming a rare thing.

Esav - can't say I disagree with you. In a perfect world we would constrain our growth before finite resources constrain it for us.
 
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