Codger_64
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- Joined
- Oct 8, 2004
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We have a lot of discussions here on large predators As you know, they range from "What small slip joint would be best to kill and skin a grizz" to "we don't have those around here". A lot of discussion centers around what to do if... , and what happened to these people...
Well, most of us have a fair idea of what large predators (and ungulates which can be aggressive) inhabit the areas we like to roam. We develop a "comfort zone" of sorts regarding our knowledge of critters we will likely encounter and how to avoid them or to deal with them when they do cross our paths.
Most of these animals are somewhat territorial and their ranges are fairly well known. But in their territorial habits, some have quite wide ranges, and some drive off their young at a certain age. Those offspring can travel quite a distance seeking their own territory. And complicating the natural tendency to spread out as resources reach carrying capacity, we have wildlife resources department projects to reestablish populations of predators and ungulates where they have been extirpated, often for a century or more.
Naturally, when agencies do make reintroductions, they usually try to keep it quiet so as to protect the few animals released. Or they add protected status to prevent people from harvesting them. Most game laws work this way, even without a special listing. Some years ago, I had a discussion with a wildlife officer about a mountain lion sighting. "There are no mountain lions (cougar, puma, painter, panther) in this state." "So if I come across one, I can kill it since it does not exist?" "No. The only animals that can be killed are those for which there are open, declared seasons." Most often sightings on non-indigenous animals are passed off as mistaken identity or released/escaped pets.
Quite a few years back I was shocked when a black bear went on a rampage through my camp on the Buffalo River in Arkansas. Arkansas was known in it's early years as "The Bear State". Hides and bear oil were a big source of revenue for market hunters. But they were extirpated (wiped out) by 1927. I was unaware that AG&F had recently reintroduced them from stocks obtained in Minnesota and Canada. Naturally, I was quite unprepared for "bear country" protocol. My worst problems there to date were raccoons and beavers (who were mostly nocturnal and would chew or drag off boots, paddles, etc.).
Coyotes were another predator I was not used to dealing with. They began their own reintroduction spreading throughout Arkansas from the South West and West. This was caused chiefly by the removal of the native red wolf populations.
At about the same time bears were being stocked, elk were reintroduced to the watershed (extirpated c. 1847). That program has been quite successful and limited permit hunts are now being held to keep the herds in check. There are some circumstances where elk can be dangerous to people caught unaware of their presence, or foolish enough to approach them as if they were petting zoo animals. I would be surprised if red wolves, reduced by the 1940's and nearly extirpated by the early 1970's, did not someday make a reappearance. Captive breeding programs have already resulted in reintroduction in several states.
The incident that prompted this post is the recent admission by AG&FC (Arkansas Game & Fish Commission) that mountain lions are indeed once again present in Arkansas. This admission comes on the heels of many years of denial that they were there. People who claimed to have seen them were dismissed. One famous (infamous?) incident involved a woman who was apparently killed by one, and yet the denials persisted. This time, one was caught clearly on a trail camera by a credible witness.
Now, don't misunderstand. I am not saying that all of these lions, bears, yotes, wolves, elk etc. are out to get me (you), but traveling in their habitat does take some forethought to reduce the chances of unpleasant run-ins. And just because you do not think they are there (or your game and wildlife officers say they are not) does not mean that they aren't.
I am now looking into tactics for defense from the rogue red eyed walrus when I canoe in Arkansas!
Well, most of us have a fair idea of what large predators (and ungulates which can be aggressive) inhabit the areas we like to roam. We develop a "comfort zone" of sorts regarding our knowledge of critters we will likely encounter and how to avoid them or to deal with them when they do cross our paths.
Most of these animals are somewhat territorial and their ranges are fairly well known. But in their territorial habits, some have quite wide ranges, and some drive off their young at a certain age. Those offspring can travel quite a distance seeking their own territory. And complicating the natural tendency to spread out as resources reach carrying capacity, we have wildlife resources department projects to reestablish populations of predators and ungulates where they have been extirpated, often for a century or more.
Naturally, when agencies do make reintroductions, they usually try to keep it quiet so as to protect the few animals released. Or they add protected status to prevent people from harvesting them. Most game laws work this way, even without a special listing. Some years ago, I had a discussion with a wildlife officer about a mountain lion sighting. "There are no mountain lions (cougar, puma, painter, panther) in this state." "So if I come across one, I can kill it since it does not exist?" "No. The only animals that can be killed are those for which there are open, declared seasons." Most often sightings on non-indigenous animals are passed off as mistaken identity or released/escaped pets.
Quite a few years back I was shocked when a black bear went on a rampage through my camp on the Buffalo River in Arkansas. Arkansas was known in it's early years as "The Bear State". Hides and bear oil were a big source of revenue for market hunters. But they were extirpated (wiped out) by 1927. I was unaware that AG&F had recently reintroduced them from stocks obtained in Minnesota and Canada. Naturally, I was quite unprepared for "bear country" protocol. My worst problems there to date were raccoons and beavers (who were mostly nocturnal and would chew or drag off boots, paddles, etc.).
Coyotes were another predator I was not used to dealing with. They began their own reintroduction spreading throughout Arkansas from the South West and West. This was caused chiefly by the removal of the native red wolf populations.
At about the same time bears were being stocked, elk were reintroduced to the watershed (extirpated c. 1847). That program has been quite successful and limited permit hunts are now being held to keep the herds in check. There are some circumstances where elk can be dangerous to people caught unaware of their presence, or foolish enough to approach them as if they were petting zoo animals. I would be surprised if red wolves, reduced by the 1940's and nearly extirpated by the early 1970's, did not someday make a reappearance. Captive breeding programs have already resulted in reintroduction in several states.
The incident that prompted this post is the recent admission by AG&FC (Arkansas Game & Fish Commission) that mountain lions are indeed once again present in Arkansas. This admission comes on the heels of many years of denial that they were there. People who claimed to have seen them were dismissed. One famous (infamous?) incident involved a woman who was apparently killed by one, and yet the denials persisted. This time, one was caught clearly on a trail camera by a credible witness.
Now, don't misunderstand. I am not saying that all of these lions, bears, yotes, wolves, elk etc. are out to get me (you), but traveling in their habitat does take some forethought to reduce the chances of unpleasant run-ins. And just because you do not think they are there (or your game and wildlife officers say they are not) does not mean that they aren't.
I am now looking into tactics for defense from the rogue red eyed walrus when I canoe in Arkansas!
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I worry more about disease from mosquitos, ticks and being trampled by a Black Angus bull crossing a field... now those I HAVE seen happen(well I have seen the bulls TRY). Always good to be aware of your surrounding but a little danger is why they call it getting "Out to the Wilds". The predators are part of that/this world.
