The Wolf Preservation Blog

Alaska Voices / Anchorage Daily News / April 6, 2010

Writer Rudy Wittshirk lives in Willow AK and he gives his thoughts on Moose decline.

“THE RUMBLE OF TRAFFIC, GUNSHOTS, THEN SILENCE –
Of course weather, changing climate, wild predators, poaching and domestic dogs were factors in wildlife declines. However, the systematic over-hunting of Alaska’s wildlife—facilitated by inadequate regulation of motorized access to Alaska’s wildlands, and “legalized“ by liberal interpretations of the State Constitution—resulted in much of the current scarcity of wild animals.

Moose were hunted out by Humans in the 1980s and 1990s. Sure, there were harsh Winters—and wolves and bears took their share of prey animals. But the motorized Human hunting never stopped—even after the game herds had obviously declined. Hunting couldn’t stop because it was a political juggernaut responding to the recreational needs of a growing pipeline-era population. “I came up here to hunt,” was the maxim of many of these newcomers.

The Anchorage Daily News Outdoors writers recommended that these new moose hunters go to the Hatcher Pass area for a good chance of killing an ungulate. And they came. And they killed. In the late 80s and early 90s severe Winters caused many moose to starve. But still the hunting went on.”

(to read further on Mr. Whittshirk’s column, please visit: http://www.wolfsongnews.org/news/Alaska_current_events_3338.html)