Curmudgeon

Help me out. What is a "tent cat"?

"Pressure" and "harvesting" are not neutral. They are euphemisms for "killing". Killing is what we are talking about. Killing is what we do. "Killing" has its own negative bias which is why DEC refers to deer kills as "harvests". It is more palatable to the general public. "Persecuted" is less negative that "killed" because you can "persecute" something without "killing" it. Feel free to insert "killed" for "persecuted" wherever you wish in my previous posts both for wolves and humans.

The Too Many Yotes discussion got me thinking about attitudes. Please tell me what bird and mammal species you consider vermin. I promise not to argue with anyone. I just want a sense of what you all think.

4 Seasons - You seem to have missed the point about mesopredators.

VJP - This is assigned reading http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopredator_release_hypothesis Argue with it if you want but you should at least understand it before doing so.

Please note I also labeled wolves killing coyotes "persecution". You only question my motives regarding hunters. Why not wolves? Am I guilty of "Orwellian double speak" for them too? They are not native yet they are filling the niche of wolves that used to be here. As far as calling them "vermin...that add nothing of value to the land", it is time for some ecological literacy. This is not the 19th century.

No, it's an anti-hunting conspiracy.

Thunnus - All the science says that coyotes evolved to increase reproduction when they are persecuted. This was in response to wolves preying on them. In our world, they react exactly the same way to being hunted. There are always young animals looking for new territories. Older animals - and their family group - establish larger territories and keep the adolescents from moving in and breeding. Killing the older animals opens and fractures territories. The result is, more breeding and no reduction in population. For a century coyotes have been persecuted out west. What has been the result? Read 4 Seasons posts going way back. His relentless persecution has had no positive result. He blames it on Fort Drum, however, it would be no different elsewhere. He will always have too many coyotes. Too many being subjective. Outside the forest preserve, killing coyotes does not help deer. The recent coyote hunting article in the Outdoor News should have been categorized as an opinion piece in making such a claim. Anyone who wants to a quick internet search can find a lot of scientific information on the subject.

I have about 6 acres I am keeping open for the eventual release of the genetically modified American Chestnut. The resistant tree was developed here in NY at SUNY ESF. It holds great potential for efforts to restore a species that produces large quantities of mast annually. The loss of this formerly dominant species resulted in a huge loss of food energy. Other mast trees do not produce good crops annually. I have been growing some for years. They die back from blight but I get nuts each year from the sprouts IF I can beat the squirrels to the nuts. They are the sweetest chestnut I have ever eaten, not big though. This size is just right for wildlife. My current trees will be used as a pollen source for the day when I can get a transgenic tree. While I generally oppose genetic engineering, this is about the best use I can imagine for the technology. The number of genes that were changed in the transgenic tree is only a handful, much fewer than the back crossed hybrids. Once the transgenic trees are approved by the feds, they will be made available first to members of the American Chestnut Foundation (large donors first). It may be 5 years before I can get my hands on one, and another 7 years until it produces seed. At that point I plan to grow as many as possible as a seed source for my area, seeds to be spread by bluejays. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141106082032.htm http://www.acf.org/mission_history.php I found an earlier message asking about hazelnuts. A really good source is http://www.badgersett.com/. They have a number of hybrids developed for everything from wildlife to human consumption. Be careful to protect the trees. Deer browse them heavily.

Actually, I was pleased the third-party site was used. The Mute Swan lovers also used it. Equal opportunity!

The first rule of holes: When you find yourself in one, stop digging.

Having read many extreme comments by our most prevalent "trolls", I've a different take on this. Since these conversations are visible to anyone who chooses to read them - including anti-gun and anti-hunting advocates - I have found myself wondering if the worst of the posts are intended to make hunters look bad in general. It's been years since I read Faces of the Enemy by Sam Keene. It is worth your time. You couldn't do a better job of portraying hunters in a bad light than a small minority of our most vocal, anonymous and active posters do.

Maybe if they shot each other instead of the horses............................

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/01/150123081801.htm?utm_source=feedburner Summary: In literature, crows and ravens are a bad omen and are associated with witches. Most people believe they steal, eat other birds' eggs and reduce the populations of other birds. But a new study, which has brought together over 326 interactions between corvids and their prey, demonstrates that their notoriety is not entirely merited. The study analyzed the impact of six species of corvid on a total of 67 species of bird susceptible to being their prey, among which are game birds and passerine birds.

I ask every Catholic I know the same question.

Isn't this whole thing off topic for a hunting forum?

You clearly don't fit into my worldview. What do you think of the first Jesuit Pope?

No lack of deer here. If there weren't other things going on, I would consider getting nuisance permits this winter. As it is, I'll just eat the losses.

Papist - A couple of observations/questions: First, I think you give Black Bellamy too much credit. It appears to me to have been a quick attempt to throw fuel on this fire. It failed. Second, how do you reconcile the Papist above - the one counting popularity votes - with the Papist that is so obviously well schooled?

I've been seeing more and larger flocks of turkeys this fall and winter. Reports from agencies are that turkey numbers are down long-term but it seems reproduction last summer was very good in my area. There are more than I have seen in 3 or 4 years. Since a large number of these birds are young, and lack energy reserves, they are vulnerable. However, there is still a lot of standing corn in my area, with some limited harvesting still going on in early January. Are others seeing good numbers of turkey? There is a trend for invasive species to increase in population geometrically for a period of time before peaking, dropping and eventually leveling off. Since turkey were absent from New York for a century, I wonder if they are following the same pattern. They are in effect a new species since the 70s.

Actually, they do. Pittman-Robertson money can be used for any mammal or bird species. It can pay for game management or Bicknell's Thrush research.

What do you all expect to accomplish by continuing this exchange?

A "racialized Sufi" is oxymoronic like a "militant Quaker", or "Amish suicide bomber".

I did a google search. Yes, the place exists but they are Sufis. Who ever heard of a radicalized Sufi. The radicals kill them just like they would you or me. Here's the wikipedia link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamberg,_New_York

If it was real, you would think some of the local news media would be on it.