Your HELP is NEED ASAP!

[Chris Anderson]

I know this may push the political side but at the risk of making someone mad I had to try. This situation may or may not concern you. It is near and dear to me. If you ever considered seeing these wonderful creatures in your lifetime, please click the link, and make you wished known before it is too late!!
Chris in Texas


http://www.akwildlife.org/bears.php

[byarger]

Thanks, Chris.
As probably the biggest bear lover on the planet as well as being a hunter, I will be writing in on this one. Hunting habituated "viewing" bears, even in a cull effort, is wrong and may create an extremely negative situation in that fragile balance of man and bear in the McNeil River habitat. Although we could liken this to culling swelling deer populations in urban areas, bear populations are slow to grow and quick to diminish with the small birth rate. There are other, more suitable bear hunting areas in Alaska from what I've been told. Unless the balance in the McNeil area is way out of whack, nothing good can come of hunting animals that have so far generally associated us with benign activities. McNeil might just be "convenient". As a bonus drawback, the bears may not be so accessible to photographers and be more reluctant.
I will have to read up on this issue more and put in my two cents.
Thanks.

[byarger]

Followup to previous post -
Here is an article from today's Anchorage Daily News regarding the growing opposition to opening the areas near McNeil to hunting.
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/wildl...-8527665c.html

[ttusa]

As one of the VERY lucky and priveleged people to see/photograph the bears this past July, I see hunting in and around the McNeil River Sanctuary as appalling! I don't think it would be of sport to hunt "habituated" Grizzly Bears. Alaska is one huge state, so why is it such a priority to have hunting near McNeil. I think this is a grave mistake. I got to meet Larry Aumiller as well, and he feels bad for fostering trust with the Grizzly Bear population and to then eventually for them to be hunted. The McNeil River Sanctuary promotes tourism to Alaska. Why harm such a wonderful place??

P.S. Please see my web site if you'd like to know more about my experiences at the McNeil River Sanctuary and to see some Grizzly Bear images.

[Jay Henley]

I will try to write something tonight. Looks like there is a deadline of the 15th. I will decided tomorrow if I will send it UPS blue or just send an email. It would be nice to send the signed letter.

[Jim Victory]

I have already sent them a letter and e-mailed them too. This is an absolute tragedy. That is like shooting the bears in Yellowstone that are acustom to people. Are the hunters so lazy that they have to have their prey caged to shoot because that is exactly what this amounts to.

[Jay Henley]

I believe the article said that hunting season will start in July. The new area will be North of the sancutary. The bears will be heading up that way to a den. So I guess the hunters could just sit there and wait for them to walk up one of the trails. It does not seem like much of a challenge. I never really understood the trophy thing. My first job in 75 my boss went to the Yukon and shot a big brown. I had to take it out of the crate. Few weeks later I heard him talking about it. He and the guide waited for it and its two cubs to come down to the river edge. I am sure the cubs did not survive without their mom. It seems ridiculous to just kill something like that to have it mounted.

[Abel]

Since there are two threads on this subject I will post here what I had to post in the other thread:

Easy now...

This thread is already bordering on the political side so please keep the discussion civil.

[Wes]

I didn't read the other thread yet, but I have an honest question.... how is this political?

[bburton]

Originally Posted by xmenporsche

I didn't read the other thread yet, but I have an honest question.... how is this political?

"Hunting," as a topic, like "abortion," like the "war in Iraq," and many other topics tends to polarize people into two separate, highly antagonistic camps with little common ground for discussion.

Thus, it's too easy for feelings to be hurt, for offended people to leave the forum, and for the overall objectives of the TPF to be compromised. Therefore, discussions of this kind are forbidden for the overall good of the Forum. The original poster recognized the latent danger of his post. I believe Abel is AGAIN simply reminding subsequent posters of the negative tendencies of such "political" (highly controversial) discussions.

[Chris Anderson]

Bruce is completely right. If I have offended anyone, that was NOT my intension, and I am sorry. Just trying to make people aware that a wonderful and I do mean WONDERFUL photographic opprtunity may disappear. Oh yea, I am a pro hunting guy also!
C

[babybluetx23]

Thank you for sharing Chris. I love the photo too! Is that yours?

[Jim Victory]

I didn't post to the other but I did to this one. I'm a hunter too but I don't consider shooting animals that have become accustom to human contact hunting. Its like shooting fish in a barrel.

I also feel the same about wildlife photography. I don't feel it is "real" wildlife photography shooting animals that are use to human contact and therefore easy to approach, like the bears in Yellowstone or in a Zoo.

Just my opinion and not a political statement!

[Jay Henley]

Just faxed off my letter. I told some friends and they will probably do the same. One of them was with me on the Alaska cruise recently. His favorite excursion was the Bear watching in Hoonah. He is also a hunter and phtotographer.

[johnastovall]

Bears never become "habituated to humans." If you don't believe this consider the deaths of Timothy Treadwell and Amie Huguenard.

If you want to help the bears teach them to fear man and his works. Remember Timothy Treadwell and Amie Huguenard were killed in Katmai.

Read this report and remember the bears are not there for photo ops and we look a lot like lunch.