There are a few animals that seem to have taken the brunt of much human loathing. These animals have been hunted, poisoned, trapped, killed indiscriminately, and brought to the brink of extinction. Coyotes, wolves, and snakes are bitterly hated by many farmers and ranchers. The ranchers see as though with blinders that narrow their sight. They act without conscience or remorse. They care only about their own bottom line, refusing to look for a middle ground in which they might be able to coexist.
Wolves and coyotes live in similar habitats and hunt similar game; but wolves, being carnivores, eat mostly deer and elk, and occasionally bison and moose. Coyotes are omnivores and have a varied diet of rabbits, birds, snakes, lizards, mice, cactus fruits, and sometimes insects. They help to regulate other species like fox, raccoons, and skunks. Both are considered to be keystone species. Coyotes are smaller than wolves and wolves will eat coyotes given the opportunity. Wolves were killed by farmers and ranchers without restraint in the early 1900’s. They were a keystone species in Yellowstone, and when they were gone coyotes moved in and overpopulated the area, since there were no more wolves to keep them in check. All of the other species down the food chain began to be affected, throwing off the balance of the entire ecosystem. It seems that throughout the past 50 years, wolves have been relisted and delisted from the endangered species list in states like Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho; but it appears that the ranchers are winning again, at least in Idaho. When Trump was holding office, he removed the grey wolf from the endangered species protection. Yesterday an agreement was reached allowing up to 90% of Idaho’s wolf population to be killed. Contracted hunters are allowed to use any means necessary to eradicate the wolves – snowmobiles, helicopters, traps. They can even kill them at night when they are sleeping. A group of high school students in Boise had been studying a particular group of wolves since 2003. Recently it was discovered that federal agents had gone into the mother wolf’s den and killed eight pups!
Imagine the uproar that would explode should human babies be slaughtered in the night. Will we ever learn that other species have just as much right to be here as we do? Will we ever learn that every living thing has a purpose for being here? Will we ever learn to value life itself as much as we value our money? We perceive these animals as our enemies. Our perception is clearly distorted.
