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- From: David J Knowles <dknowles@dowco.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: [AT] Zanzibar's sterilised tsetse flies
- Message-ID: <3.0.3.16.19971223001122.1f97111e@dowco.com>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
-
- >From The BBC Website - Sunday, December 21, 1997 Published at 17:05 GMT
-
- Despatches
-
- Jon Devitt
- Vienna
-
- The International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna is looking to expand one
- of its less publicised activities - pest control. Nuclear technology may
- seem a rather radical method of fighting insects but it's been used for
- almost the last fifty years. The latest experiment -- to
- eradicate the tsetse fly from the island of Zanzibar -- has been declared a
- success and the IAEA believes the technique should be extended to other
- parts of the world. Jon Devitt reports from Vienna:
-
- It conjures up images of using a nuclear warhead to kill a fly, but the
- technique is much more subtle. It was developed in the 1950s in the United
- States and involves using low doses of gamma radiation to sterilise
- insects, which are then released en masse into the wild.
-
- A pilot project has been running for the last three years in Tanzania. The
- country now has the largest tsetse factory, producing 70,000 sterile males
- per week.
-
- The project has concentrated on the island of Zanzibar, which has been
- flooded with the sterile insects, normally dropped over the island from an
- aircraft. The IAEA has declared the project a success and has already
- embarked on a more ambitious ten-year programme in the southern Rift Valley
- of Ethiopia.
-
- Environmentalists have criticised the method for upsetting the natural
- balance.The Atomic Energy Agency say it is in fact environmentally friendly
- because it removes the need for insecticides.
-
- Copyright BBC
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 00:23:41
- From: David J Knowles <dknowles@dowco.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: [CA] Fire Dept rescues cat (and human)
- Message-ID: <3.0.3.16.19971223002341.0a7f0184@dowco.com>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
-
- Fire Dept rescues cat (and human)
- By David J Knowles
-
- VANCOUVER, B.C. - Normally, fire departments don't come out to rescue cats
- up a tree.
-
- But tonight, Lower Mainland fire crews were dispatched after a woman
- climbed up after a neighbour's cat - and got stuck herself.
-
- Martie Vanhuesen noticed her eight-month-old kitten was missing two days
- ago. Tonight, neighbour Briggita McMillan volunteered to climb up the pine
- tree in her front yard, despite near-freezing temperatures and wet snow.
-
- McMillan reached the cat, called Barbie, but she was caught in the branches
- by her long fur.
-
- Suddenly, it dawned on McMillan that her fingers had become numb, and she
- could neither rescue the cat nor extracate herself from the tree.
-
- Another neighbour dialled 911, and firefighters dispatched to the scene
- helped McMillan out of the tree. They then rescued Barbie, and returned her
- to a grateful Vanhuesen.
-
-
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 12:15:09 +0000
- From: Katy Andrews <k.andrews@icrf.icnet.uk>
- To: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US
- Cc: ar-news@Envirolink.org
- Subject: Re: SECOND WOLF CONFERENCE
- Message-ID: <349FAB4B.5DF0B292@icrf.icnet.uk>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
- Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
-
- There is a news article about this on page 10 of this week's New
- Scientist - unfortunately they don't have the ful thing on their
- website.
- Katy.
-
-
- SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US wrote:
- >
- > The North American Wolf Association (Houston, Texas) and the Wolf Recovery
- > Foundation (Boise, Idaho) will be holding a second WOLF ACTIVIST CONFERENCE
- > (electronically) on Monday evening, December 22nd, to organize a massive
- > global letter writing/petition campaign.
- >
- > NOTE: If you have contacts in other countries who can help by translating
- > these letters and petitions into their native language, please invite them
- > to attend.
- >
- > NOTE: If you run a message board, BBS, news group, or any other forum that
- > would be appropriate, PLEASE pass this along!
- >
- > WE NEED EVERYONE'S HELP ON THIS, IF WE ARE TO SAVE THOSE WOLVES
- >
- > The Conference will begin PROMPTLY at:
- >
- > 6:00pm PST
- > 7:00pm MST
- > 8:00pm CST
- > 9:00pm EST
- >
- > at the following address:
- >
- > http://www.nawa.org/chatnawa.htnl
- >
- > ****************************
- >
- > For those of you unfamiliar with the issue:
- >
- > On Friday, December 12, 1997, U.S. District Judge William Downes, announced
- > his decision on a combination of lawsuits brought three years ago by the
- > American Farm Bureau, a ranching couple from Wyoming and the Earth Justice
- > Defense Fund representing the National Audubon Society. To our complete shock,
- > Judge Downes ruled that the wolf recovery program is illegal and ordered the
- > removal of Canadian wolves reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park and
- > central Idaho. He did, however, stay his order pending appeal by the
- > Interior Department.
- >
- > The Farm Bureau is expected to push hard for an immediate rejection of the
- > appeal. If they area awarded this rejection, Ed Bangs, Rocky Mountain Wolf
- > Project Leader of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, has announced the Service
- > may be forced to kill the reintroduced wolves - and their pups - currently
- > over 150 wolves. If this tragedy is allowed to occur, only 1 - 3 known wolves
- > would be protected in Idaho and none in Yellowstone.
- >
- > * The Judge's decision was based on legal technicalities that do not affect
- > the real safety or protection of the wolves. Montana wolves, who have full
- > legal protection under the ESA, have been legally killed at a higher rate
- > than in the Idaho experimental area.
- >
- > * Biologically, the wolf reintroduction program has been extremely successful.
- > There are currently 12 to 14 pairs of wolves in Idaho going into January
- > breeding season. Six of these pair produced six litters (30 - 32 pups) in
- > 1997. In Yellowstone, 9 packs produced 64 pups in 1997. Of this total,
- > only 1 - 3 are likely naturally occurring wolves, the other 150 plus wolves
- > are in danger of being killed.
- >
- > * As the groups that support wolf recovery were announcing that they would
- > appeal Judge Downes decision, Larry Bourret, Executive Vice President of
- > the Wyoming Farm Bureau said the Farm Bureau would be in the U.S. Court
- > of Appeals defending it.
- >
- > In an effort to half this disaster, we are calling for the American public
- > to rally to this cause. If you are a wolf-supporter and wish to see the
- > reintroduced wolves in central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park stay
- > with their families, safe and unharmed, there are some facts that you
- > should be made aware of:
- >
- > The American Farm Bureau, one of the largest insurance companies in this
- > hemisphere, has stated that it has approximately 5 million members. What
- > you might not know is that you may be one of them.
- >
- > The American Farm Bureau represents the interests of farmers and ranchers.
- > They are an umbrella of sorts for thousands upon thousands of smaller
- > insurance companies who insure cars, homes, RVs, motorcycles, annuities,
- > life insurance, homeowners policies, etc. If it can be insured, the
- > American Farm Bureau probably has their fingers in it.
- >
- > WHAT YOU CAN DO:
- >
- > On behalf of the wolves whose lives are at stake, the Wolf Recovery
- > Foundation in Boise, Idaho, partnered with the North American Wolf
- > Association, are issuing a plea, urging you to think long and hard about
- > who you spend your money with.
- >
- > 1) If your insurance policy (any policy) bears the words: Farm Bureau,
- > Farm Family and Rural Mutual Insurance Company anywhere on the policy,
- > there is a chance that YOUR money is being used to support the effort
- > to see the Idaho and Yellowstone wolves killed. There are plenty of
- > alternative insurance companies out there who are competitive and would
- > be more than happy to do business with you.
- >
- > If you are unsure who underwrites your policy - call your agent and ask.
- >
- > It is our intent to send a powerful message to these people.
- > PLEASE HELP US!!!!
- >
- > These wolves have been through hell and back, and by the grace of God, they
- > survived. To see them destroyed now would be a horror we would have to live
- > with for the rest of our lives.
- >
- > 2) PLEASE send whatever you can afford to the Wolf Recovery Foundation,
- > P.O. Box 44236, Boise, ID 83711-0236 USA - we NEED your support to see this
- > thing through.
- >
- > 3) We will provide a list of CONGRESS men and women to write concerning
- > this issue at the conference.
- >
- > MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT THIS - CANADA WILL ABSOLUTELY NOT TAKE
- THESE ANIMALS
- > BACK. IF WE DO NOT ACT - THESE WOLVES WILL BE SHOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- >
- > DO NOT WASTE A MOMENT OF TIME WRITING TO THE 10TH DISTRICT COURT
- PANEL OF
- > JUDGES OR THE GOVERNORS, SENATORS, OR STATE REPRESENTATIVES OF
- IDAHO,
- > WYOMING, OR MONTANA - THE ONLY WAY TO OVERTURN THIS RULING IS
- THROUGH
- > CONGRESS. CONGRESS IS THE ONLY GOVERNING BODY THAT HAS THE
- AUTHORITY TO
- > OVERRIDE THIS DECISION. IT IS, HOWEVER, A GOOD IDEA TO cc THE OTHER
- OFFICIALS.
- >
- > Please plan on attending and bring us your very best ideas!!!
- >
- > For the Wolves,
- >
- > Rae Henderson Ott, Executive Director
- > North American Wolf Association
- > 23214 Tree Bright Lane
- > Houston, TX 77373
- > (281) 821-4884
- > nawa@nawa.org
- > http://www.nawa.org
- >
- > Suzanne Laverty, Director
- > The Wolf Recovery Foundation
- > P.O. Box 44236
- > Boise, ID 83711-0236
- > (208) 321-0755
- > wrfwolf@aol.com
-
- --
- ---------------------------------------
- Katy Andrews
- Year 2000 Project Administrator
- Room 203, 61LIF, ICRF London WC2A 3PX.
- Tel: 0171 269 3228
- e-mail: k.andrews@icrf.icnet.uk
- ---------------------------------------
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 97 06:49:28 UTC
- From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US
- To: ar-news@Envirolink.org
- Subject: Bear Cub Saved from Cooking Pot
- Message-ID: <199712231249.HAA12938@envirolink.org>
-
- Bangkok, Thailand (AP) - A baby bear who was destined for the cooking pot
- was saved - thanks to the generosity of Thai masseuses.
-
- The manager and employees of Bangkok's Pavilion Massage Parlor took pity
- on the beast when a man came in to ask for directions to a Korean
- restaurant, where he was going to sell the bear, The Nation newspaper
- reported.
-
- Koreans are believed to be the world's biggest consumers of bear paws
- and other organs, which they believe promote vitality and health.
-
- The bear's owner said he could no longer afford to feed the 14-month-old
- animal.
-
- "I decide to buy the bear after looking into its eyes," the newspaper
- quoted manager Somchai Rojjanaburapha as saying.
-
- Some 40 masseuses also pitched in, paying half the $222 cost.
-
- The bear was sent to the Khao Khieow Open Zoo, 50 miles southeast of
- Bangkok.
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 97 08:02:01 UTC
- From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US
- To: ar-news@Envirolink.org
- Subject: Vegetarian Times
- Message-ID: <199712231357.IAA16441@envirolink.org>
-
- The new Vegetarian Times Magazine has an article about Gary Francione in it.
-
- -- Sherrill
- Date: Wed, 24 Dec 1997 00:02:34 +0000
- From: jwed <jwed@hkstar.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: (CN) Shanghai Zoo
- Message-ID: <3.0.5.32.19971224000234.0079e100@pop.hkstar.com>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
-
- China Daily - 23rd December 1997
-
- More zoo animals
-
- SHANGHAI -- Nearly 4,000 new animals have joined Shanghai Zoo this year,
- either through birth or introduction from abroad. Shanghai Zoo now has over
- 14,000 animals from 596 species, 15 more than a year before. In 1997, 35
- animal and 38 bird species produced young, 41 of which are rare animals
- enjoying State protection. Zoo attendants said this is the first time that
- white-hipped entellus monkeys have produced offspring in the zoo.
-
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 12:09:02 -0500
- From: Mesia Quartano <primates@usa.net>
- To: "ar-news@envirolink.org" <ar-news@envirolink.org>
- Subject: (US) "Mad mice" offer new test for mad cow disease
- Message-ID: <349FF02D.4E05F4C4@usa.net>
- MIME-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
- Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
-
- 06:53 PM ET 12/22/97
- By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent
-
- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. scientists said Monday they had developed a
- test for mad cow disease that offers a way to check whether meat or
- other products may carry the risk of infection.
-
- Genetically engineered mice that are especially sensitive to the disease
- can be used to check for contamination and perhaps to see if mad cow
- disease is more widespread than suspected.
-
- Dr. Stanley Prusiner, Dr. Fred Cohen and colleagues at the University of
- California San Francisco said their test could ''prove critical in
- minimizing future human exposure.''
-
- "We've engineered them to have a bovine gene. In that way they now
- become susceptible to mad cow disease,'' Cohen said in a telephone
- interview.
-
- The mice have ground-up material injected into their brains, and are
- then watched for symptoms.
-
- Mad cow disease, known scientifically as bovine spongiform
- encephalopathy (BSE), swept through British cattle herds in the 1980s.
- British government officials said it posed no risk to people -- until a
- few started dying of an odd strain of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD),
- the human equivalent.
-
- Tests indicate strongly that this variant of CJD, which has affected
- more than 20 people so far, came from eating infected beef. British
- officials have imposed progressively stronger measures to try to protect
- meat-eaters from risk, including bans
- on uses of certain organs and of beef on the bone.
-
- Cohen said his team's test could be used to check to see how much of a
- risk certain cattle parts poses and said it was superior to current
- testing methods. He hoped one of its first uses would be to see whether
- blood can carry the infection -- a hotly debated point.
-
- The new mice develop BSE in about 200 days -- much more quickly than
- normal. In cows, BSE takes years to develop and normal CJD takes decades
- to show up in humans.
-
- This was still too slow to test individual cuts of beef, Cohen said.
- ``I'm very fond of aged beef but this would take 100 days or so and we
- don't like our beef that old,'' he said.
-
- "But if your goal was to figure out the infectivity of various parts of
- a cow, you could use this assay,'' Cohen added.
-
- "You could then rationally decide which parts of the cow are more
- concerning, how long you should let cows live before making them part of
- the food chain. We know the incidence of mad cow disease goes up with
- the age of the cattle.''
-
- He added: "Then you can make reasoned public decisions.''
-
- Cohen said he did not know yet whether the new mice would make more beef
- products available, or fewer.
-
- It could also be used to show whether American cattle really were free
- of BSE. ``We could cull one out of every 100 cattle and say: 'Look these
- are safe,''' he said.
-
- Prusiner, who won this year's Nobel Prize for Medicine for his discovery
- of the prion proteins that cause mad cow and related diseases, and his
- colleagues published their findings in the Proceedings of the National
- Academy of Sciences.
-
- The only foolproof way to test for BSE is to wait until a cow develops
- symptoms, kill it and test its brain.
-
- Mice can be injected with brain or other potentially infected material,
- but normal mice take a year to develop BSE and most are highly resistant
- to getting it at all, due to the
- so-called species barrier.
-
- (REUTERS)
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 10:44:39 -0800
- From: "Bob Schlesinger" <bob@arkonline.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: Nature Conservancy Position on Feral Pig Snaring
- Message-ID: <199712231044390350.00222537@pcez.com>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
- Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
-
- The following was received from the Nature Conservancy in response to my inquiry critical of
- their continued use of wire snares on feral pigs in Hawaii:
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- ------------------------
-
- THE CHALLENGE TO SAVE HAWAII'S RAIN FORESTS
-
- Feral Animals And Their Impact On Native Species
-
- 1. Hawaii's rain forests are among the most endangered ecosystems in the
- world. Half of these unique forests have already been lost, and the remainder
- is in the grip of an environmental crisis. Thousands of native Hawaiian
- species_90% of which have no other home on the planet_face extinction if these
- last rain forests are lost. These same forests are the primary sources of
- fresh water for every population center in the state. Their health is vital
- to the people of Hawaii.
-
- Over 10,000 unique plant and animal species rely on Hawaii's embattled rain
- forests and other native habitats for survival_they have no other home on
- earth. With 40% of the nation's endangered birds and 35% of the nation's
- endangered plants, Hawaii is a global priority in the struggle to save the
- planet's biological treasures from extinction. Half of our 140 known native
- bird species have already been lost forever; of the 70 surviving species, 30
- are endangered and 12 are down to fewer than 100 surviving individuals each.
-
- Hawaii's native forests are essential to the environmental and economic
- well-being of Hawaii's people. Every population center in the islands relies
- on nearby native forests for its fresh water, either through surface water
- diversions or through groundwater sources that depend on forest lands for
- their replenishment. Destruction of these forests through loss of key species
- and through massive erosion of precious topsoil has been a concern of Hawaii's
- people for much of this century. Erosion of forest soils has also buried and
- killed large areas of coral reef, reducing the productivity of Hawaii's
- fisheries.
-
- 2. Pigs, goats, and other foreign hoofed animals introduced to the islands by
- humans are the greatest threat to these forests -- preying upon native birds
- and plants, destroying our protective watershed cover, and spreading diseases
- that also threaten human health.
-
- Until the arrival of humans in Hawaii just 1500 years ago, Hawaii had no land
- mammals other than a small species of bat. The pigs and other animals
- destroying Hawaii's forest today are primarily European and Asian livestock
- (introduced since 1778) which have gone wild (feral) in a land where they have
- no natural enemies and where the native species are defenseless against them.
- The smaller Polynesian pig brought here by the first Hawaiians is gone,
- crowded out by these later introductions.
-
- Feral animals have been a major cause of forest destruction, and are now the
- greatest threat to the few remaining strongholds of pristine forest. Where
- uncontrolled, feral pigs and goats destroy lush forest vegetation and expose
- fragile soils causing rapid erosion, damaging our watersheds and silting over
- our reefs. Just a few of these animals can do great damage in a short time.
- Wild pigs, weighing as much as 300 pounds, eat the eggs and nestlings of
- native ground-nesting birds such as seabirds and Hawaiian geese (nene).
-
- They spread aggressive weed seeds in their droppings and pollute our water
- supply with feces, eroded silt, and foreign diseases such as leptospirosis,
- the number of cases of which has tripled between 1995 and 1996 and caused two
- deaths in Hawaii in 1989.
-
- 3. Just a few pigs or goats can cause serious damage in our fragile forests.
- With adequate forage, pigs and goats can double their numbers in just four
- months. To be effective, control programs must aim at removing at least 70%
- of the feral animals in an area within one year; anything less can be replaced
- by reproduction in just one year.
-
- The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, the National Park
- Service, The Nature Conservancy, and others have worked for many years
- developing effective control programs to reduce the devastating effects of
- pigs and other alien species invading our forests. The National Park Service,
- especially, has conducted major research in Hawaii on hunting, trapping,
- baiting, snaring and other feral animal control methods. We have collaborated
- with experts elsewhere in the U.S. and abroad, taking advantage of this
- collective knowledge to develop our current program. We have learned that,
- both for the protection of the forest and to minimize the number of feral
- animals that must be killed, control programs must be very aggressive. An
- effective control program must use a variety of methods to reduce the feral
- animal population in an area to very low levels as quickly as possible, and
- keep it low.
-
- It has been ascertained, through years of research and experience, that the
- most effective feral animal control program available at this time combines
- fencing, hunting, live-trapping and snaring.
-
- Wherever the terrain permits, fences are constructed to restrict animal
- movements and prevent re-invasion from outside. Because of Hawaii's
- extraordinarily rugged terrain, however, fencing is not always feasible. And
- even with fences, some feral animals will enter through breaks caused by
- fallen trees or heavy storms.
-
- Hunting is the primary control method used on our Hawaii preserves. Hunting
- can be effective in accessible areas which can be hunted thoroughly and often
- (i.e., within 2 hours' hike from a road), but it can be impractical and
- dangerous in more remote areas. Hunting typically requires the use of trained
- dogs to locate pigs in dense vegetation; the safety of both dogs and hunters
- becomes a major concern in remote, rugged locations. Also, as pig or goat
- numbers reach lower levels and as surviving animals become wary of hunters and
- dogs, hunting becomes less effective. A population large enough to do
- significant damage and to reproduce quickly can continue to elude hunters,
- even within some fenced areas.
-
- Live-trapping with baited cages or corrals can capture some of the pigs in an
- area, but in most areas, traps are not only too cumbersome to deploy widely,
- they also cannot reduce the population enough to prevent continued
- reproduction. This is in part because in Hawaii's lush forests where the food
- supply is plentiful, some pigs simply aren't attracted to even the most
- effective trap baits.
-
- 4. Pigs and goats are now invading the most remote native forests, where many
- of our rarest species survive. In these critical areas, federal, state, and
- private land managers (including The Nature Conservancy) use a combination of
- fencing, hunting, live-trapping, and snaring to protect the forest. Based on
- years of research and experience, land managers agree that snaring is an
- essential part of the forest protection program.
-
- Snaring has been added to control programs only where no other method will
- protect the forest. These remote sites, mostly high-elevation rain forests,
- have become the last bastions for many native species, especially our
- endangered forest birds. In these areas, a few pigs or goats can do great
- damage in a short time, and are extremely difficult to capture with traps or
- hunting for the reasons described above. Snares provide managers with a
- control method that can be deployed over large, rugged areas to capture feral
- animals and keep their numbers very low. Snares can capture animals that
- enter these areas even when humans are not present, preventing the expansion
- of the feral animal problem. They can be used where it is unsafe to send
- hunters and dogs. Where snares are in use, the damage caused by pigs and
- goats has been dramatically reduced.
-
- Because the use of snares is restricted to very remote sites where human
- travel is difficult and often dangerous, it takes months to deploy them and it
- is physically impossible to check each snare every day. Daily checks would
- require constant use of helicopters to ferry staff, causing added stresses to
- the rare native birds in these forests. Traversing steep, wet terrain each
- day also greatly increases the risk of serious injury to field staff, and
- causes severe trampling of delicate bogs and forest vegetation.
-
- 5. The Nature Conservancy's goal is to end the use of snares as rapidly as an
- adequate replacement can be found to protect the forest. We are dedicating
- staff and funding to search for additional control methods that can replace
- snaring. There are several possibilities, but it will be some time before
- they are practical for Hawaii.
-
- Commonly proposed alternatives to snaring such as poisons and birth control
- are opposed by many and are not as simple as they may sound. No poison of any
- kind is currently legal for pigs or goats in the U.S., and many people are
- concerned about environmental effects of any chemical placed in the forest.
- While birth control is theoretically possible and has been applied to [many
- mammal] species [in controlled settings], [it is not yet practical for use in
- remote, wild populations. Contraceptives [for mammals] must be delivered
- surgically or by injection, and must be re-administered each year. This makes
- them impractical for use in free-roaming, wild populations in the dense rain
- forest. Also, there are serious concerns about the effects of these drugs on
- the treated animals, and about the impacts [the animals] would continue to
- have on the environment while they lived. Nevertheless, we continue to stay
- abreast of contraceptive research as a future alternative for some situations.
-
-
- FACTS
-
- The Conservancy's goal is to bring an end to the use of snares as quickly as
- an equally effective replacement method can be found. However, at this time
- we believe there are only two choices for Hawaii's fragile rain forest areas:
- protect them with hunting, fencing, live-trapping, and snaring, or allow feral
- animals to destroy them. We cannot in good conscience turn our backs on the
- many native species which inhabit these forests, and whose very existence is
- threatened by animals which people are responsible for bringing to these
- islands.
-
- Since 1993, we have reduced the number of nature preserves in which snares are
- used from four to two.
-
- We have built more than 20 miles of fencing on our preserves at a cost
- o$35,000 - $50,000 per mile. Where our own ownership boundaries make fencing
- impractical, we have developed partnerships with neighboring landowners for
- large-scale fencing that will further reduce the number of pigs in upland
- forests.
-
- We have further expanded our use of hunting as a feral animal control method.
- On Molokai, we have followed through on our commitment to test the ability of
- organized teams of staff and volunteer hunters to keep pig and goat numbers
- low in two areas where snares were used earlier to reduce feral animal
- populations. This trial program has succeeded in keeping pig numbers low in
- these two sites, but goat populations have rebounded and now require renewed
- effort. On Maui, we have expanded our use of professional hunters in
- accessible areas of our preserves.
-
- To accelerate the search for alternatives, the Conservancy established the
- Hawaii Animal Control Research Consortium, a group whose participants
- represent the full range of views on approaches to feral animal control. The
- Consortium includes The Nature Conservancy, the National Park Service, the
- Humane Society of the United States, the Hawaiian Humane Society, the State of
- Hawaii, a local hunter, and PeTA. This group worked together despite their
- differences to conduct a comprehensive review of control methods and to devise
- a research program to develop the most effective, humane, and culturally
- appropriate control methods for feral animals in Hawaii's remote natural
- areas.
-
- The challenge of reversing the extinction crisis in Hawaii requires some
- difficult choices. We hope that you choose to work with us as we face this
- urgent challenge.
-
-
- -------------------------[Original Message]--------------------------
-
- Below is the result of your Membership Comments form.
- --------------------------------------------------
- subject: Membership Comments
- state: OR
- zip: 97123
- last_name: Schlesinger
- comments: Recently I received a request to renew my membership. I had let
- my membership lapse because of the Conservancy's use of cruel wire snares to
- catch wild pigs on your land in the Hawaiian Islands.
- Please send me proof that this practice has stopped, and
- a way that I can verify it. Otherwise I plan to publicize
- at our web site that it is still taking place.
- Thank you,
- -Bob Schlesinger
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 12:38:17 -0800
- From: LCartLng@gvn.net (Lawrence Carter-Long)
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: A Request Regarding News Stories...
- Message-ID: <199712232029.PAA22178@envirolink.org>
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
-
- Greetings folks -
-
- Many of the articles posted here on ar-news deserve either
- a direct response or some degree of commentary - unfortunately
- since many of the items are usually taken directly from newswires,
- folks like myself who often respond to them have no way of knowing
- where they were actually publihed, if anywhere.
-
- This makes me crazed as there are plenty of opportunities for
- educating people that go unanswered. To those who're interested,
- could you PLEASE forward any science, health or animal
- experimentation related news items to me at the following
- address:
-
- Lawrence Carter-Long
- Animal Protection Institute
- 2831 Fruitridge Road
- Sacramento, CA 95814
-
- If you are unsure as to whether or not API is interested in
- responding to a particular story, please give me a call at
- the phone number found in my sig. file.
-
- Thanks, gang!
-
- Happy holly-daze to all -
-
- Lawrence Carter-Long
- Science and Research Issues, Animal Protection Institute
- email: LCartLng@gvn.net, phone: 800-348-7387 x. 215
- world wide web: http://www.api4animals.org/
-
- "Civil liberties are always safe as long as their exercise doesn't
- bother anyone." New York Times editorial, 1-3-41
-
-
-
-
-
-
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 20:40:42 -0500 (EST)
- From: Debbie Leahy <DLEAHY@delphi.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: [US] Nativity Scene Animals
- Message-ID: <01IRIYV0T6C895EYD4@delphi.com>
- MIME-version: 1.0
- Content-type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII
-
- NO MERRY CHRISTMAS FOR NATIVITY SCENE ANIMALS
-
- Sheep, goats, a donkey, and a camel were used as a Nativity
- scene for an outdoor play at Hillcrest Baptist Church last
- Christmas. Rented and shipped from a Wisconsin company, these
- animals were left outdoors, unsupervised and exposed to the
- elements for several days. Animals at a similar scene in
- Virginia suffered the consequences posed by this type of
- display-a pack of dogs mauled the sheep and panicked the donkey
- who was hit by a car when he attempted to flee. Their injuries
- were so severe that all the animals had to be euthanized.
-
- Traveling animal acts contribute to the very serious issue of
- surplus animals. When they've exhausted their "usefulness,"
- they may be abandoned, sold, or killed.
-
- Sponsors seldom bother to check an exhibitor's background. The
- animal rental company last used by Hillcrest Baptist Church --
- Animal Entertainment, also called R-Zoo-has a troublesome past:
-
- - In October, 1997, a baboon reportedly bit a 4-year-old girl at
- a pumpkin farm.
-
- - In 1994, a young wallaby escaped from the zoo and was
- recaptured days later.
-
- - In 1994, a 1,700-pound hippopotamus escaped from the zoo and
- wandered around for two days-the animal was shot and killed.
-
- - R-Zoo operator, Mark Schoebel, paid a $1,000 federal fine
- after being accused of supplying wild Wisconsin bears to Korea,
- where bear gall bladders fetch high prices as aphrodisiacs.
-
- - In 1994, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommended
- Schoebel be penalized for willfully and knowingly transporting
- a primate across state lines without a required health
- certificate.
-
- No reputable animal care facility would ever subject its animals
- to the stress and danger of public display or jeopardize the
- public's safety. Despite concerns raised by last year's
- Nativity scene, Hillcrest Baptist Church is again using live
- animals as stage props. Please urge the church to rely on the
- talents of human performers and extend their circle of
- compassion to all living beings. Contact:
-
- Pastor Ron Pate
- Hillcrest Baptist Church SBC
- 17300 Pulaski Road
- Country Club Hills, IL 60478
- Phone) 708/799-8300
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 22:20:41 EST
- From: NOVENA ANN <NOVENAANN@aol.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: Dick Kaye hangs up his mink
- Message-ID: <be43ae6.34a07f8c@aol.com>
- Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
- Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit
-
- Dick Kaye hangs up his mink
-
- By Penny Parker
- Denver Post Business Writer
-
- Dec. 17 - Dick Kaye is wrapping up his 46-year career in the fur
- business.
-
- At the end of January, Kaye will step down as head of his multistore
- retail operation and turn over the day-to-day responsibilities to his
- partner, Joe Hamilton.
-
- Hennessy International, a New York investment firm, will buy out Kaye's
- interest, but the Richard Kaye Furs Inc. name will stay on the door of
- the flagship store in the Denver Design Center at 601 S. Broadway.
-
- "I want to travel a bit. I want to fish and I want to play golf," Kaye
- said in the aristocratic voice that served as his signature in
- television and radio commercials over the years. "I want to retire and
- take it easy." That's the second time he's said that. The first time
- Kaye tried to retire was in 1987, when he sold his chain of Lloyd's Furs
- - a Denver company he bought out of bankruptcy for $1,500 in 1952.
-
- "When I bought Lloyd's Furs I had such little money that I couldn't
- afford to change the name on the sign or the stationery," Kaye said.
-
- After his first retirement, Kaye threw himself into civic and charity
- work.
-
- "I also took piano lessons, went to the gym and tried playing the stock
- market. I didn't do well at any of those things." Kaye retired from
- retirement in 1991 and opened a little store under his own name. "It
- became big business," he said. "Those were fun, great years - halcyon
- years."
-
- Furs, Kaye said, are actually less expensive today than when he started
- in the business in 1952. Production costs have dropped dramatically,
- which in turn has driven down retail prices, he said.
-
- "It's a business of supply and demand. Now there are thousands of
- ranchers that supply." Furs today cost from $1,000 for a fox jacket to
- $100,000 for a full-length sable coat. Mink is the biggest seller.
-
- Kaye said the anti-fur movement in the early 1980s didn't make much of a
- dent in sales, even though protesters regularly paraded in front of his
- door. "They made very little impression on the buying habits of people,"
- he said.
-
- The biggest change in the fur business is the frequency with which
- customers drape themselves in fur, he said. "At one time a fur was a
- symbol of luxury, worn primarily in the evening and with formal wear.
- Now, it's something you wear proudly with blue jeans or evening
- dresses.''
- Date: Tue, 23 Dec 1997 22:32:41 EST
- From: NOVENA ANN <NOVENAANN@aol.com>
- To: ar-news@envirolink.org
- Subject: Convicted activists haven't changed views
- Message-ID: <4129f2ea.34a0825b@aol.com>
- Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
- Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit
-
- Convicted activists haven't changed views
-
- Animal-rights supporters who broke into mink farm, released animals now
- serving five years of probation
- Tracy Wheeler
- Beacon Journal staff writer
- Published Monday, December 22, 1997,
- in the Akron Beacon Journal.
-
- MEDINA: Hours after Stephanie MacDougall was charged with five felonies
- for breaking into a Lafayette Township mink farm, she still believed in
- what she was trying to do. And she wasn't apologizing for it.
-
- Five months later, her accomplice, and now her husband, Jesse Parsh,
- said, ``Our views haven't changed.''
-
- But asked if they regretted what they did, he said, ``I'd rather not
- comment on that.''
-
- MacDougall and Parsh, both 19 and of Cleveland, are two of four
- animal-rights activists arrested on July 10. Matthew Coate, 20, of
- University Heights, was arrested, as was a juvenile. All have been
- convicted of breaking and entering, vandalism and possession of criminal
- tools.
-
- Twice in early July, the four broke into Tom Mohoric's mink farm. The
- first time, Parsh and MacDougall cut through the fence and spray-painted
- the animals' pens with the slogans ``Fur is Dead,'' ``Free the
- Animals,'' and ``A.L.F,'' a reference to the Animal Liberation Front.
-
- They were turned back when an animal bit Parsh on the hand while trying
- to cut open a cage. Undeterred, they returned a couple of nights later.
-
- The juvenile dropped off Parsh, MacDougall and Coate, with the plan
- being that they'd hook up down the road two hours later. The team
- released 41 of the animals and tore up about 50 breeding cards,
- according to court records.
-
- An alarm awakened Mohoric, who called police.
-
- While Mohoric gathered the loose minks, the police found the juvenile
- sitting in her car. The other three approached and were arrested. They
- confessed later.
-
- Mohoric estimated damages at $15,000. The cages and fence were ruined,
- he said, but more important, once the minks were released and their
- identification cards were torn up, they were no longer useful for
- breeding.
-
- But business is back to normal, Mohoric said, and he was told he should
- see his first restitution check soon.
-
- Parsh and MacDougall have been sentenced to six months of house arrest;
- Coate was sentenced to 30 days of house arrest. All were given five
- years of probation (during which Medina Common Pleas Judge Judith Cross
- said they could have no involvement with animal-rights groups) and 100
- hours of community service. They are also ordered to pay restitution of
- $4,943, plus court costs. Cross told Coate at his sentencing last Friday
- that it was still a stupid thing to do, even though she felt he was less
- involved than the other two.
-
-
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