Friday, September 25, 2009

Just a coincidence?

Does USDA Wildlife Services mean anything to you? Nothing? That’s what it meant to us until further research revealed a curious connection between this agency and the employment history of the duck hunters that turned Eld Inlet upside down last January. Alas, duck hunters, from where did thouest come? Depredation take or just for fun? Either way, the “Elders” have become disturbed and their wise old eyes are seeing red. It’s simply inconceivable to imagine our neighborhood a legal shooting zone…..and for what reason?

If you support a no shooting zone over all of Eld Inlet and Inland, please notify our County Commissioners or sign the online petition.



Our wintering Surf Scoter guest.
Sea Doc Society








Our winter visitor.
The Olympian Article May 10, 2009







"It doesn't get any closer to home than this"

2 comments:

  1. I find it disgusting that federal employees are hired out as professional hunters to kill birds that are declining in numbers due to over hunting and habitat distruction for the sole purpose of increasing the profits of private clam "farmers". Where are the federal employees who are charged with protecting these birds for the long term benefit of all hunters and those of us who like having ducks in our environment?

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  2. My first two post were removed because I
    didn't like the link to USDA/APHIS and Hunting Washington attached to my name in the followers box (links removed from there).

    So, I'm rewriting this post and I apologize for not being able to add a hot link to the sites mentioned. Please cut and paste the links into your browser bar.

    The owner (Laurence M. Schafer) of the license plate you see in the photo, wrote a blog in Hunting Washington that can be found here:

    http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,22534.0.html

    You'll find yourself scratching your head due to the inconsistencies in what Mr. Schafer (aka, wdlfbio) has to say. On the first page of the blog, he writes, "BTW, this specific area absolutely stinks for seaducks... and no sane duck hunter would want to eat them anyway" but in the letter he sent to the commissioners he wrote, "In some cases, we have spent nearly ½ hour chasing a swimming winged bird. We consume each bird we harvest". Which is it? You kill to eat them or you just kill them?

    The idea of winging a bird and not killing the poor thing outright is sickening and answers the question of why it took these hunters approximately two hours that January morning to get their bag limit...they seem to be lousy shots.

    I mentioned USDA/APHIS who are, as far as I can tell, either one and the same or closely connected to USDA Wildlife Services and Mr. Schafer is under employment with them the last time I checked. You can find them at:

    http://www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc/field/washington/indexwa.shtml

    Here you will find out what these people do for a living. They "manage" wildlife...nothing more needs to be said about that as I'm certain anyone reading this can begin to connect the dots.

    As Bob wrote, these are federal employees. Whether they were hired to kill the sea ducks or whether it was just a regular good old boys hunting trip remains to be found out. But one thing he says that is the absolute truth is that it is a long term benefit to all hunters to not allow a slaughter like this. Not only do their actions make all hunters look bad, they may be destroying a population of birds for other hunters.

    Protecting these birds for all, including those of us who are avid bird watchers and enjoy the sight of them as they are a marker of the changing of the seasons in our area is a goal that must be met.

    Getting WDFW involved in the protection of these birds whose numbers seem to be in decline according to many articles on the internet is imperative.

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