The Killing Rule:

Federal Intervention in Natures Laws

Moonlit skies, naps in the afternoon, frenzied rumbles with a visiting cousin,
snow powder lightly flying behind racing heels, sharing a meal with the family,
babysitting the young, and gathering together in a quiet clearing to enjoy a
traditional song thats been passed down for centuries: this is what freedom means
to a wolf. These are the things nature has given this species, rights meant to be
unalienable. Wolves should be allowed the same living right as humans-the right to
live peacefully on the earth we share. Individual states in America are issuing
killing rules-laws designed to increase the big game herds by killing wolves, be it
through aerial gunfire or regulatory hunting.
In 1995, a miracle occurred in Yellowstone National Park. Chance at peaceful
life was returned to a species that had been absent for more than fifty years. The
wolves were making a marvelous comeback, proving to the world that the wild was
not perishing and just as fervent and unwilling to retreat as ever. Like the opening
chords of an overture, the future looked bright for the wolves in Yellowstone, but as
the minors and flats were added to the triad, the brilliant light that symbolized hope
for the animal species began to dim. March 28, 2008, exactly a month after a
delisting proposition, the Northern Rockies Gray Wolves were removed from the
endangered species list, making them vulnerable to government involvement.
Even before they were delisted, wolves were being eliminated in the very
environment provided for their great return. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(FWS) adopted a revision to section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act, known as
the killing rule, which allows the states to eliminate wolves if they are a major
cause of changes in the number or distribution of elk.(Wolf Facts, p. 2) Because
they were obeying natures one law: follow your instincts-the wolves had opened
themselves up for a painful wake up call into a world where humans are the top of
the food chain. The revision of the killing rule stated that anywhere big game herd
population was considered below the preferred mark, wolf killing is permitted-even
though studies show that the elk are in no danger of extinction nor are wavering
near the endangered species line. (http://www.eponline.com/articles/58148/ )
Instead of fighting to protect a species that had just been removed from the
endangered species list, Wyoming and Idaho have shown the cards they are playing
in this game and state that they want to have the wolf population at the minimum.
This would lave nearly one-third of the current population alive and purging the
remainder of the forests using shots from helicopters and all out genocide by
hunting on the ground. In the predator zone, wolves can be shot on sight by
anyone, anywhere, anytime." (Wolf pamphlet)

Alaska has joined in on the homicide as well-adding a splash of red against

the once beautiful snow white mountains where tourists go to observe wildlife. Last
spring, state Fish and Game biologists killed a pair of wolves and then found their
pups in a den and dispatched them as well. (Killing wolf pups) This act of
heartless intrusion upon animal life was an attempt to reinstate the shrinking
caribou herds, something that might have been prevented if the sport of hunting
had not left a few calvessurviving each year. (Killing wolf pups)
Out of the entire Northern Rockies, Idaho has the best recovery habitat for
the wolves, biologists report. Yet, according to official standpoint, the wolves can
completely die off and no one would feel a sting of loss. Governor C.L. Butch Otter
went so far as too say: Im prepared to bid for that first ticket to shoot a wolf
myself. (Wolf pamphlet) The wolf has inhabited Idaho for far longer than the state
has even been in existence, its practically a piece of Idahos history. Why would
anyone, including the governor, desire to wipe this noble species from memory and
sight? Along with dominance over all species of the earth, we have been given the
responsibility to maintain a healthy ecosystem. What federal involvement is doing
to not only the wolves, but other animals, is doing more harm than good.
In the history of the world, there are only a few reasons why an animal
species is lost forever. Lack of food, destruction of habitat, and overhunting remain
at the top of the list. Each of these things can be attributed to the expanding human
race. Before human intervention, the animal world thrived without needing outside
help; nature took care of itself. As soon as the government transforms a dignified
and ancient species into a population number, that animal looses its freedom. By
destroying the wolf population in the United States, we are also tampering with
other animals.
The wolves support a large chunk of the intertwined ecosystem. Ravens,
foxes, coyotes, martins, wolverines, vultures, and even bears and eagles feed on
the remains of a wolfs kill; eating the scraps is part of their basic diet. If the wolf
population is kept in danger because of federal involvement then these other
animals also have to fear for the balance of their lives. A few years after returning
the wolves to Yellowstone, researchers discovered that this animals presence was
actually changing the environment. Nature was made perfectly and fair, though
from a human standpoint it may seem harsh. We must stop looking behind
compassionate eyes and see the strings tying every action together in a wild
environment.
In order to stop the wolf killing, the everyday man and woman must
understand that there are other environmental predators that are stalking the big
game herds, other than wolves. The revision to the killing rule was issued without
consideration of the fact that drought, shrinking habitat, other predators, and
human hunting have been found to be the primary causes of elk herd changes.
(Wolf pamphlet) So, by issuing the killing rules, lawmakers are not solving the

problem at all because they are not deliberating on every factor. The FWS has not
done its job of conserving, protecting, and enhancing wildlife and their ecosystems
(FWS).
If this continues, there may be nights when the wolves are silent and only
the moon howls. One day an unknowing hunter may stumble upon the last living
wolf and shoot it through the heart in the attitude of mans usual sport and then
brandish the head on the wall of a house that will not stand forever. What humans
make eventually is destroyed, but what nature makes can last forever-if allowed.