Great points, everyone. It is certainly a difficult topic to grapple with. I cannot speak for the people that wrote the material at that link I posted, but I can assure you that I personally am not "anti-hunting". Far from it. I am very much a proponent of hunting...for food, that is. But let me share a little more information with you:
Coyotes not native to the east? An interesting perspective, but not entirely accurate. Recent genetic studies by Drs. Brad White and Jonathan Way have revealed that the eastern coyote differs substantially enough from the western coyote to be considered a distinct species. While its current scientific name is the same as that of the western coyote (Canis latrans), this will probably soon be changed. I won't go into detail about the genetic studies, but the upshot is that the eastern coyote is NOT an introduced species; rather, it EVOLVED here.
How did this happen? Western coyotes began migrating eastward to fill the predator niche that people created by eradicating wolves from the east. But because the habitat and prey base available to coyotes is different here in the east than it was in the west, natural selection caused them to change gradually over time. A small amount of interbreeding with the red wolf helped facilitate that process and make the eastern coyote distinct. Not present in the east when European colonists arrived? True. Non-native to the east? False.
Coyotes a danger to children? Well, let's try to put that into perspective with some facts. As of 1994, there were 20-30 coyote attacks on humans in recorded history. Yet, a 1994 telephone survey conducted by the CDC (Center for Disease Control) estimated that 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs annually. In addition, the Humane Society reported that 300 people have been killed by domestic dogs in the US since 1979. Yes, my numbers are dated, but feel free to contact the CDC and organization for an update. I guarantee you won't find data that show that coyotes pose a threat anywhere as great as do dogs, cars, and many other things we all accept as part of the usual risk of day to day living.
Arguably, a far greater threat to our children and future generations is ecosystem degradation, and lethal control of predators is but one of the things we do which contributes to that. A crash course in Ecology 101: We humans depend on healthy ecosystems for clean water, clean air, fuel, food production, flood control, erosion control, medicines, and medical research. The scientific literature is full of innumerable studies to support that. Famine, water crisis, natural disasters and outbreaks of human infectious diseases occurring all over the world have been incontrovertibly linked to human induced ecosystem degradation. One infectious disease well known to those of us in the northeast, Lyme disease, has been linked to ecosystem degradation.
Still skeptical? Check out this compelling UN sponsored volume assembled by more than 100 scientists from around the world: "Sustaining Life: How Human Health Depends on Biodiversity" (Eds. Chivian and Bernstein)
An anti-hunting plea? Far from it. No, this is a plea for responsible behavior that will make the planet a safe and healthy environment for our children and generations to come.
I apologize - this is lengthy and way beyond the scope of this forum. Please send me a PM if you are interested in further info.
