Earlier this week I posted an article about how wolf predation angers ranchers and hunters. Included in that post was a question that I received via email from a reader’s son.
My son (Vince, age 16) came up with an interesting topic in regards to the wolf issue out west. We had been taking about different issue’s driving home Sunday from turkey hunting and he said dad “why aren’t people more upset with elk eating alfalfa/crops?†I asked him to expand on that, and I asked him what he meant.
Well everyone is so upset over a wolf killing a calf that takes money away from the rancher….Well elk eat crops and that also takes money away from the rancher but you don’t hear from all the ranchers complaining about that. I told him elk don’t have big teeth, we all laughed but I told him I’d pass his view on to you, word it how you do so well if you like and pass his view point on in your writings if you wish.
I left the article asking readers to weigh in with answers, suggestions and discussion. I got one response and am somewhat disappointed that more didn’t participate.
So, to help Vince in answering his question, I’ll take a stab at it.
First of all, Vince, ranchers do get angry when any wild animals eat their crops. Just this morning, I was reading another article about ranchers in Alberta, Canada getting extremely frustrated with the wild elk there eating up the feed intended for their cattle. For those who might think that ranchers don’t get as angry about elk feeding on their crops, read what one rancher in Alberta had to say about the elk.
“The province already let them become over-populated … and I think they should give everybody the right to go and shoot the darn things,” he said. “Actually, I think there should be a bounty on them. They are breaking people in this neighbourhood.”
This brings me to my first observation about the differences we seem to witness between the wrath toward wolves versus that of elk. There is no doubt less media coverage of elk eating ranchers’ crops than wolves killing livestock. Why? I would assume a myriad of reasons. Let’s look at a few obvious ones.
Both animals carry a stigma if you will or at least a perception by the public of each animal’s marked identity. When we think of a wolf, we think about a predator, a potentially vicious animal, a loner (at least that is how the animal is portrayed in movies, etc.), a large animal with menacing fangs that kills sometimes for the sport.
In examining an elk, this animal is the symbol of the west in many ways. It is a magnificent animal, very majestic, large and commands one’s attention. I have even heard some people describe the elk as an icon of freedom and of power, majesty and beauty. We don’t think of the elk as a vicious animal and is by no means a predator, killing other animals for its survival.
When we compare the two animals in this way, it is easy to see that the characteristics of the wolf can incite immediate anger and negative compassion in humans. Because of this, it makes for better reading in the press.
Another observation is one that I think reflects more of the human nature. Most humans get a thrill out of looking out their back door and seeing elk, deer, moose or other animals that we seem not to fear in any way. Add a wolf to the scenery and things change in a hurry.
People naturally fear a wolf because it is a killer, a meat eater. It will eat your pet, your livestock and humans under the right conditions. Therefore, people are much more tolerant of elk or deer eating their crops than of a wolf killing their livestock.
Both of these two observations involve human emotions. These emotions don’t always run against the wolf. On the contrary. There are many people and organized groups that spend millions of dollars and hours of time protecting the wolf. The wolf kind of becomes a love-hate thing – either you love them or you hate them. This creates a division among the people prompting passionate debate.
But, aside from emotions and how humans perceive the two animals there is history and economics that play into the equation as well. First, let’s look at history a bit.
I’m no history major but from what I have read and how I understand things, this is essentially what happened. Settlers moved into the west. They were pioneers. They migrated into areas of vast wilderness encroaching on the existing wildlife that was present.
I have read articles written by some of the most renowned wildlife experts in this country. Some will say that during this time there wasn’t as much wildlife as we are sometimes led to believe. In our urban ways of thinking, we often have idyllic images or how the wilderness once was. These wildlife scholars say that some of this wilderness was mostly uninhabitable. As humans moved in and began to clear and farm the lands, they created better habitat for the animals and with that, populations began to grow.
When these settles tried raising sheep, goats and cattle, they became easy prey for wolves, coyote and bear. Settlers had to survive so they began a systematic slaughter of wolves and grizzly bear. This is one reason these two animals were nearly made extinct in the lower 48 states.
Right, wrong or indifferent, that was history. The wolf was basically removed from the equation making it more attractive for more settlers to move into the areas where ranchers could graze their livestock on wide open plains. Families grew and prospered. The ranches were passed down to successive generations, each working hard to make a living as ranching is difficult.
All was well, until it was decided to protect the wolf and reintroduce it into the regions around Yellowstone National Park. These ranchers, many of whom had the ranches passed down to them from previous generations didn’t want the wolf. They knew how much more difficult it would make running their businesses. This event added more anger and hatred toward the wolf.
This is different Vince, than moving into an area where existing conditions should be known to you. Take for example the guy who recently moved into eastern Idaho from Vermont. He was attacked by a grizzly bear. He said afterward that he knew when he moved there, he was moving into grizzly bear country. He understood the risk or at least he thought he did.
In this case, you have ranches that have operated basically wolf free for a few generations and we brought the wolves in forcing them onto the ranchers. This has surely elevated the level of emotions toward the wolf.
On the economic side, I’m not sure that I can give you any exact figures as to the differences between elk eating crops versus wolves killing livestock but I’ll give it a whirl.
What many people don’t understand Vince, is that when wolves are present, meaning hanging around and harassing livestock, more happens than simply a few head get killed by the wolves. Stress levels for the domestic animals goe up because they know the wolf is nearby.
Perhaps the best way to relate to this would be if you were at home and you knew you had a next door neighbor who always bothered you. He’d be looking in your windows, coming onto your property uninvited, borrowing things from your garage, etc. It makes it difficult to relax and enjoy life when you have a neighbor like that. Life just isn’t the same and your stress levels go up. We’ve all heard the doctor’s theories about how our own health deteriorates with stress.
The same can be said for these livestock. With increased stress levels, they eat less. Eating less makes them smaller and in cases where the animals are grown for meat, the rancher gets less money for his investment.
These domestic animals also cannot get pregnant and produce offspring in a normal way. One big aspect of ranching is for the owner to be able to breed offspring to replace the animals he sells to market. This drastically cuts into profits. Often times when the stress levels go up, pregnant animals will abort their young and other complications arise.
As I said before, I’m not a rancher and I don’t know the prices of things but I think I am safe to say that when one calf is killed by a wolf, the potential dollar value for that critter is higher than what damage is done from elk eating crops. The overall loss to a rancher because of the presence of wolves is difficult to estimate.
I would have to say that emotions play the biggest roll, both directly and indirectly, when it comes to what we read and hear about wolves. The media will not cover the stories of crops being eaten, after all, it’s just some vegetation. When a wolf enters the picture, blood is shed and that’s reason enough to write a story and share it with the world.
Vince, I hope I have been able to shed some light on this topic and helped to answer your question. I have shared my perspective and perhaps my sharing will prompt others to do the same.
Thanks for asking the question. I’m sure others can learn from it as well.
Tom Remington
