Tell her she can’t shoot caribou but one day a year. And who in Obama’s Islamic Kenyan Socialist Federal Government would dare to stymie the Real Americans of Alaska in this evil manner? Uh, no one. It’s Alaska’s bureaucrats that are the problem:
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Friday that it would close the Fortymile caribou herd hunt after a single day.
In an effort to avoid an over harvest, the season will close 11:59 p.m. Sunday. […]
In two of the past three seasons, the Fortymile hunt has closed early because caribou were congregated near the highway, easily accessible to hunters.
Last year, for instance, hunters exceeded the quota by 36 percent in just three days, killing 870 animals. As a result, the winter Fortymile hunt was cancelled.
What the hell are those state bureaucrats thinking? That just because Palin quit as Governor they could get away with ruining the lives of Hunters? Well, actually, maybe they’re a little concerned that the caribou (reindeer everywhere else on the world) population is declining so rapidly large scale hunting is no longer viable unless we want to make Santa’s sleigh pullers extinct within the next generation.
June 22, 2009 — In Alaska, Canada, Greenland and other Arctic regions, people depend on caribou and reindeer as both a food source and a spiritual anchor. A new study reports that the animals have declined dramatically in recent decades.
Overall, caribou and reindeer populations have dwindled by an average of nearly 60 percent, the study found. In some cases, dips have been far more extreme than that. […]
Land development is one of the biggest threats to caribou and reindeer, especially for the subspecies that migrate long distances. Caribou are among the few species left that have retained their ancient migration routes, said Justina Ray, executive director of the Wildlife Conservation Society in Toronto.
Even those that don’t migrate need lots of space, and they’re extremely sensitive to changes in their environment. Logging has changed much of their habitat from old-growth forests to leafier vegetation. […]
Climate change is another problem, albeit an indirect one. For one thing, warming has increased mosquito populations to the point where caribou spend so much time running around and shaking off insects that they don’t eat enough to make it through winter with a good supply of stored body fat.
With warming, whitetail deer have also spread further north — bringing along a parasitic disease that doesn’t sicken the deer but does kill the caribou. At the same time, spring is getting greener earlier that it used to, but caribou haven’t adjusted the timing of their migrations. As a result, birthing females are missing out on the freshest vegetation and the chance to build up the highest-quality milk for their calves.
Of course, I’m sure the communist overlords of The Discovery Channel (i.e., anyone who buys its stock listed on NASDAQ) are lying about climate change having anything to do with the caribou problem. Still if I were Santa, I’d hedge my bets and see if Penguins can be taught to fly again. Might be a good idea anyway considering the real estate at the North Pole is a little too liquid these days.
But hey Alaskan caribou hunters at least you can still shoot wolves from helicopters! The meat might not be as tasty, but I’m sure the thrill of the hunt more than makes up for it.
