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Update from the Field--DOL Helicopter Disrupts Spring
Buffalo Field Campaign Supporters,
Most people who choose to live in the communities surrounding
Yellowstone National Park do so because of the area's
natural beauty and the presence of such charismatic
native creatures as bison, bears, wolves, moose, deer,
and elk. This is the only place in America where the
possibility of wild bison migrating through the yard
still exists. And while the public relations manipulators
at Department of Livestock (DOL) headquarters would
have us believe that bison can't coexist with human
communities, the truth on the ground tells another story
altogether.
Out on patrol locals visit with stories of buffalo stopping
by to graze in their yards year after year, of their
children spending hours at the window, captivated by
the sheer size and presence of a gentle animal standing
six feet tall at the hump, weighing a ton and that has
been eradicated from nearly all of its native range.
The bison are one of the reasons people choose to live
here. They are a species that makes living in West Yellowstone,
Montana unlike living anywhere else in the world.
Last Sunday night, residents of the Bear Trap housing
area went to bed feeling good that there was a group
of five bison bulls in the neighborhood. Some of the
locals must have thought those bison were safe, having
posted signs on their fences reading "Bison Safe
Zone: No Shooting or Harassing Wildlife Permitted per
Order of the Landowner." They were wrong.
Imagine the shock of being rudely awakened early on
a Monday morning by the pounding sound of helicopter
rotors a few feet above your rooftop. For residents
of the Bear Trap housing area, that's exactly what happened
this week as the Department of Livestock, Montana Fish
Wildlife and Parks, and the National Park Service orchestrated
an all-out attack on the ecosystem in their irrational
effort to keep wild bison out of Montana.
We'd been falsely assured by the governor's office that
the DOL wouldn't be using their helicopter, which disrupts
all wildlife, this spring. When the chopper arrived
and began hazing buffalo we called the governor's office
and were told by his policy advisor that the governor's
office and Department of Livestock had agreed that the
helicopter would be used only for spotting, not hazing
buffalo. Later in the day, after we'd gathered hours
of footage showing the helicopter harassing newborn
bison calves, their mothers, and bulls, the governor's
office changed its tune to ""The agreement,
the understanding we had was that the helicopter would
be used for spotting and necessary hazing."
As always, BFC patrols were in the field, documenting
every action against the buffalo. We documented the
chaos of the helicopter hazing in the Bear Trap housing
area and an intense interaction between a local resident
who doesn't appreciate the DOL's arrogance and disregard
for his property rights. We documented hazing operations
near Red Canyon, Duck Creek, Horse Butte, the north
and south sides of the Madison River, and even within
the boundaries of Yellowstone Park. You can see these
images, and the intense interaction between a local
homeowner and the DOL agents, by clicking on: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org
For the Buffalo,
the BFC Volunteers
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* Thank You for Celebrating Wild Buffalo Mothers!
A sunny, blue Montana sky greeted us on Mother's Day
morning. I loaded the truck with banners, outreach materials,
coffee (thanks Mountain People's Co-op, Nederland, CO)
and cookies (thanks Amber), and, of course, our giant
wooden buffalo proclaiming that "Wild Bison Are
Being Honored Today." Japhy and Amber, both ten
and already veteran BFC volunteers, hung the "Wild
Bison Calving Season: Free Coffee, Free Cookies, Free
the Buffalo!" sign. From high in a tree Japhy yelled,
"This is my second ever banner hang!" Amber
echoed from her perch, "This is my first!"
Throughout the course of the day we greeted many local
residents and BFC volunteers, some who brought their
families, offering treats and encouraging a unification
of the area in support of the buffalo. Overwhelmingly,
the folks who stopped by enjoy the buffalo in their
yards and in their community. Many expressed dissatisfaction
with the DOL, a theme we continue to encounter as their
brutality and disregard for the rights of private property
owners grows.
We saw no buffalo that day; I'm sure the mamas and babies
that had been hazed the past week were resting and recuperating.
The following day, Monday, the helicopter roared in
that same blue Montana sky, running mamas and babies
hard. I wonder what those newborns think of that giant
mechanical bird of prey. I admire the mothers who continue
to nurture and bring hope to their offspring. Mother's
Day IS a day for the Wild Bison Mothers. We hope to
celebrate next year with all of you here in the field
in West Yellowstone.
With the Buffalo,
Justine
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* Tatanka 2006: Built to Spill Benefit Concert
for the Buffalo!
Join BFC for a rockin' benefit for the wild Buffalo
& Buffalo Field Campaign in Boise, Idaho with Built
to Spill, Travis Ward, Junkyard Bandstand, and Tim Andreae
Saturday June, 3rd, $21, Big Easy Concert House. Tickets
go on sale Saturday, May 19.
For more information and to order tickets please visit
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/.
Many thanks to Built to Spill and Ken Cole for making
this event possible!
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* Warning: APHIS Wants More Control Over Wildlife
The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) is one of five agencies involved in the Interagency
Bison Management Plan. APHIS is the federal agency responsible
for the national brucellosis eradication program and
is solely responsible for designating the brucellosis
status of individual states. All of the funds spent
by the state of Montana to implement the Plan come from
APHIS as part of their annual $9 million brucellosis
eradication budget.
The far-fetched goal of APHIS is to completely wipe
out brucellosis from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
which can only be done if every last creature is killed.
Bison, elk, bears and deer are just a few of our native
wildlife species that can carry the cattle-borne disease
brucellosis. It's a horrifying thought to think of this
government agency (agents in white suits) setting up
shop inside our national parks and protected lands -
or anywhere in the region, for that matter - to conduct
test-and-slaughter programs on America's wildlife, against
a disease that would naturally wipe itself out if the
bison and elk were allowed to disperse. The article
below paints a frightening picture, especially given
the fact that brucellosis originated in cattle, infected
our native wildlife, and that the wildlife have been
set up to take the blame ever since. The federal government
should spend their time and resources focusing on the
disease, not the carriers. We will all need to pay especially
close attention to the evolution of APHIS's plans, and
please, contact your members of Congress to tell them
you strongly oppose APHIS having any more control over
our nation's wildlife!
May 7, 2006: Feds aim for more wildlife control, Jackson
Hole Star Tribune (WY)
http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2006/05/07/news/wyoming/
2dade077be29ac698725716600211159.txt
Learn more about APHIS: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/faq/usdaaphis.html
Learn more about brucellosis: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/faq/whatisbrucellosis.html
Contact your members of Congress: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/politicians.html
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* Last Words
"People from a planet without flowers would think
we must be mad the whole time to have such things about
us."
~ Iris Murdoch
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