Conservation Northwest protects and connects old-growth forests and other wild areas from the Washington Coast to the British Columbia Rockies, vital to a healthy future for us, our children, and wildlife. Since 1989, Conservation Northwest has worke
Issue link: http://conservationnw.uberflip.com/i/122778
Inside Conservation Northwest View from the Director Pulling It All Together for Wildlife It's hard to not get philosophical when thinking about predators and prey, which really means thinking about life and death. We have such deep emotions about sharks, lions, bears, and wolves. This maybe evolved to help individuals survive one of the strongest forces of natural selection: One can only pass on one's genes if one has not been eaten. Such an emotional topic eludes rational debate. In policy debate on wolf recovery and cougar management, we are beset with hyperbole about danger to schoolchildren. In addition to their voracious appetites, wolves are now also alleged to be vectors for epidemic tapeworms coming soon to an intestine near you. It's hard to discuss the ecological benefits of predators with people who believe that cougars and wolves will soon be fighting over the very last sheep or elk, leaving stockmen and hunters broke and hungry. It's equally hard to explain the (albeit very complicated) realities of wolf and cougar management to ardent animals lovers. I'm happy to say that we're learning that Washington communities have a great appetite for quality information on this topic. Conservation Northwest's Jay Kehne is delivering his presentation on living with carnivores to full rooms from North Bend to Tonasket. People need this information because, beyond the hyperbole, there are vexing issues of science, management, and politics. In this issue, we start off with a thorough and entertaining grounding in predator/ prey science by International Conservation Director Joe Scott. Backcountry sportsman Dick Rivers talks candidly about the importance of having predators in the backcountry. The high stakes and volatility of this issue leads us to dramatic tactical steps. Conservation Northwest has partnered with the WA Department of Fish and Wildlife to boost rewards for poaching information. And conservative State Representative Joel Kretz and I surprised a lot of people, including ourselves, by reaching an agreement to explore and advance common ground on cougar policy. These animals are too important to our ecosystems and to our heritage to ever give up on them. So we persevere. While the past year has been at times frustrating due to wolf poaching and political invectives, it's nice that we now at least have wolves to argue about. As my father would say, that's a "good problem" to have. Mitch Friedman. Photo Jackie Branz Sometimes it's hard to get past square one to talk about the ecological benefits of predators on the land, but that's what we are doing—day by day. Hope for a Wild Future at Herban Feast's Sodo Park Thanks so much to everyone who attended our 8th annual Hope for a Wild Future auction on June 8 at Herban Feast in Seattle. You helped Conservation Northwest raise about $132,000 to connect wild places from the Washington Coast to the British Columbia Rockies and protect wildlife such as gray wolves, fisher, and Canada lynx. To this year's event we brought back some of the favorite items, including the San Juan sailing trip and the board members' wine showcase. We also featured exclusive ani- mal experiences, including a behind-the-scenes big cat tour at Point Defiance Zoo, as well as a personal field trip in Washington lynx country with field biologists. Mark and Tina Christensen remarked on the excursion they won last year with biologist Scott Fisher, "We will never forget this trip!" If you couldn't attend the auction, you can still support our vital work with an online "paddle raise" at conservationnw. org/donate. Thanks for being part of our "Hope for a Wild Future"!