| Yellowstone Bison Slaughter
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| News
Article 1/20/05 |
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Wildlife
officials to test quarantine of bison
By Mike Stark
Billings Gazette
1/20/05 |
In
the coming months, wildlife agents will take 100 bison
calves that leave Yellowstone National Park and put them
in an experimental quarantine facility.
The plan, approved by Montana officials on Tuesday, is
a pilot project aimed at determining whether a quarantine
system could be used to find brucellosis-free bison to
start free-ranging herds elsewhere in Montana and the
United States.
"Our view is that if we are going to restore bison
to the landscape in some broader way, we're going to have
to take some real active steps," said Pat Flowers,
head of Region 3 for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife
and Parks, which includes the area outside of Yellowstone.
In the works
The proposal, expected to cost $560,000, has been in the
works for about 10 years and, if it's successful, could
signal a shift in how Yellowstone bison that wander out
of the park are handled.
Critics have said the quarantine system will serve to
domesticate the park's wild bison and is the wrong approach
in dealing with brucellosis, a disease that can cause
aborted pregnancies and that some fear bison could pass
to cattle.
Supporters of the idea said the quarantine system could
restrain the herd's population growth, conserve the herd's
genetics and help restore other free-ranging bison herds.
"It's a big step because it presents potentially
another tool for managing bison," Flowers said.
The quarantine facility will be at Corwin Springs, just
outside Yellowstone's north border. The 400-acre facility
will be run by the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service with assistance from Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
State officials conducted an environmental assessment
of the project last year. The decision to proceed was
signed this week and is expected to be distributed today.
Yearly testing
The plan allows 100 bison calves to be captured each year
for two years. The calves would be taken only if they
migrate outside Yellowstone's boundary and only if they
test negative for exposure to brucellosis.
In quarantine, bison would be tested and monitored for
signs of a latent brucellosis infection. Half of the bison
would be euthanized while in captivity so that tests can
be conducted on tissues.
"We're testing to see if we can run a quarantine
where at the end we have a high confidence that we've
produced brucellosis-free animals," Flowers said.
"It may or may not work."
The results probably won't be known for four years. If
it's successful, the quarantine could be expanded to handle
more bison. More environmental studies would have to be
done for the experimental project to continue.
Flowers said organizers have taken steps to ensure that
the bison can't escape the facility and, to the extent
possible, are able to use wild forage.
Tom Linfield, Montana state veterinarian, said the Department
of Livestock supports the pilot program as a way to help
eradicate brucellosis, provide population control and
possibly have disease-free bison to start other herds.
Mike Mease, of the Buffalo Field Campaign, said the project
was a waste of money and time and treats wild bison as
domestic animals.
"We just want to see them treated like other wildlife,"
he said.
The quarantine proposal has been in the works for years
amid the ongoing controversy about dealing with bison
that leave Yellowstone and limiting the risk of spreading
brucellosis to nearby cattle. The project is unrelated
to ideas advanced earlier this week by Gov. Brian Schweitzer
about how best to manage bison and the disease.
More than 2,200 people submitted comments on the quarantine.
The vast majority of them were form letters or e-mails,
and a majority objected to current bison management.
Flowers acknowledged concerns that the pilot project will
mean more human handling of Yellowstone's wild bison but
said the potential benefits could outweigh any short-term
drawbacks.
"It's a pretty exciting opportunity that potentially
moves us forward in how we're managing bison," he
said.
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