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Defender,
It’s one more knife into the heart of protections for brown bears and other Alaskan wildlife.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has proposed opening the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge to bear baiting – a shameful practice that will let hunters attract brown bears with bait like donuts and then gun them down when they show up. Until now, FWS has always prohibited brown bear baiting on the Kenai Refuge.
The FWS is taking your comments – we need to stand up and shut down this cruel proposal now!
Tell the Fish and Wildlife Service to do its job and protect bears and other Kenai wildlife from irresponsible hunting and trapping practices!
Authorizing hunters to bait magnificent creatures like Kenai brown bears in the refuge and then shoot them like fish in a barrel is a disgrace. The FWS is also proposing to drop any federal permit requirement for trapping in the refuge, removing accountability and increasing the danger for animals like wolves, lynx, coyotes, beavers and more.
Kenai brown bears are an isolated population in decline, mostly due to baiting being allowed on state lands. They are also impacted by the growing human population on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The Kenai Refuge provides most of their best habitat.
This reckless move is part of the Trump administration’s agenda to erase federal wildlife management responsibilities on federal lands in Alaska and across the country.
We can’t let them get away with it. Speak up for Kenai brown bears and demand the FWS continue to prohibit dangerous practices like bear baiting!
Friend of Defenders, we need to act now because the attacks on wildlife keep getting worse. This proposal follows a recent rule by the National Park Service to defer to state hunting policy on national preserves in Alaska, which would allow for the use of extreme methods to kill bears, wolves and other predators.
We need you to draw the line here for Alaska’s wildlife. Tell the FWS that you demand they put wildlife first – and prevent hunters from baiting and shooting these majestic bears on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge!
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