Quote:
Originally Posted by bdub
To me this issue relates completely to habitat and the lack of government will to provide any kind of habitat management. The age structure problem of the rams speaks to a population of sheep at the limit of the carrying capacity of their winter range not of something hereditary. As Giest says, rams from a population that has exceeded the range capacity show generally slow growth rates and old age structure. I think that they are trying to muddy the waters rather than deal with the issue of habitat. They cannot possibly be that stupid not to be able to put 2 and 2 together. It must be to costly or cause to much of a public uproar to do any kind of management. If they followed their own guidelines on habitat management this would be a non issue. Changes are coming and I hope it doesn't come down to a draw.
|
I believe your assesment of the situation is accurate.
There are two issues being expressed by F&W.
1- A potential shortage of legal rams in some SMA.
2- A very recent trend showing registered rams are getting older and smaller.
Their brief summary of the data does not prove that either of these situations are occuring. We are being asked to believe what they say, with no proof being offered. This is not acceptable to me.
Decades of sound, confirmed research results seems to have been put aside for the Genetic theory.
Thanks to all who have written SRD on this issue. The volume of letters has caught SRD by surprise, and is making them reflect on potential changes.
Keep on writing letters with your questions and requests for information. We need to know the data.
The public needs to have this information released.
-ALL Sheep survey results (1971 to present) used to calculate the summaries including sex/legal ram numbers by SMA.
-Sheep harvest results by SMA.
-Registered Subsistence harvest and known illegal harvest numbers.
-If they want to keep on with the genetic concern disussion, the release of horn size/age data.