THE STATEMENT :
“ WOLVES ARE VALUED MEMBERS OF THEIR FAMILIES AND KEYSTONE SPECIES THAT START A TROPHIC CASCADE DESPERATELY NEED BY OUR DELICATE ECOSYSTEMS .”
WHAT IT DOES :
HUMANIZES WOLVES AND OVEREMPHASIZES THEIR ROLE
THE RESPONSE : Wolves are amazing animals . [ 1 ] They ’ re nature ’ s perfect predator , [ 2 ] a combination of strength , endurance , speed , intelligence and cooperative hunting . However , while wolves hunt and live in packs , they don ’ t operate as a family like people . [ 3 ] You ’ re conflating human awareness [ 4 ] with how animals understand their environment . Death is a part of nature . [ 5 ] Every animal species is well-equipped to deal with death — that ’ s why wolves have litters with multiple pups . [ 6 ] When one member of a pack is killed , the pack doesn ’ t sit around mourning [ 7 ] and wondering how to go on ; it simply continues trying to find food , defending territory , mating and surviving . It is because wolves are so well physically and psychologically adapted to hunt and deal with hardships that their numbers continue to grow , [ 8 ] and the exact reason management and conflict mitigation [ 9 ] with humans is required . While we definitely need to protect our ecosystems , [ 10 ] nature is not so delicate as to fall apart with the absence of just one species . The idea that wolves “ changed Yellowstone ” through trophic cascade is a myth that ’ s been debunked . [ 11 ] Wolves definitely have had an impact on the ecosystem , but for nearly 100 years the habitat and animals did just fine [ 12 ] without wolves . Nothing in nature is as simple and linear [ 13 ] as is portrayed when it comes trophic cascade and wolves . Denying that is to deny science , history [ 14 ] and the very essence of wolves [ 15 ] themselves .
1
Just say it . It throws environmental extremists off and makes you appear more reasonable , predisposing lurking non-hunters to your points . 2 Hard to deny . 3 Set the stage for how wolves do operate when it comes to death . 4 This is called “ anthropomorphism ”— assigning human qualities and cognition to animals . 5 A point everyone who wants to “ save ” wolves forgets to acknowledge . 6 This biological fact is true for wolves , ungulates , birds , etc . Mortality is high in nature for many reasons , and species have adapted to overcome it . 7 Highlight the difference between humans and animals stated earlier .
8
Google : “ wolf numbers continue to grow Wisconsin / Minnesota / Michigan ” for articles to back up this statement . 9 Highlight what we ’ re actually asking to have happen . 10 This says “ we care about the environment ” using language of the anti ’ s . 11 Google : “ Scientists debunk myth that Yellowstone wolves changed entire ecosystem , flow of rivers by Michael Kuhne ” 12 Hard to deny decades of research taking place and people visiting and seeing a plethora of wildlife . 13 Undermine the extremists ’ argument as simpleminded . 14 If they disagree , they ’ re not arguing with you , but scientists and history . 15 Denying all of this doesn ’ t just deny science , but the very “ special ” animals anti ’ s claim to understand and want to protect .
MAKE YOUR POINT
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SUMMER 2022 19