Drop In Seal Hunters Is Significant

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.vocm.com/news-info.asp?id=28009

April 14, 2008

The number of sealing vessels participating in the hunt is down significantly this year. DFO spokesperson Larry Yetman says there are between 60 and 70 longliners on the Front, compared to some 245 last year. Approximately 45-55 smaller vessels are on the water compared to well over 4 hundred in 2007. Yetman says last year longliners in the Front got their quota in 17 hours, but it will take longer this year. He says about 38-39 per cent of the quota has been taken and they expect the hunt to continue for a couple more days. The Superintendent of Ice Operations with the Coast Guard, Denise Veber, says ice conditions are favourable so far on the Front. Brian Stone with Search and Rescue says their operations are busy, but not overwhelming. There have been 11 calls for assistance since Friday.

[SteinbachMB]

1. That's because

...pelt prices were sharply down this year to around $31/pelt from around $100/pelt. I think break even is $70.

[liberalla]

3. I hope they stay low.

Nobody wants to wear the skin of deal baby seals? People finally getting a conscience?

[SteinbachMB]

4. It's no skin off my chin

...but I, as a good Canadian, support the hunt. It provides good jobs in an area where there aren't many, and is also a traditional and spiritual way of life to the Inuit peoples.

[Omaha Steve]

5. It is not the Inuits most of us have trouble with, their numbers are small

It is the non-inuits I have trouble with. It is done in the off fishing season and only provides about 3% of their annual income.
If they practiced a stunned-killed-then skinned routine, there wouldn't be any gripes from most of the objectors. But they will club a seal just enough to down them. Then they look for the next seal figuring they will collect and skin later in the day. This Leads to many agonizing hours of pain. One figure quotes a full third are skinned alive while they can still feel it.

The last figure from Canada I heard was about 75% are against the kill, subsidized or not.

The only reason the hunters and coast guard don't want protesters, is documenting on video the rules that are broken. The slashed flipper law is new this year I believe, and numerous violations of it have already been caught on video.

[SteinbachMB]

6. Only 5% are killed with the hakapik

The other 95% are killed with a high-powered rifle.

[liberalla]

2. I'd like to think this is progress.

I hope (and not just a reaction to the weather conditions).

Peace.

[Bigmack]

7. I think this whole topic is complicated....

more complicated than slogans. Ecosystems are complicated and species abundance is interconnected with other species.

We've depleted the fish stocks, and whenever the fish stocks start to come back, the seal numbers boom. Oh... it's humans' fault the fish crashed, but it's a tough question when it comes down to humans eating fish or seals eating fish.

Similar situation with deer in the suburban areas of the US. The deer numbers skyrocket when there's no hunting, and cars are the biggest predator. At what point do we start hunting deer in the cul-de-sacs?

Without mountain lions, coyote numbers shoot upward. The lions are needed to kill the coyotes, but are we ready to lose a toddler or two once in a while to the lions? Do we hunt the coyotes in the suburbs... hell, in the cities... where they live?

The idea of killing baby seals is disgusting, but what DO we do with a situation of just too many animals?