NOVEMBER 2018 IN THIS ISSUE:
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
~Margaret Mead
As I board a plane for Phoenix, where I will present the Arizona premiere of KILLING GAMES ~ Wildlife In The Crosshairs, I’m reminded of the power of grassroots organizing and of coalition building. Tonight I will join a new and growing coalition, which Project Coyote helped establish, in Prescott, Arizona. That coalition just played a major role in convincing the Dewey-Humboldt Town Council to pass a resolution condemning wildlife killing contests. That resolution made Dewey-Humboldt the latest community to join the nationwide movement to end these barbaric events and to recognize the key role that native carnivores play in healthy ecosystems. With this resolution, another American community has formally affirmed that killing contests serve no ecological or wildlife management purpose.
Project Coyote has been a leader in forming focused and effective predator protection coalitions across the country, and I am grateful to and proud of our hard-working volunteers who give their time and talents to making a better world for wildlife and wildlands.
I’m also reminded that it was exactly ten years ago that I received my graduate degree from Prescott College. At that time, Dave Parsons—Project Coyote Science Advisory Board Member and former Mexican gray wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service—served as my advisor. Dave will be among those joining me for the screening of our film in Prescott, and will help lead a panel discussion afterward.
It was while studying in Prescott that I began formulating the idea of developing an organization that would expressly speak for North American carnivores. Dave joined the nascent team as Project Coyote’s first Science Advisory Board member; he helped to develop our mission and to establish one of the strongest science advisory boards for native carnivores in the country.
I’m excited to return to Prescott, where I first envisioned Project Coyote, to share our film and expound on our mission with Arizona’s wildlife supporters.
I hope you enjoy reading about our team’s latest efforts on behalf of wildlife in this issue of Coyote Chronicles.
For wild nature,
Camilla Fox
Founder & Executive Director
ARTISTS FOR WILD NATURE
To counter coyote killing contests in New Mexico—competitive events that award cash and prizes to those who kill the most or the largest coyotes—Project Coyote Communications Associate Joe Newman has developed an innovative Coyote Photo Contest. The contest emphasizes that we can enjoy competition with a lens instead of a gun, and appreciate the intrinsic value of coyotes in nature without killing them for a trophy. Entrants have until December 15, 2018, to submit their photographs to be eligible for cash and other awards—$250 for first place winners, $150 for second place, and $100 for third place in each category. Although entries are open to New Mexico residents only, everyone can help make a difference by sponsoring the contest. To do so, please donate here and specify “NM Photo Contest” in the Comments field. Your support will allow us to offer additional prizes, increasing the appeal of shooting coyotes with a camera instead of a gun—and further detracting from any perceived benefits of participating in a wildlife killing contest. We encourage all eligible photographers—amateur and professional alike!—to submit their photos of coyotes, and to encourage their friends and families in New Mexico to participate in this celebration of our native Song Dogs. Entrants must reside in New Mexico. Learn more here.
REFORMING PREDATOR MANAGEMENT
Siskiyou County, CA: Fourth California County Suspends Contract with Wildlife Services
In response to legal pressure from Project Coyote and a coalition of wildlife conservation groups, Siskiyou County will become the sixth California county (after Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Shasta, and Sonoma) to suspend its contract with USDA’s Wildlife Services, which has killed more than 28,000 animals in Siskiyou County alone over the past decade. The decision came after coalition members warned the County in June that its Wildlife Services contract violates the California Environmental Quality Act. “We commend Siskiyou County for this enlightened decision,” said Camilla Fox, Project Coyote Founder and Executive Director. “There are many nonlethal methods and models for reducing conflicts between people, livestock and wildlife that are cost effective, ecologically sound and ethically defensible.” Read more here and here.
Los Angeles, CA: City Council Bans the Sale of Fur
The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously on a proposal to ban the sale of fur clothing and accessories citywide—a historic move that will have a ripple effect across the nation as conscientious citizens increasingly demand an end to the fur industry. Project Coyote’s Southern California Representative Randi Feilich stated: “We commend the LA City Council, and especially Councilmembers Blumenfield, Koretz, and O’Farrell, for leading the country to a future of cruelty-free fashion.” In 2014, Randi helped organize efforts to encourage the LA City Council to pass an ordinance banning the use of cruel traps to capture coyotes and other animals. The vote comes on the heels of San Francisco’s decision to ban fur sales.
National: KILLING GAMES Continues Its Nationwide Roll-Out
KILLING GAMES ~ Wildlife In The Crosshairs, Project Coyote’s award-winning documentary exposing the gratuitous violence of wildlife killing contests, continues its successful nationwide tour. On November 2, the film was shown at the Rome International Film Festival in Rome, GA (where Project Coyote Science Advisory Board Member Dr. Chris Mowry appeared); on November 7, at the Great Lakes Environmental Film Festival in Milwaukee, WI; on November 9, at Wild & Scenic Film Festival On Tour in Reno, NV (where Project Coyote team members Fauna Tomlinson and Jana Hofeditz represented us); and on November 9, at Our Vanishing Future in Madison, WI.
In October, the film debuted in New York City at the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival (where Project Coyote Executive Director Camilla Fox spoke to the audience, and where the film won an award for Best Wildlife Crime film[CLH2]) and in San Francisco at the Roxie Theater as part of Animal Film Festival On Tour (and where Camilla also appeared).
REFORMING PREDATOR MANAGEMENT AND COYOTE FRIENDLY COMMUNITIES
National: Coyote Champion: An Interview with Camilla Fox
In addition to traveling to the East Coast and Oklahoma for speaking engagements, Project Coyote Executive Director Camilla Fox was recently interviewed by Paula MacKay for The Wildlands Network Blog. The article is being widely disseminated, and is featured on the front page of Earth Island Journal (online) and Inside Ecology. Camilla discusses Project Coyote’s campaign to end wildlife killing contests nationwide, and stresses KILLING GAMES’s effectiveness in building awareness of the wasteful, senseless cruelty wherever the film is shown. She also emphasized Project Coyote’s efforts to coordinate with communities across the USA in adopting the guidelines of Project Coyote’s Coyote Friendly Communities program, and reminded concerned listeners that Project Coyote can help them to design and implement appropriate strategies and plans for their own community’s needs.
SCIENCE, CONSERVATION, & STEWARDSHIP
Madison, WI: Katie Stennes Interviews Dr. Adrian Treves
Project Coyote Programs & Communications Manager Katie Stennes conducted an in-depth interview with Project Coyote Science Advisory Board Member Dr. Adrian Treves, founder of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Carnivore Coexistence Lab. The interview featured Adrian’s article “Differentiating between regulation and hunting as conservation interventions” recently published in Conservation Biology. Read more here.
Francisco J. Santiago-Ávila Joins Protect Coyote’s Science Advisory Board
Project Coyote is excited to welcome Francisco J. Santiago-Ávila to Project Coyote’s esteemed Science Advisory Board. Fran is a PhD candidate at the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He holds a masters degrees in environmental public policy and environmental management from Duke University. As part of the Carnivore Coexistence Lab at UW-Madison, Fran’s research has revolved around the integration and application of environmental and animal ethics to coexist with wildlife, the evaluation of the functional effectiveness of policies, and interventions aimed at improving coexistence with large carnivores (focusing on the gray wolf). His main objective is to reform human-wildlife interactions by embedding in people the acknowledgment of moral standing for individual nonhuman animals. Welcome, Fran!
Albuquerque, NM: Speaking Up for Wildlife
Project Coyote’s Camilla Fox and Science Advisory Board Members Dave Parsons and Dr. Adrian Treves presented at the first national Wildlife for All – Re-Envisioning State Wildlife Governance conference in August, sponsored by the Southwest Environmental Center and the Western Wildlife Conservancy. In addition, Project Coyote’s film KILLING GAMES ~ Wildlife In The Crosshairs was shown, galvanizing attendee support for banning the practice in New Mexico and beyond. Following the successful conference, Dave Parsons and executive director of Western Wildlife Conservancy Kirk Robinson recently posted this compelling reminder of the urgency and importance of the initiative to reform state wildlife agencies. The article includes ways in which we all can create a positive and lasting legacy for our country’s environment at this critical juncture in history.
PROJECT COYOTE CORE PROGRAMS
Kudos to Project Coyote Creative Director Deb Etheredge for creating a beautiful summary of Project Coyote’s programs. Feel free to download and share far and wide!
RECENT NEWS
Groups Seek to Stop Coyote Killing Contest in Burns, Oregon
(Nov. 13, 2018)
State will kill remaining 2 wolves of pack killing cattle
(Oct. 26, 2018)
Coyote Champion: An Interview with Camilla Fox
(Oct. 24, 2018)
Trapping and relocating coyotes? That’s a really bad idea
(Oct. 22, 2018)
Why Wilderness? It’s Irreplaceable
(Oct. 2, 2018)
Twice as many coyotes killed in state’s 2nd hunting contest
(Sept. 5, 2018)
There is humanity in the coyote
(Sept. 22, 2018)
Coyote killing is counter-productive
(Sept. 12, 2018)
Wildlife Services – A Failed Agency
(Sept. 6, 2018)
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