IMHO

[Kayote]

In my humble opinion they should reintroduce wolves and grizzly bears and linx and wolverines to Utah and all the other former range of these species in the western United States. All of these predators were in Utah long before man was and there was a healthy balanced ecosystem. Mother nature created a fine tuned machine and it worked perfectly for eons before the rapid expansion of the human species and the agricultural animals they brought with them. Predators are actually good for game populations through the process of natural selection. Human predators are the worst for big game populations because we take the prime healthy adults, the trophy bucks and bulls. Natural predators take the sick, weak and old thereby enhancing the gene pool of these species. Survival of the fitest and the passing on of those superior genes to the next generation. Don't kid yourself, the only thing preventing these reintroductions is the sheep and cattle interests. These same groups would like to see the elimination of coyotes and cougars for the same reasons, impacts to their bottom line, money. I think man has an obligation to perpetuate native species simply for their intrinsic value. I am not against ranchers, but wildlife also has an important role to play in the health of our great state. I'm also a hunter and not an extreme environmentalist. This is just my $.02.

Good Posting, Kayote
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