The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The International Fund for Welfare (IFAW) has welcomed the news that the Ontario government will make permanent the temporary ban on the hunting and snaring of both the threatened Eastern gray wolf, and its close cousin the coyote, in and around Algonquin provincial park. "In taking these important first steps to protect this endangered species, the Ontario government has kept its word and helped ensure visitors to Algonquin will continue to hear the cry of the wolf for years to come," said IFAW Canada Director Sherri Cox. With the area around Algonquin Park home to a fragile population of 200-300 wolves, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) recognized the Eastern Gray Wolf as a Species of Special Concern in May 2001. Environmental groups have long argued that to protect the species a permanent hunting and snaring ban was necessary for both wolves and coyotes, as hunters often mistake coyotes as wolves. IFAW also welcomes an extended ban on using dogs to hunt coyotes and wolves as well as the use of wire neck snares. Snaring does not often kill wolves quickly or painlessly, and other animals fall victim to them. In December, a four-year-old part lab limped home from the bush dragging a snare that had gashed her down to her windpipe. She had managed to free herself, but only after three days of gnawing through the wire. "Snaring is a cruel and indiscriminate means of wildlife control and we are happy to see further restrictions made on their use," Cox said. These changes mark the first real long-term protection for the wolf anywhere in Ontario where the last municipal bounty for killing wolves was not removed until 1992. "We still need greater protection for wolves throughout the province but, on the whole, it's a good day for wolves and ethical wildlife policies in Ontario," Cox said.
