Santa Rosa Island - Updates??

T264 · Jul 12, 2012

Did they wipe the elk & deer herds out and off of the island? Just curious as I have not heard anything about it in a while. What was the best deer they pulled off of the place in the erradication?

T264

kilbuc · Jul 12, 2012

Yes, they are gone. 1st couple days killed and retrieved, meat processed and donated. Then National parks stated due to budget restraints rest were gunned and left to lay.

from the "Heartland of Wyoming"

Cahunter805 · Jul 12, 2012

Such a shame!!! I still can't believe they are all gone but leave it to our "great" CA state to do something like that.

rmanwill · Jul 12, 2012

Wow, and we would have donated time and/or paid to help and do it right!!!!

arrowone4me · Jul 13, 2012

As stated before....Where's PETA?

Austin · Jul 13, 2012

The animals (kaibab mule deer) were transplanted there close to 90 years ago, therefore they are not native. To the California lawmen, that means they are basically feral and invasive. So they killed them all. They had some great hunts over the past 40 years, I was there 2 years ago and it was truly amazing to see. In order to protect the local terrain, fox, skunk, and mice, they needed to eradicate all ungulates (elk and deer) that were not there following the last ice age...? They were not allowed to transplant them again, because of the CWD scare (the herd never tested positive for any and was genetically pure)

The power of the written idea....

T264 · Jul 13, 2012

Did they shoot them out of helicopters or what? Some "helicpter shooter" probably has a pile of mule deer & elk bone in his garage that would scare you.

T264

downhill · Jul 13, 2012

So shouldn't this set some kind of precedence to get rid of the feral horses that AREN"T native??? Surely they must be stomping on a few rats and mice and keeping them from water also!!

sagebrush · Jul 13, 2012

downhill - I like your thinking. I will volunteer to participate in a mustang reduction program.

wildwilderness · Jul 13, 2012

+1 I can't believe how they will wipe out deer and elk but put up with Feral Horses! We need to have an open season on those!

TR175 · Jul 13, 2012

I am interested in how they transplanted them and how many died in the process. We are scared to move deer from unit yo unit here in UT but they took deer from AZ clear to the coast and produced one of the best hunting opportunities in the world???

Brandon82 · Jul 13, 2012

LAST EDITED ON Jul-13-12 AT 01:24PM (MST)[p]Not to mention what they are doing to the trout in the desolation wilderness in CA. The yellow mountain frog is native up there and the trout are eating the tadpoles so DFG decides that 9 lakes are on the chopping block and are gill netting brooks, browns and rainbows from these lakes.

The trout arent native so whatever, but please take the same approach as the mustangs... its sad that there is such a double standard.. if we are getting rid of non-native species in favor of our native ones then start with the horses!

Wish NDOW and DFG would figure this sh!t out.

YBO · Jul 13, 2012

Dumbphucks. A buddy of mine claims that they missed a couple of ungulates after flying the island recently. Just wondering if the type of wolves that were reintroduced a decade or so ago, are truly indigenous to the western states.

We need an open season on politicians...one a day either sex.

Castnshoot · Jul 13, 2012

Congress finds and declares that wild free-roaming horses and burros are living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West; that they contribute to the diversity of lifeforms within the nation and enrich the lives of the American people." -- December 15, 1971 Congressional Declaration