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Officials hopeful they won't have to truck renegade bison
HELENA, Mont. (AP)--Officials said June 4 that a renegade group of Yellowstone National Park bison appear to be cooperating with the latest hazing effort and won't have to be trucked to a different part of the park. The 300 or so bison made a stir in late May after livestock officials decided to send them to slaughter. The decision created an uproar among opponents anticipating the slaughter of nearly 100 calves--some just a week old. A slaughter of that size would be unprecedented, they said. State and federal officials worked out a plan to haze the animals back into Yellowstone National Park one more time, despite earlier hazing that failed. Gov. Brian Schweitzer and Suzanne Lewis, park superintendent, then announced an arrangement that would allow the animals to be loaded onto trucks in the West Yellowstone area and taken to the park's northern region if they came out again in early June. Hal Harper, Schweitzer's chief policy adviser, said the animals appear to be moving to the interior of the park all by themselves. "Things are looking good so far," Harper said. "Things are back to normal for at least the time being." Harper said avoiding calf slaughter was important to everyone involved. A Buffalo Field Campaign spokeswoman said the group has been closely watching the progress and hopes that state and federal officials will take down the trap they erected to capture the bison. The group, which advocates for the bison in Yellowstone, was pleased a slaughter had been avoided. But spokeswoman Stephany Seay said a long-term solution is needed. "Overall, slaughter and hazing are not good options," she said. "Habitat, year-round habitat, is what we need to focus on in Montana." Ranchers support the current working agreement that calls for the bison to stay in the park, and to be slaughtered when they leave. Tensions heightened after brucellosis was found in a herd of cattle in the state last month. Another case would cost the state its brucellosis-free status, requiring more testing of cattle to detect the disease, which causes cows to abort. Brucellosis could also lead to restrictions on out-of-state transport of cattle. Bison and other Yellowstone wildlife can carry the disease. Date: 6/13/07
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