Groups Decry Yellowstone Bison Slaughter

BILLINGS, Mont.

Friday, 11 April 2008 00:14:12

By MATTHEW BROWN - Associated Press Writer

Bison advocates and environmental groups requested a moratorium Thursday on the continued slaughter of bison migrating from the west side of Yellowstone National Park.

Since last fall, 1,598 bison seeking food at lower elevations outside the park have been killed or removed under a state-federal livestock disease management program.

With another wave of the animals expected to migrate soon to Montana calving grounds, critics say the slaughter is threatening the viability of Yellowstone's bison herds.

On Thursday, three groups asked Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and five state and federal agencies to halt the slaughter in an area west of the park known as Horse Butte. The Natural Resources Defense Council, Gallatin Wildlife Association and Buffalo Field Campaign said there is little chance bison there could transmit the disease brucellosis to livestock because cattle no longer graze in the area.

"They simply do not know the damage they're causing to the genetic viability of this population," said Stephany Seay with the Buffalo Field Campaign. "The sooner they act the better for them and the better for the buffalo. If they ignore us, we'll take other steps."

The moratorium request follows a report from the Government Accountability Office last week that criticized state and federal agencies for making little progress to stem the slaughter.

The report said a plan adopted eight years ago to slowly increase tolerance for bison outside the park has effectively stalled. The agencies involved _ the Forest Service, Park Service, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks and Montana Department of Livestock _ have failed to come up with an effective brucellosis vaccine and other steps outlined in a 2000 agreement.

About half of Yellowstone's bison test positive for the disease, which can cause pregnant cows to abort their calves. No cattle-to-bison transmissions have been recorded.

Yellowstone spokesman Al Nash said the park was monitoring the health of the park's bison population. He said park officials do not believe this year's slaughter has threatened its viability.

Nash said the park service already has taken steps on the north end of the park to hold some captured bison until they can be released once the snow melts.

Yellowstone's two bison herds make up the largest surviving group of wild bison in the world.

This year's slaughter program _ combined with a public hunt and the removal of some animals for testing _ has cut the park's bison population by more than a third. Park officials have said previously that the herd has rebounded from similar reductions, including after the winter of 2005-06, when more than 1,000 bison were killed.