Farm agency's 'war against predators' killing pets, endangered species inhumanely, paper reports

The job of Wildlife Services, a branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to kill wild animals that are deemed a threat to agriculture, the public and the environment. Lately, the service has also set traps and snares for coyotes, black bears, beavers, mountain lions and wolves. These traps often catch pets or federally protected animals. An investigation by Tom Knudson of The Sacramento Bee found that the agency reveals little about these collateral killings and reports that the practices used to kill animals are best described as "indiscriminate, at odds with science, inhumane and sometimes illegal."

Knudson's detailed investigation found that the agency, since 2000, has accidentally killed 50,000 animals that were not deemed as problems. These include federally protected golden and bald eagles, more than 1,000 dogs and several rare or imperiled species. In addition, since 1987, at least 18 employees and several other people have been exposed to cyanide by triggering spring-loaded traps with poison cartridges. Many people have also been injured during crashes of aerial gunning operations.

Further, Knudson reports several scientific studies have found that "the agency's war against predators ... is altering ecosystems in ways that diminish biodiversity, degrade habitat and invite disease."