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For Immediate Release
County Officials Force Private Property Owners to Poison Wildlife
Landowners Volunteered Land For Endangered Black-Footed Ferret Reintroduction
Russell Srings, KS -- County commissioners plan to spread poison across 10,000 acres of private property in Logan County, Kansas against the will of two landowners, as part of a prairie dog eradication program authorized by a century-old state law. The wildlife-friendly ranchers who own this land refuse to eradicate all their prairie dogs because of the importance of prairie dogs to a healthy prairie ecosystem.
The county sheriff recently delivered a written notice from the county commissioners to the landowners, warning them that poisoning will begin any day, accompanied by armed guards if necessary.
"Prairie dogs are essential for healthy grasslands," said 73-year-old rancher Larry Haverfield, "and they make this area prime for all the eagles, hawks, swift foxes, and burrowing owls who already live here. It makes no sense for the county to spread poison on my land, because killing prairie dogs can be fatal to all of the wildlife that lives here."
Haverfield and neighbor Gordon Barnhardt have also volunteered their land to restore endangered black-footed ferrets to Kansas. Ferrets rely on prairie dogs as their main food source and on empty prairie dog burrows for shelter. "If you want to save black-footed ferrets, you've got to have prairie dogs," added Haverfield.
Haverfield and Barnhardt have a signed agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reintroduce black-footed ferrets onto their properties. But the county's poisoning order threatens this effort, and may threaten Haverfield's ability to stay on the land because he will be responsible for reimbursing the county for the $200,000 or more poisoning bill. This bill could force them off of the land they have been ranching for decades.
Audubon of Kansas, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Kansas State University, Defenders of Wildlife, Prairie Wildlife Research and others are willing to dedicate a similar amount of funding to work with the ranchers to strengthen these voluntary landowner partnerships, address the neighbors' concerns, and conserve wildlife.
"For years, the government has been encouraging private landowners to take the lead for wildlife conservation on their lands," said Jamie Rappaport Clark, executive vice president of Defenders of Wildlife. "These ranchers have chosen to engage in cooperative conservation on their properties, with the hopes of recovering the endangered black-footed ferret. They should be rewarded, not punished for their good stewardship of the land."
Haverfield and Barnhardt together have the largest prairie dog colony complex in the state, which draws an abundance of rare species, including ferruginous hawks, bald and golden eagles, swift fox, and burrowing owls to the area. These ranchers work to keep the prairie dogs away from the edges of the property, so as not to bother neighbors who do not want prairie dogs on their land. With assistance from Defenders of Wildlife and Audubon of Kansas, the ranchers are exploring legal options to keep prairie dogs on their ranchlands.
"By destroying the prairie dog, the county is hindering the recovery of the black-footed ferret, one of the west's great conservation success stories," said Ron Klataske, executive director of Audubon of Kansas. "These ranchers have graciously volunteered to help reintroduce black-footed ferrets to the area, and we hope the county will work with Fish and Wildlife Service to facilitate ferret recovery, not obstruct it."
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Defenders of Wildlife is a leading
nonprofit conservation organization recognized as one of the nation's most
progressive advocates for wildlife and its habitat. With more than 500,000
members and supporters, Defenders of Wildlife is an effective leader on
endangered species issues. For more information, go to
www.defenders.org.
Audubon of Kansas, with 5,000 members across the
state, works to promote the enjoyment, understanding, protection, and
restoration of Kansas' natural ecosystems. For more information, go to
www.audubonofkansas.org.
