What is a "predator derby?" It's a contest, where people compete to see who can kill the most wolves and other animals over a two-day period. What is a predator derby, really? It's a relic, from a time when we didn't know how important wolves are to the health of the American west.
Cabela's and Sportsman's Warehouse -- two major outdoor retailers -- sponsored three wolf-killing derbies in Idaho, held by the misleadingly named Sportsmen for Wildlife. Even worse the fees paid by derby contestants were funneled to support anti-wolf lawyers and lobbyists whose job is to keep wolves off the endangered species list and in the crosshairs.
Grassroots opposition has already convinced Nikon to drop its sponsorship of the predator derbies. Now its time for Cabela's and Sportsman's Warehouse to hear from citizens concerned for wolves and the American west.
Demand that Cabela's and Sportsman's Warehouse stop sponsoring wolf-killing predator derbies.
Dear [
Decision Maker]
As someone who cares about protecting our wildlife and wild places, I am deeply concerned by your company's sponsorship of recent predator derbies held in Idaho by Sportsmen for Wildlife.
I am particularly concerned that the entry fees for these events are now being used to support Sportsmen for Wildlife's Wolf Litigation Fund to keep wolves in Greater Yellowstone and the northern Rockies off the endangered species list.
Like many who enjoy the outdoors, I believe that the decision to remove wolves in Idaho and Montana from the endangered species list was premature and that the legal wrangling of groups like Sportsmen for Wildlife jeopardizes the future of wolves in the northern Rockies and the benefits for other wildlife that come with healthy local wolf populations.
Since wolves were reintroduced to Greater Yellowstone and central Idaho fifteen years ago, we've seen local ecosystems rebound as these top predators helped prevent overgrazing of foliage by elk and deer.
According to the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, there are 150,000 elk in Montana, compared to 90,000 in the mid 1980s when wolves started to make their way back to the state. Wyoming's elk population is up 35% since then to 95,000, while Idaho's is up 5% to 115,000.
For all these reasons, I strongly urge you to withdraw your sponsorship and all support of these predator derbies so long as they target wolves.
Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to your reply.
