LETTER: Wildlife Society group supports trapping

The Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society supports continued regulated trapping on public and private lands for sustained harvest of furbearers and other non-game as a method of managing Montana’s wildlife.

The Wildlife Society is an international professional organization of scientists, managers and others which promotes science-based sustainable management, conservation, and research for wildlife populations and habitats. The Montana Chapter believes that regulated trapping on Montana’s lands provides a biologically sustainable, safe and ecologically sound method of managing wildlife.

In Montana, trapping regulations have been publically discussed and adopted as law by the Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission for 100 years. Trappers must adhere to an extensive set of trapping rules. Regulations and quotas are based on professional wildlife science and data from populations in Montana to provide sustainable population levels. Trapping is a tool for wildlife damage management programs or for wildlife research. Regulated trapping can provide important data for understanding changes in wildlife distribution or status of populations.

Trapping provides opportunities for fostering stewardship values and connecting to the outdoors. The Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society promotes trapper education programs that inform about best trapping practices, ethics, values and responsibilities. —Mark Ruby, Kalispell, on behalf of the executive board of the Montana Chapter of The Wildlife Society