Super Rare And Almost Extinct Grey Wolf Spotted In Iowa For The First Time In 89 Years - Is Promptly Shot And Killed On Sight
The Guardian- The DNA testing has confirmed that an animal shot in February in Iowa’s Buchanan County was in fact a wolf, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. This is the first confirmed grey wolf (Canis lupus) in the US state since 1925. ??Experts believe the wolf likely travelled south from Wisconsin or Minnesota, the latter of which has the largest wolf population in the lower 48. ??The Iowa wolf, which was a 65-70 pound healthy female, was shot and killed in February of this year by a hunter who mistook it for a coyote. Although wolves remain a protected species in Iowa, the hunter was not cited, because he believed the animal to be a coyote and has cooperated with authorities, including bringing the wolf to them in the first place. ??”I was surprised but not that surprised,” DNA specialist Vince Evelsizer told the Gazette. “Large animals can cover great distances, and state lines mean nothing to them.”
God damn it. Classic us. One of the most rare and almost-extinct animals crosses into our borders for the first time in almost nine decades and what do we do? Capture it, nurture it and assure that the species doesn’t get wiped off the face of the Earth for the rest of eternity? Or maybe even do the normal thing and, in the words of The Beatles, let it be and let the wild animal be a wild animal? Nope, we cock back and shoot to kill without thinking twice. And people wonder why Iowa can’t have nice things. It’s because of stuff like this. It’s a constant seesaw living here. We take multiple steps forward (leading the world in wind power, feeding America with our crops, my Charlotte Hornets Starter jacket) but then we take one giant step backwards (shooting first and asking question later when the question is “Did I just end an animal’s whole existence?). Not much to say now other than, our bad. This one’s on us.
In this guy’s defense, how the fuck is he supposed to tell the difference between a wolf and a coyote? I’m by no means a hunter but do they really look that different from one another? I feel like that’s a hard difference to spot. Like we’re not talking about the difference between a deer and a moose here. Wolves and coyotes are the same animal in my mind. Sometimes in the morning when I’m not wearing glasses my dog comes bounding into the room and I can’t tell if it’s my loving dog coming to cuddle or if it’s Jon Snow’s wolf from GOT coming to rip out my throat and leave me for dead. So I kinda know where this hunter is coming from I guess.