Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Guest column: Trapping has no place in a stressed-out ecosystem

More than 40% of Nevada is classified as being in an “exceptional drought,” the definition of which states that “ecosystem viability is threatened.”

While Nevada has the third-most species at risk of extinction in the United States, wildlife managers continue to allow the unlimited trapping of vulnerable and critical species such as beavers, otters and bobcats — not to mention all the non-target animals trapped.

Wildlife have endured unprecedented drought for years, and it is my expectation that the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) do all that it can to maintain populations under such stress. Instead, motivated by a small population of trappers and outdated values, NDOW ignores evidence of population declines and continues to promote reckless killing on over 59 million acres of public land. There are no arguments for economic contributions to conservation — trappers contribute less than 1% of NDOW’s annual license revenue.

More than 100,000 animals have been trapped in Nevada in the past 10 years. This killing is not sustainable. “Harvest” data — the number of animals of each species taken from the wild each year — is the only way that NDOW tracks populations. At least seven species have demonstrated substantial 10-year declines in “harvest,” and no efforts have been made to investigate the cause of these declining numbers. While NDOW claims to “prevent wildlife from becoming threatened or endangered,” its policies do not back up that claim.

Each species in an ecosystem maintains a specific niche that provides distinct benefits and interactions with the environment. Many of the “furbearers” — including foxes, bobcats and badgers — consume small rodents, acting as pest control agents to keep populations of mice and rats in check. Beavers may be especially essential in times of drought, as they have the unique ability to raise water tables. By building dams, beavers keep water where it is, and ultimately saturate the soil and promote plant growth. In some states, the economic cost of drought on agricultural systems has surpassed billions of dollars. A beaver pelt can be sold in Nevada for an average of $11.59.

NDOW maintains no bag limits, which means you can trap and kill as many animals as you want during trapping season. This includes the kit fox, which has been designated as vulnerable by the Nevada Division of Natural Heritage. This population of huge-eared, cat-sized foxes is in decline and is classified as critically imperiled in at least three states, including neighboring Oregon. If this trapping free-for-all continues amidst uninhabitable conditions, we cannot be surprised when more and more species face imminent threats of extinction.

Amid historic drought and climate change, maintaining resilient ecosystems has never been more important. Trapping has wiped out species in the past; beavers almost went extinct in the 1900s due to the fur trade. It is essential that Nevada wildlife managers carefully monitor population trends and recognize the damage done by trapping. With public lands making up 84% of Nevada, a ban on public lands trapping could make a huge difference.

NDOW must recognize the dire situation facing wildlife. It’s time to protect Nevada’s wildlife and rethink our relationship with the natural world.

Tessa Archibald has a degree in animal policy and has analyzed Nevada furbearer populations as an intern for WildEarth Guardians.