NY Times:
“Feral Cattle in New Mexico Will Be Shot From Helicopters
“U.S. agencies have enlisted aerial shooters to cull about 150 cattle that trample habitats and threaten hikers in the Gila Wilderness. Cattle growers say the plan violates laws and regulations.
“For the second year in a row, shooters in helicopters will gun down an estimated 150 feral cattle that are trampling habitats in the Gila Wilderness, a sprawling undeveloped area of more than a half million acres within the Gila National Forest in New Mexico…
“The plaintiffs say that if their privately owned cattle are killed, it would be ‘nearly impossible’ to know because the agencies intend to let the carcasses decompose where they die.
“Loren Patterson, the association’s president, said he wished the authorities would address the cause of the growing feral cattle population by taking measures such as repairing shoddy fences that allow cattle to enter the Gila Wilderness.
“’They are not looking at solving the reason the cattle is there,’ Mr. Patterson said, adding that for two consecutive years, federal authorities were instead opting for lethal removal as quick fixes.”
Read the full article here.
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