Wildlife Section PUBLIC…

Wildlife Section
PUBLIC INPUT COORDINATOR
Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry
Policy Division
Species Conservation Policy Branch
300 Water Street
Peterborough Ontario
K9J 8M5
Phone: (705) 755-1940
Fax: (705) 755-2901

Dear Sir/Madame,

I have read EBR posting 013-4124 on the proposed change in hunting regulations to allow hunting of cormorants.

We own a cottage property on Lake Nipissing and have observed the increase in the cormorant population through the 1990s and early 2000s. The population now appears to have stabilized and I have heard from reliable MNRF sources that the population is declining. That is the normal result of an initial dramatic population increase that eventually slows and reverses. Fish populations are stressed, it is true, and most sources agree that there are two major human factors: (1) sport fishing that exceeds daily catch limits and (2) “rogue” native commercial fishers who set nets illegally. Investigations of cormorant food sources and how they affect the food chain of sport fish show that cormorants do not affect the sport fishery. Even if a hunt were to be allowed, the details such as 50 per day, that it will occur all through the summer, that hunters are exempt from spoilage regulations are unconscionable and irresponsible. The prospects of hearing shotguns throughout the summer, or seeing carcasses of rotting birds floating on the water are neither acceptable nor in synch with standard hunting ethics. The purpose of this is not to hunt for the purpose of sustenance (that is having a meal). The purpose indeed appears to be very clear: the elimination of the species. And why? To satisfy a small group of people who feel mistakenly threatened by another species. Cormorants are a very intriguing bird: generally quiet other than their muttering to each other on hot summer days, just going about their business. They deserve better. A more logical strategy is for MNRF to hire more COs to enforce fishing regulations.