I do not support this…

I do not support this proposal because there are apparently no scientific data to back up the proposed hunting season and status change for this species.

A few decades ago, Double-crested Cormorants were virtually extirpated from Ontario and have since made an excellent recovery. There are problems with this species in terms of their now-large population size and negative impacts on environments and other vulnerable species. In this respect, culling in the form of opening a hunting season on Double-crested Cormorants may be a reasonable management strategy.

However, this proposal is not a management strategy. With over half of the world's species estimated to be in decline and at risk of extinction, and with bird species being particularly vulnerable, any changes to hunting regulations must be based on robust scientific evidence that includes population estimates, estimates of population trends (increasing, decreasing stable), estimates of effective population size (number of reproducing individuals of each sex in the population), other potential threats to the species, and so on.

I would seriously consider supporting a Double-Crested Cormorant management strategy that involved opening a hunting season on the species if population reduction goals and pouplation stabilization targets were set, but only if these targets were based on sound scientific data including robust population surveys, and if the information was made publicly available as part of a future or modified proposal.

It is irresponsible to propose opening a hunting season on any species without first ensuring the planned season length and bag limits will not cause the population to suffer. As it currently stands this proposal appears to have no data to back it up, and I therefore strongly oppose it.