Comment
In general I think having the cormorant as a game bird is fine, but what is proposed is way over the top, and would lead to extirpation of the species very quickly.
The season is far too long, and limits much to large. With no requirement to collect the bird, there is no way to enforce limits either since one could shoot hundreds and a conservation officer would have no means to prove overhunting.
Also cormorants nest with other non-game species, including species-at-risk. Just the act of hunting would cause species-at-risk to abandon colonies.
Additionally the claims this is trying to address have very little to no scientific merit. Very few of the fish it eats are desirable to anglers, and human-created habitat loss is far more detrimental and widespread than cormorant colonies.
I would only support this if the scope is scaled down greatly to a far more conservative approach. A season that does not overlap with breeding, and is more in line with what is expected of duck hunting -- a requirement to collect, and smaller limits, would be desirable.
Submitted January 3, 2019 11:23 AM
Comment on
Proposal to establish a hunting season for double-crested cormorants in Ontario
ERO number
013-4124
Comment ID
16569
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Comment status