Re: ERO number 013-4124 I…

Re: ERO number 013-4124

I wish to state my very strong opposition to a double-crested cormorant hunting season and all other aspects of the current proposal.

Cormorants numbers have recovered in recent years following the near extirpation of the species in Ontario due to DDT and other pollutants. They are once again playing an important role in the province’s ecosystems. They must not be devastated once again – this time by a deliberate slaughter.

I oppose the proposal for many reasons:

a. Cormorants are an important part of the Great Lakes ecosystem. In addition they help keep invasive species such as round gobies in check.

b. There is no evidence that the cormorant population is currently on the increase. Rather the proposal itself states that the population in the Great Lakes region is stable or slightly declining.

c. No scientific evidence or rational is given in the proposal to support the proposed a hunt.

d. Permitting individual hunter to kill 50 cormorants per day (14,000 per year) is obscene, and will result in a slaughter.

e. A cormorant slaughter will result in the deaths of other species that share the habitats and nesting colonies with cormorants.

f. A hunting season that spans the summer season is a major safety concern for the large number of Ontario residents and tourists that are outdoors hiking, birding, boating and canoeing, in some cases in close proximity to cormorants or their colonies.

In summary, I ask that the proposal be rejected.