I would like to take this…

I would like to take this opportunity to express my alarm at the proposal to open a hunting season on the double crested cormorant in Ontario. As you say this is being driven by property owners, commercial, and recreational fishermen. These are not science driven decisions it is simply caving to political pressure. Cormorant numbers are stabilizing after an amazing recovery from the effects of DDT according to Jim Quinn ( Biologist, McMaster) and other biologists who study cormorants. The ministry should always base decisions on science not politics as it puts your credibility at risk.
There is also a high probability of some nasty blow back from the public if this becomes law. The idea that a hunter could shoot and leave an animal to rot is abhorrent to most hunters and should never be allowed. As is the idea that they can be shot while nesting leaving their young to die a grim death. This is not something I could to explain to a child as responsible or ethical behaviour. Nor can you.