I am curious if discussions regarding the ethics of immunocontraception for
wildlife management has occurred at some point on this list? If so, where
in the archives could this thread be found? If not, I would be very
interested in moving such a thread along.
There has already been a good deal of discussion between hunters and
anti-hunters about the RELATIVE merits and drawbacks of immunocontraception
and sport hunting as management tools. However, discussion about the ethics
of wildlife birth-control is very hard to find.
It seems such a discussion might focus on a few areas.
Practical matters:
- PZP, the most promising wildlife immunocontraceptive, is made from pig
ovaries. These ovaries are not obtained solely from those pigs who decided
to pursue family/litter planning.
- Live-trapping wild animals to hand-inject contraceptive is stressful to
the animal and can lead to stress-related mortality in some cases.
Wildlife rights:
- From an A-R perspective, how are wildlife reproductive rights handled? Do
such rights even exist?
- What about pursuit of happiness? (In reference to those deer and feral
horses & burros who are American citizens)
- Any different from a animal welfare perspective?
Cleveland Amory apparently wasn't too concerned about rights issues when he
stated, "Prey will be separated from predator, and there will be no
overpopulation or starvation because all will be controlled by sterilization
or implant."
Other angles:
In general, where do enviro-ethics thinkers (that's means you) fall out on
the use of biotechnology for long-term management of wildlife populations?
What does this say about our relationship with the natural world?
Looking forward to hearing to hearing your thoughts.
-Joshua
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