Cougars Have a Negligible Effect on U.S
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Government data confirm that cougars have a negligible effect on U.S. cattle & sheep industries In the United States, data show that cougars (Puma concolor, also commonly known as mountain lions) kill few cattle and sheep. Livestock predation data collected by various governmental bodies differ significantly, however. The most recent data published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA)1 indicate losses many times greater than those collected by states. For instance, the USDA’s cattle loss data to cougars are at least 69 percent greater than those reported by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The USDA’s methodology involves collecting data from a few mostly unverified sources, which the USDA then extrapolated statewide without calculating standard errors or using models to test relationships among various mortality factors.2 This contravenes the scientific method and results in exaggerated livestock losses attributed to native carnivores and dogs. Unfortunately, this misinformation informs public policies that harm cougars and other native carnivores. The Humane Society of the United States analyzed the USDA’s embellished predation numbers. Their data show that farmers and ranchers lose nine times more cattle and sheep to health, weather, birthing and theft problems than to all predators combined. In the USDA reports, “predators” include mammalian carnivores (e.g., cougars, wolves and bears), avian carnivores (e.g., eagles and hawks) and domestic dogs. Domestic dogs, according to the USDA’s data, kill 35 percent more cattle than cougars, and 65 percent more sheep. According to the USDA, in the states where cougars live, they cause far fewer than one percent of unwanted cattle-calf (hereinafter “cattle”) and sheep-lamb (hereinafter “sheep”) losses. We present our analysis of the USDA’s data sets on cattle and sheep deaths in cougar-occupied states and cougars’ effects on the national cattle and sheep industries. We compare the USDA’s data to those of other governmental bodies that also collect this information, which corroborates our findings that while the USDA’s predation figures are significantly exaggerated, they are nominal when compared to livestock mortalities from health, weather, theft and birthing problems (we refer to these livestock losses as “maladies”). We describe humane, efficacious and cost-effective non-lethal methods for cattle and sheep protection, and show that only a fraction of cattle and sheep growers in cougar-occupied states use non- lethal methods to protect their herds—even as numerous published scientific studies have found that non-lethal methods to protect non-native cattle and sheep from native carnivores are more efficacious and cost-effective than the constant slaughter of wildlife that is ubiquitously employed. I. Cougars’ legal status varies across their range Once distributed across the U.S., breeding populations of cougars exist in only a fraction of their historic range in 16 states, including the western U.S., with small populations in the Midwest, and two contested subspecies, one in Florida, the Florida panther (Puma concolor coryi), and the other on the eastern seaboard from the U.S. into Canada, the Eastern cougar (Puma concolor couguar). Only Florida panthers are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA); the FWS recently delisted Eastern cougars. California banned trophy hunting of cougars in 1991. Except in Florida and California, cougars are killed by both trophy hunters and predator-control agents. Dated: Mar. 6, 2019 2 II. USDA data show most cattle and sheep die from health, weather and other maladies USDA reports show that the primary causes of cattle and sheep losses in the U.S. come from health problems, weather, theft and other maladies, but not from wild native carnivores, including cougars.3 Nationwide, the USDA’s data show that nine times more cattle and sheep died from maladies such as illnesses, birthing problems, weather, poisoning and theft (3,990,035), than from all mammalian or avian predators together (474,965). Of the 119 million cattle and sheep inventoried in the U.S. in 2014 and 2015, fewer than one percent (0.4 percent) died from mammalian and avian predators combined. Figs. 1 and 3. Of the total unwanted cattle deaths in cougar states, between 83 percent and 97 percent came as a result of maladies. Fig. 5b. A. Despite being inflated, USDA data show that few cattle die from cougars, other native carnivores or dogs In 2015, the USDA inventoried 112.2 million cattle in the U.S.4 Of that number, 4.5 million died from all unwanted causes. Most of those deaths, 3.6 million (3.2 percent of U.S. cattle inventory) stemmed from health-related maladies, weather and theft. Mortalities from all predators amounted to 280,570 cattle deaths, representing a mere 0.3 percent of the U.S. cattle inventory—with cougars taking 0.01 percent of the U.S. cattle inventory. Figs. 1 and 2. 3 B. Despite being inflated, USDA data show that few sheep die from cougars, other native carnivores or dogs In 2015, the U.S. sheep inventory amounted to 6.8 million individuals. Health, weather, poison, theft and other maladies were responsible for the majority of ranchers’ and farmers’ losses: 390,605 sheep deaths (5.7 percent of the U.S. sheep inventory). In comparison, native mammalian carnivores, raptors and domestic dogs killed 194,395 sheep or 2.9 percent of the U.S. sheep inventory, with sheep losses from cougars amounting to 0.14 percent of the U.S. sheep inventory.5 Figs. 3 and 4. Predation of sheep is greater than of cattle, likely because sheep have smaller body size and lack predator-avoidance skills.6 Despite this, the USDA’s data show few sheep growers use non-lethal methods to protect their flocks (see: Figs. 39 and 40 below). Fewer than 20 percent of sheep growers in cougar- occupied states used all non-lethal methods available to them to protect their flocks (see: Section V and VI Figs. 38 and 39). PHOTO BY: JIM ZUCKERMAN 4 5 III. Even in cougar-occupied states, USDA’s data show nominal losses of cattle and sheep to predators • Cougars are regularly found in 16 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. In these states, the USDA found that cougars killed 16,595 cattle (2015) and sheep (2014) from a combined inventory of 62.4 million. In other words, cougars killed 0.03 percent of the cattle and sheep inventories in the states where they are present. Figs. 4 and 5, 7-37. Data from four state wildlife departments, however, show far fewer losses due to cougars than do the USDA’s data. See Section IV. • In all cougar-occupied states, these native cats preyed on less than one percent of states’ cattle inventories. Fig. 5a. In comparison, deaths from maladies in cougar-occupied states involved an average of 92 percent of all unwanted cattle losses. Fig. 5b. • In all cougar-occupied states, cougars preyed on less than one percent of states’ sheep inventories, except for in Nevada. Fig. 6a. In comparison, deaths from maladies in cougar states involved an average of 57 percent of all unwanted sheep losses. Fig. 6b. • The USDA failed to use verified livestock loss data—that is, they largely relied on livestock growers to tell them how their domestic animals died without confirmation by USDA representatives. Therefore, some cattle or sheep losses that the USDA attributed to cougars, coyotes and bears are likely inflated or misidentified. For example, in its cattle loss report, the USDA reported that growers lost cattle to grizzly bears in six states where grizzly bears are absent or never occurred historically (Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Nevada, Oregon and Wisconsin).7 This indicates that the USDA’s data are unverified and therefore flawed and unreliable. Fig. 5a. U.S. Cattle inventory and losses by state (Unverified data from the USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 2017 (Data year 2015)) Cattle losses from maladies Percent of cattle Cattle Percent of cattle inventory Cattle losses State (illness, birthing problems inventory losses from inventory losses from maladies from cougars etc.) cougars AZ 1,095,000 37,880 3.46% 764 0.07% CA 6,110,000 230,720 3.78% 1,907 0.03% CO 3,350,000 109,920 3.28% 208 0.01% FL 2,110,000 54,570 2.59% 475 0.02% ID 3,020,000 89,050 2.95% 108 0.00% MT 3,995,000 80,730 2.02% 384 0.01% NE 7,795,000 194,150 2.49% 186 0.00% NV 578,000 14,370 2.49% 411 0.07% NM 1,755,000 60,500 3.45% 1,476 0.08% ND 2,440,000 46,820 1.92% 195 0.01% OR 1,780,000 53,470 3.00% 901 0.05% SD 5,340,000 133,840 2.51% 232 0.00% TX 13,890,000 472,220 3.40% 183 0.00% UT 1,135,000 18,440 1.62% 241 0.02% WA 1,423,000 42,730 3.00% 225 0.02% WY 1,880,000 35,600 1.89% 204 0.01% Total 57,696,000 1,675,010 2.90% 8,100 0.01% 6 Fig. 5b. U.S. Unwanted cattle losses by cause and state (Unverified data, USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 2017 (Data year 2015)) Cattle losses from maladies Cattle losses from all Total Cattle losses from cougars (illness, birthing problems, etc.) predators unwanted States Percent of total Percent of total cattle Percent of total Number unwanted cattle Number unwanted cattle Number losses unwanted cattle losses losses losses AZ 42,000 37,880 90.19% 4,120 9.81% 764 1.82% CA 240,000 230,720 96.13% 9,280 3.87% 1,907 0.79% CO 115,000 109,920 95.58% 5,080 4.42% 208 0.18% FL 65,000 54,570 83.95% 10,430 16.05% 475 0.73% ID 93,000 89,050 95.75% 3,950 4.25% 108 0.12% MT 88,000 80,730 91.74% 7,270 8.26% 384 0.44% NE 200,000 194,150 97.08% 5,850 2.93% 186 0.09% NV 16,500 14,370 87.09% 2,130 12.91% 411 2.49% NM 70,000 60,500 86.43% 9,500 13.57% 1,476 2.11% ND 52,000 46,820 90.04% 5,180 9.96% 195 0.38% OR 61,000 53,470 87.66% 7,530 12.34% 901 1.48% SD 140,010 133,840 95.59% 6,170 4.41% 232 0.17% TX 530,010 472,220 89.10% 57,790 10.90% 183 0.03% UT 21,000 18,440 87.81% 2,560 12.19% 241 1.15% WA 44,010 42,730 97.09% 1,280 2.91% 225 0.51% WY 39,000 35,600 91.28% 3,400 8.72% 204 0.52% Total 1,816,530 1,675,010 92.21% 141,520 7.79% 8,100 0.45% Fig.