Another Helicopter Crashes During $100 Million US Wildlife Cull

25/04/2008 14:08:16 Accidents Mount as National Review of Aerial Gunning Safety Underway

April 2008. A crew out hunting coyotes crashed their helicopter in Nevada, according to WildEarth Guardians and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). This latest accident adds to a rising total of crashes and fuels growing calls to end aerial shooting of coyotes and other predators.

In this latest incident, the helicopter lost power as it circled a wounded coyote in an attempt to inflict a fatal shot. Fortunately the gunner and pilot escaped without major injuries as the chopper was hovering at only twenty feet above the ground at the time of the crash.

$100 Million Per Year Spent on Killing Wildlife
This crash would be the ninth aerial gunning accident recorded in Nevada alone since 1990. The lion’s share of aerial gunning takes place as part of a $100 million a year federal program called Wildlife Services, an arm of the U.S. Department of Agricultures. In 2006, Wildlife Services killed 35,505 animals by aerial gunning, including badgers, bobcats, red foxes, grey wolves and even domestic housecats. In 2006 (the latest available data), Wildlife Services in Nevada reported 4,665 coyotes killed through aerial-gunning, the highest such total for any state.


‘The sheer number of accidents involving aerial gunning of wildlife is stunning,’ said Wendy Keefover-Ring of WildEarth Guardians, which organized the petitions urging both South Dakota and Wildlife Services to end their programs, pointing out that aerial gunning may actually make problems worse by causing coyotes to compensate for deaths by either bearing larger litters or permitting more animals in the pack to breed. ‘Apart from being inherently dangerous, aerial gunning is one of the least effective and efficient ways to minimize any coyote-related losses.’

107 Recorded Crashes
In aerial hunts, pilots are often flying at low altitudes with little margin for error. In 107 plane or helicopter crashes recorded by the groups, distracted pilots have flown into power lines, trees and land formations. In some instances, gunners have shot their own aircraft or bullet casings have become lodged in the cabin’s mechanical workings.

‘The wisdom of strafing wildlife from aircraft becomes more questionable with each new accident,’ stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, noting federal statistics documenting the very marginal role wildlife plays in livestock losses. ‘Aerial gunners should be grounded until the national safety review is completed.’