Trust No One~

 
A magnificent Florida Panther
Picture credit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers



On our news this morning was a completely unexpected revelation.
It came, they said, from the Executive Director of the FWC although, they did not mention Nick Wiley by name.
Was this an accident, or requested?
It seems that Nick Wiley may or may not have been reading the countless ugly stories and reports that have flooded the media for weeks about his new Panther Plan, that nearly had the public calling for his head.
It is also possible that because Rancher Liesa Priddy, who was recently appointed by Rick Scott and whose Cattle Ranch is where Panthers have had an ancestral habitat, that has now been invaded by Cattle Ranchers, like her, was also mentioned.
Priddy’s suggestion that the area is at peak capacity, or carrying load, for Panthers, was quoted in the story this morning as the reason for the new Plan in the first place.
Please read my Post:  Wiley’s Whims   for the entire story.
Now, that she and Wiley are at the center of a wildlife firestorm, Wiley appears to be quickly back pedaling and doing his best to put out the fires.
Today, it was reported that now there is a Second Plan, which will not call for the Florida Panther to be removed from the Endangered Species list, nor they reported, to be allowed to be the object of the next Hunt in this state.
I would love to say that I am over joyed with this news, however, it was this same man, Nick Wiley, who just three short years ago, when the Black Bear was taken off of the Endangered/Threatened list, was adamant that they would NEVER be hunted.
Today as I write this, more than 1,300 Hunting permits have been sold, which may or may not be more than Black Bears that exist here.
This sale of permits has put over $140,000 in the state’s coffers.
A lawsuit by Speak Up Wekiva, to stop the Bear hunt is pending, but it could be tied up in Courts until long after the deeds are all done in October.
Two thoughts come to mind as I write this….
How long will it take to kill all of our Black Bears?
How do you stop hunters out in the deep woods, who will not know if the quota has been reached?
Even yesterday it was said that because it has been 30 years since the last hunt, they are not sure if they will be able to stop at the suggested number in time.
So, the result could be that on the very first day of this hunt, every Black Bear in this state could be annihilated.
My thinking is that this Press Release today about the Panthers, was no accident by Wiley.
It was to divert some of the attention away from the “about to get completely out of control” Bear Hunt in October, that will end yet another Florida  species.
In my mail yesterday, was the sickening news that 26 Panthers have already been killed this year, 17 of them by car strikes.
So, if they wait long enough, they won’t need a Hunt, they will have all been killed.
Nick Wiley and the voting officers on the FFWC do not at this time, have even one molecule of my trust, they will have to re-earn it.
You see, trust comes at a high price in Florida when it comes to our Wildlife who cannot speak, but if they could they would probably say, “Trust no one in Tallahassee, or on the FFWC.”
 
Places to learn more:
State changes course on panther protection
New draft of state panther policy no longer puts focus on livestock
Bear-Hunting Licenses Bring a Fiscal Windfall
1,200 Florida Bear Hunting Permits Sold in Two Days, Tensions Escalate
Nearly 1,200 Permits Sold So Far For Florida Bear Hunt