Become a model town

I just returned from Los Angeles, and the newspapers had a moving eulogy for P-22, a puma (mountain lion) that captured the hearts of residents after being spotted in the city for years, including under the Hollywood sign and in city parks. Sadly, he was hit by a car and had to be euthanized with “deep regret” and loss of his “transhuman magnificence,” as quoted by Robinson Jeffers in the local paper.

This year, I heard a young mountain lion was killed after killing livestock on a ranch. I’m sure similar cases occur here. I would ask that wildlife rangers first relocate such predators to remote areas, which Colorado has, and not use killing except as a last resort. Many of us love living in Durango because of the wildlife, and I would like for other alternatives to be used when mountain lions or other predators come into conflict with us.

I was dismayed to find Colorado has a year-round season on coyotes. Their main diet is rodents, which can be beneficial in an ecosystem. I propose the coyote hunt should be only part of the year, not all year.  I used to see and hear a couple of coyotes near my home, but no more, and I feel deeply the loss of their presence. Please read “Don Quixote” about a Wyoming rancher who lived with and valued coyotes, and involve yourself with Project Coyote here.

Also, three of only six wolves in Colorado were killed by trophy hunters. Can we vote to stop trophy hunting? The barbaric hunting of wolves still occurs in the Northern Rockies, even though science shows wolves are keystone species that improve the entire health of the ecosystem. In India, a tiger killed a man and the village let the tiger live, because it had been cornered and had little choice. These villagers recognized the magnificence and importance of a tiger. The most moving experiences I have in nature are observing wildlife, such as coming on a bear somersaulting down a slope. Does this value the “transhuman magnificence” of a bear? 

I ask that each of us here value wildlife magnificence and do all we can to protect it. The City of Durango has been working on a sustainability plan, which should include wildlife. I believe we should reduce our growth into wildlife areas and conserve green areas, such as in the Animas Valley where almost all land is for sale. We also cannot continue to grow due to lack of water availability in the future and climate change 

We have a rich town, and the green fields, meadows and forests outside Durango could be under conservation easements to keep it open land and not turned into housing developments. We humans cannot continue growing, and we in Durango could become a model town through careful planning for us and wildlife.

– Margaret Mayer, Durango