Includes bibliographical references (pages 259-330) and index.
Contents:
1. "The wolves we saw them everywhere" -- 2. "Constant warfare waged against them" -- 3. "Economically injurious species of the fauna" -- 4. "Biologically unsound and exceedingly dangerous" -- 5. "The fundamental naturalness of predation" -- 6. "The grand opera of primitive nature" -- 7. "A splendid game animal" -- Epilogue: "It's nice to have them around".
Summary:
"It used to be: If you see a coyote, shoot it. Better yet, a bear. Best of all, perhaps? A wolf. How we've gotten from there to here, where such predators are reintroduced, protected, and in some cases revered, is the story Frank Van Nuys tells in Varmints and Victims, a thorough and enlightening look at the evolution of predator management in the American West. As controversies over predator control rage on, Varmints and Victims puts the debate into historical context, tracing the West's relationship with charismatic predators like grizzlies, wolves, and cougars from unquestioned eradication to ambivalent recovery efforts. Van Nuys offers a nuanced and balanced perspective on an often-emotional topic, exploring the intricacies of how and why attitudes toward predators have changed over the years. Focusing primarily on wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, and grizzly bears, he charts the logic and methods of management practiced by ranchers, hunters, and federal officials. Broad in scope and rich in detail, this work brings new, much-needed clarity to the complex interweaving of economics, politics, science, and culture in the formulation of ideas about predator species, and in policies directed at these creatures. In the process, we come to see how the story of predator control is in many ways the story of the American West itself, from early attempts to connect the frontier region to mainstream American life and economics to present ideas about the nature and singularity of the region"-- Provided by publisher. "Unlike books that have focused on the extinction or eradication of one particular animal in the West (such as buffalo, wolves, or bears), Frank Van Nuys's book is the first comprehensive examination of predatory control efforts in the West. Focusing primarily on wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, and grizzly bears--the predators Americans feared and grappled with the most--Van Nuys charts the logic and methods of predator control and the ranchers, hunters, and federal officials who managed it. In the process, Van Nuys shows that the story of predator control is the story of the American West itself, from early attempts to connect the region to mainstream American life and economics to changing demographic patterns and opinions on wildlife conservation in the 21st century"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.