WELLFLEET, Mass. - The Humane Society of the United States
(HSUS) will testify to the animal welfare abuses inherent in
pheasant stocking when it addresses the advisory commission of
the Cape Cod National Seashore tomorrow. The HSUS is asking the
committee to ban the release of captive-raised pheasants within
the park. This year, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries
and Wildlife released approximately 600 pheasants within the
boundaries of the Seashore.
The HSUS has opposed pheasant stocking on the National
Seashore since 1994, because it is inconsistent with National
Park System policy, which discourages the introduction of
exotic species. Pheasants are native to Asia, not the United
States.
The park released an official environmental assessment that
suggests that farm-raised pheasants do not survive an entire
season once released on the Seashore. Those that hunters do not
kill die of starvation, predation, or vehicle collisions.
"Not only is this practice inconsistent with Park Service
policy, but it caters to the lowest common denominator of the
hunting community ? those who want an easy kill and a trophy to
take home," said Jessica Almy, wildlife advocate for the HSUS
Cape Wildlife Center. "The pheasants are raised in pens where
they're so crowded the farmers put blinders on them to prevent
them from plucking out each other's feathers. Then, they're
released immediately before the hunting season opens, ensuring
that they are extremely disoriented. Most of the birds can't
even forage on their own, let alone fend for themselves in the
wild. They are little more than animated targets, doomed to die
within weeks at the hands of hunters or as a result of
predators, vehicles or the onset of winter."
Half of the birds studied in the park's environmental
assessment died within three weeks of release. None lived past
three months.
The Seashore advisory commission has no regulatory powers
but serves to advise the superintendent on issues of concern.
It is comprised of representatives of each town within the
Seashore, as well as representatives of the state and the
federal government. The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and
Wildlife and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) will also discuss the pheasant
stocking program at the commission?s February meeting.
