Defender Radio and The Switch

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Episode 331: Simply (smelly) skunks Aug 23, 2016

Show notes

When it comes to skunks, most of us have one of two images in our head. The first is the stinky animal we avoid at all costs. The other… well, the other is a little unrealistic.

The striped predators are surprisingly charming, playful, and loving animals – from a distance. And as a common fur-bearer in urban areas, they can often end up getting into trouble.

Fortunately, there are wildlife rehabilitators like the Wildlife Rescue Association in Burnaby, British Columbia, who are always ready to leap into action to help critters that find themselves injured due to human activity. And to tell us more about skunks – and some of the issues they face this time of year – we were joined by Janelle Vandeerbeek of the WRA.

Episode 330: Wolves in the crosshairs Aug 17, 2016

Show notes

Woodland caribou aren't doing too well in Alberta. Two herds specifically, those in the Little Smoky and A La Peche ranges, are at risk of extirpation, or local extinction. Under federal endangered species legislation, Alberta is required to take action. Sadly, this has put wolves in the crosshairs of poor policy and planning.

Recently, a proposal that would lengthen the campaign of wolf killing in an unscientific attempt to prevent losses to the herds, as well as ignore critical changes to habitat through resource exploitation, was fought by a group of wildlife advocates, headed by Wolf Awareness Inc.

To discuss the natural history of Alberta's wolves, the potentially disastrous proposal being considered by the province, and what wolf lovers around the world can do to stop it, Defender Radio was joined by Sadie Parr, executive director of Wolf Awareness Inc.

Episode 329: Algonquin's Wolves Aug 08, 2016

Show notes

The provincial park is home to the Eastern wolf – now often referred to as Algonquin Wolves. These wolves are considered a threatened species and, within the park and a buffer zone, receive protections from hunting and trapping. Given the difficulty in identifying an Algonquin wolf from a coyote or a mix of the two, these protections extend to the similar looking canids.

But studies are showing that as soon as the wolves leave these protective enclaves, be it chasing prey or searching for new territories, they quickly become victims of hunters and trappers. Can select areas of protection truly help restore the Algonquin wolf's population to healthy levels, or will connected buffers and larger areas of land be necessary?

To talk about the situation facing the Algonquin wolf – as well as Ontario's coyotes, Defender Radio was joined by Hannah Barron, Director of Wildlife Conservation Campaigns for Earthroots.

Episode 328: How to rescue BC's rangers Jul 11, 2016

Show notes

Across BC's vast landscape is over 14 million hectares of protected lands and provincial parks. Tourists from around the world flock to these beautiful, picturesque destinations, bringing hundreds of millions of dollars to the economy.

And there are only seven people to protect it all.

The Wilderness Committee, a BC-based NGO recently sent out a press release that outlined the dire straights of the BC Parks ranger program, noting that there are fewer park rangers than there are critically endangered spotted owls left in the province.

To discuss what this means, what the consequences truly are, and how the public can help rescue the rangers, Defender Radio was joined by Gwen Barlee of The Wilderness Committee.

Episode 327: Mysterious Marmots Jul 04, 2016

Show notes

As many as 30 Vancouver Island Marmots are presumed dead after their embedded transmitters failed to activate following their hibernation this spring. The Vancouver-area media picked up on this story and made it national news – after all, people in the area have loved them for years.

But for the rest of Canada, the coverage of 30 missing rodents left us scratching our heads. What are Vancouver Island Marmots? Why are people so interested in them? What makes them different from other marmots all across the country? And what difference would it make if they lived on Vancouver Island or not?

To get answers to these questions and many more, Defender Radio was joined by Adam Taylor, Executive Director of The Marmot Recovery Foundation.

Episode 326: The BS in BSL Jun 23, 2016

Show notes

From Stubby, the highly decorated canine soldier in World War One, to Pete the Pup, who tagged along with the Little Rascals, pit bull like dogs were once a loyal friend and family pet. But due to media sensationalism, reactionary politics, and crippling bias, they are being outlawed and ostracized.

Recently, communities within Quebec and La Belle Province itself have proposed numerous actions they say will protect citizens from dangerous dogs – but most of these actions are simply breed specific legislation. Defender Radio was today joined by two special guests – Anita Kapuscinska of the Montreal SPCA to speak about legislation in Quebec, and Dr. Karen Overall, a veterinary specialist and researcher, to discuss myths and facts about dogs and pit bull-like dogs around the world.

Episode 325: Uncertainty, certainly Jun 14, 2016

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We began to tentatively celebrate when earlier this month the Auditor General of British Columbia revealed there would be an investigation into the trophy hunting of grizzly bears.

The exact notification, found on the AG website, read the investigation would be to, "determine if the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations are effectively managing the grizzly bear population in BC."

The announcement is a result of the AG's office seeing a peer-reviewed study conducted by our friends at Raincoast Conservation Foundation on the matter of uncertainty in the wildlife policy as it existed in 2013. With support from the Victoria Environmental Law Centre and the David Suzuki Foundation, the study got the attention it deserves – and now we await the results of the investigation.

But what, exactly, did that study say? What is uncertainty in the science of ecology, and how does it – or should it – influence wildlife management policy? To answer these questions and walk us through the study, Defender Radio was joined by lead author and Raincoast biologist Kyle Artelle.

Episode 324: Alberta's Animal Awakening Jun 09, 2016

Show notes

When the words 'animal sentience' and 'Alberta' popped up in The Fur-Bearers' news feeds, we had an office full of cartoonish double-takes. It was revealed last week that the NDP government in the bluest province of the nation is looking to improve their animal welfare standards – and among the changes, there's indications that they may incorporate laws that recognize non-human animals as sentient beings.

This is a move that Quebec made last year, and other governments around the world have considered or implemented. But Alberta is also the largest livestock producer, and is home to one of the largest annual rodeos in the world. They're recognized as Canada's old west, oil-centric, Conservative stronghold. What could animal sentience in Alberta possibly look like?

To find out, Defender Radio connected with Animal Justice executive director and legal expert Camille Labchuk.

Episode 323: Questioning Zoos Jun 06, 2016

Show notes

It's been a bad few weeks for zoo animals in North America. Harambe, a silverback gorilla in the Cincinnatti Zoo, was shot to death after a young child found his way into the large primate's enclosure. Rebel, a gray wolf at a Wisconsin Zoo, was killed so he could be tested for rabies after a child was bitten on the fingers through a fence while in a restricted area. And at a small petting zoo set up for children in Ontario, animals were left without shelter or water on a sweltering summer day.

As the harsh reality of life in a zoo has started settling upon the North American pop media psyche, familiar questions have started arising: do animals belong in zoos? Aren't zoos helping conserve endangered species? How else will children learn about animals?

We don't have the answers to all of these questions – only more questions, really. But to help us ask them of ourselves, and to explain what we can do to improve the lives of animals in zoos, Defender Radio was joined by children's book author and head of non-profit Zoocheck, Rob Laidlaw.

Episode 322: Cause & Effect of Conflict May 31, 2016

Show notes

We know that grizzly bears love fish. We know that grizzly bears can come into conflict with people and infrastructure. And now, thanks to researchers at Raincoast Conservation Foundation, we know how those two facts are tied together.

Earlier this month, Raincoast published their study, Ecology of conflict: Marine food supply affects human-wildlife interactions on land, in the journal Scientific Reports. By examining over three decades of conflict-killed grizzly reports, the researchers determined that food availability was the greatest cause of conflict – and that other factors such as hunting or population changes played a much less significant role.

To discuss this study, what it means for policy decisions in the future, and why understanding how important ecological studies are to wildlife management, Defender Radio spoke with the lead author of the study Kyle Artelle, who is a biologist for Raincoast and a Hakai PhD scholar at Simon Fraser University.

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