The Exposed Wildlife Conservancy (EWC) has discovered that a province-wide trapping killing contest in Alberta has been launched by the Alberta Trapper's Association (ATA) and the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society (APOS). Dubbed the “Alberta Ungulate Enhancement Program,” the program and contest both aim to “enhance ungulate populations in the Province of Alberta.” The “Top Wolf Contest” offers prizes of $5,000 for the top wolf killed, with $3,500 for second prize and $2,000 for third prize. The contest also pays a bounty of $250 per wolf with no limits on how many wolves are killed across the province or in any provincial Wildlife Management Unit.
“The Alberta Ungulate Enhancement Program is not based on science, wildlife biology or ethics. It’s an excuse for trappers to kill as many wolves as they can this winter, under the false premise that killing wolves enhances ungulate populations, presumably so that hunters have more elk, moose and deer to kill. The argument that trapping is a necessary tool for wildlife management like this is not supported by current science and wildlife killing contests like this are abhorred in modern society,” states Kim Odland, EWC Co-Founder and a member of the Alberta Trapping Association.
“It's essential to highlight that this program is not likely government-sanctioned and its actions lack scientific support, despite how it may appear. It primarily serves to justify and cover up the actions of trappers,” says EWC co-founder John E. Marriott, an award-winning conservation photographer.
The EWC is launching a national campaign, Trapped In the Past, to debunk the popular arguments the trapping industry uses to prop itself up across the country. The campaign outlines how the trapping industry relies on outdated regulations, outright lies and misinformation, and a controversial loophole in the Agreement On International Humane Trapping Standards (“AIHTS” and "The Agreement") to allow trappers to continue to kill our wildlife in enormous numbers each year to support the fashion industry overseas.
A trapping license in Alberta to capture and kill animals is extremely easy to obtain, simply requiring the completion of a weekend course and a $20 fee. Once licensed, they can trap on Registered Fur Management Areas (RFMAs) or on private land. There are currently 1,632 such areas in Alberta, with the licensed trapline owner tasked to “manage wildlife” in their RFMAs or on private land, despite no formal training in biology or in wildlife management required.
In contrast, professional wildlife biologists typically undergo four to ten years of advanced education and study in biology and wildlife management, investing tens of thousands of dollars for their education.
This commercial trapping program is both a wolf bounty and a killing contest. This program, combined with the outdated industrial trapping practices already prevalent in the trapping industry, including the use of killing neck snares, brings to light several questions that must be investigated and answered:
The Agreement on International Humane Trapping Standards (AIHTS) was signed in 1997 and ratified by Canada in 1999 to establish humane trapping methods, enhance communication and cooperation among the parties, and facilitate fur trades.
Killing neck snares are an inherently cruel and inhumane device to kill animals. They are particularly ineffective for killing larger predators like wolves, yet they are the most commonly used device used in Alberta to trap wolves.
The Fur Institute of Canada and our provincial and federal governments are quick to mention that Canada is a signatory on The Agreement and that our trapping industry traps wild animals humanely and ethically. However, it’s important to note that Canada only signed The Agreement after negotiating that killing neck snares not be included in it, leaving the classification of these snares as either live or killing traps to each provincial and territorial governments. Why? Because The Agreement requires that all killing devices (traps) used by signatory nations render at least 80% of animals unconscious (leading to death) within a 5-minute time frame. Canada was unable to prove that killing neck snares met those requirements.
Further, to accommodate Canada’s request that neck snares be excluded in The Agreement, the AIHTS specified that the acceptable time limit for killing traps is to be assessed by The Canadian Furbearer Management Committee (CFMC) during a three-year review period, after the signing of The Agreement.
The primary concern is that, unlike recognized killing traps under the AIHTS, killing neck snares lack the federal mandate to ensure that 80% of animals are actually rendered unconscious within 300 seconds (5 minutes). However, despite this, they continue to be one of the most frequently used traps across Canada during trapping season. This suggests that killing neck snares are used more frequently than officially recognized killing traps that supposedly have “humane regulations".
Exposed Wildlife Conservancy’s Trapped In the Past Campaign addresses the severe shortcomings in Canada’s outdated trapping regulations and their devastating impact on wildlife. More information about commercial trapping and the AIHTS is available here and here.
We acknowledge that until these flawed regulations are reviewed — something promised back in the early 2000’s — governments and trappers will use them to justify this cruel and historically inhumane practice, allowing it to persist and even thrive.
The existence of a bounty on wolves, lacking any scientific, ecological, or human safety justification, is simply unacceptable.
Exposed Wildlife Conservancy believes it is crucial to raise awareness and deepen understanding of this issue at this critical moment. We invite media inquiries and are ready to provide information or arrange interviews on the topic.
