Posted by Sherman in Idaho [72.47.153.105] on Sunday, November 17, 2013 at 13:25:40 :
In Reply to: Re: Elk, sad end posted by jerryinidaho [24.223.94.244] on Saturday, November 16, 2013 at 18:50:45 :
The National Park system practically encourage animals to become unnaturally tame, and therefore sometimes aggressive to people. Look at that herd of elk they have in Redwood National Park. They have special parking lots next to the meadow for everybody to stop and take pictures of the elk, which are as tame as cattle in a pasture.
The thing is, most "wild" animals really don't want to be wild. They want easy food and protection from predators. "Wild" behavior requires keeping them hungry and afraid all the time. Parks protect them, mostly from hunters, but also from natural predators in most cases. There are no wolves or grizzly bears chasing that Redwood Park herd. It's all very contrived and artificial and is designed to give city vacationers a "Bambi" view of nature.
I credit the Parks people for at least making a strong effort to get people to quit feeding the animals, but national parks with lots of visitors and paved roads are always going to be more "zoo" than "wilderness".