The House & other Arctic musings

Of wolves and inquests

(With apologies to Barry Lopez for the title).

Some time ago I wrote a post stemming from the death of Kenton Carnagie, who was killed by wolves in Northern Saskatchewan.  I see in the news today that an inquest is being held looking into his death, in part because it has been suggested that a bear caused the death, not wolves. The inquest will examine the evidence and determine a cause of death, it should be noted that the family of Mr. Carnagie disputes the new evidence of a bear attack and has a lawyer hired to dispute it.

I'm eagerly awaiting the news of the inquest's findings.

My mum in Australia wants to talk to you. Part three.

Link to Page one.

I have to admit, I love the expression on people’s faces when they are arrested. Well not everyone, but certainly the ones who never dream of getting caught, the smug ones. The only other facial expression you encounter in police work that can top it is when you introduce someone to the undercover operator who has been buying drugs from them for the last couple of months.

I met Leo at the door of the truck, and introduced myself. He was nervous and you could see the wheels turning as he wondered 1) was he caught and 2) how could he get out of this. I asked if he was Leo, already knowing (or as confident as you could be with someone who was a fraud artist) that he was, and then asked for some ID.  When I looked at the ID I noticed that there were several credit cards in his wallet, upon seeing his identification I informed him that he was under arrest as there were arrest warrants for him in several provinces and advised him of his rights. I watched his face go to crestfallen, to eyes darting looking for a way out, back to a nervous smile. As he asked when he would be released I added, “Oh and Interpol in Germany apparently wants you as well, and you are being investigated for other frauds here.” The nervous smile disappeared and the crestfallen look appeared again. A quick check of the vehicle plates showed it was reported stolen as an overdue rental from BC.

As we drove back to the office with him I rode in the back, making sure that nothing could be ditched until he was taken to the cells.  I looked through his wallet as we rode; he was silent when I asked while he had credit cards in four different names in his wallet. When he made a comment about not liking being locked up I took the opportunity to wonder out loud what a gaol in Germany was like.

Once he was safely tucked away in our cells, we began to interview the four Australians, getting the details of the back story, a story that would prove just how much people are willing to believe when someone is offering us something we want.

To be continued...

Er, I feel safer, more sovereign and strangely poorer already.

An interesting article appeared on CBC's news site the other day.  Apparently the Canadian Government is buy several Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, to patrol the Arctic.

Now I'm not quite sure what their purpose will be, the article seems to be saying that they will be taking the place of Aurora manned aircraft currently patrolling the arctic.  Which on the face of things seems to make economic sense, but not necessarily practical sense. It would seem to me that it would be hard to replace the human eyes you would have on board an Aurora, but what do I know.  I'm not a military analyst.

Some commentators have lauded it for bolstering Canada's Arctic Sovereignty claims.  Now I've mentioned before that sovereignty is built on peoples lives. Lives lived in the area you're claiming as yours. Logically, if there is a legitimacy to making sovereignty claims based on the ability to conduct surveillance through automated, mechanical means, then we are in serious trouble.  Several countries already take detailed images of Canada's north via their satellites. Heck, you can get a pretty good view of my house from Google Earth.  I hope this doesn't mean that Google Earth has a claim up here, as much as I enjoy using their utility.

Grey Ice

When I awoke this morning I looked out to a skiff of grey ice on the Bay. If it manages to stay calm for a couple of days freeze up will take hold. So far about two weeks late.

Of Cats and Birding Cape May

Cape May New Jersey is one of the world's great birding spots, somewhere that has been long on my list of places I hope to visit some day. It is no longer on that list, as the city has shown that it cares little for the protection of birds, the same birds that draw thousands of visitors there every year.  It has, contrary to a management plan by the US Fish and Wildlife Service designed to protect delicate species such as the Piping Plover, decided to retain a Trap Neuter Release (TNR) program for feral cats.

I should point out at the start that I am not anti-cat, I'm rather ambivalent towards them really. I am however very much anti-outdoor cat. Outdoor cats, be they feral, pets allowed to roam, or "barn" cats, are essentially an invasive species. And like most invasive species they have a negative impact on native species, in this case birds and small mammals.  Cats are very efficient predators, and several studies have shown the impact that they have on bird populations.  In extreme situations, usually island ecologies, they can have a devastating effect on bird populations.

The solution, is rather simple actually, if you have a pet cat keep it inside, it is the responsible thing to do. It isn't cruel, quite the opposite, cats will lead healthier safer lives as indoor cats. The situation gets muddier because, unfortunately not all cats are pets.  Unwanted cats get released outdoors, people's pets wander away and stay away, feral cats begin feral cat populations.  Sometime ago someone hit upon the idea of the Trap Neuter Release program of managing feral cats.  Feral cats are trapped, examined (and in some cases destroyed if they are carrying certain diseases) and neutered, then released back to live out their lives. The goal is that the populations eventually disappears, being unable to reproduce and all.

It doesn't work, on a number of levels.  Certainly from a wildlife management point of view, birds and small mammals continue to be killed.  Populations, while in many cases lower, seem to reach some sort of equilibrium. Not all cats get trapped, ensuring there is still a breeding populations, peoples pets left to their own devices outside still wander away, and little Johnnies birthday gift cat still gets dropped off on that country road when little Johnny loses interest in it.  Feral cats have in many cases terrible lives, beset by disease, vehicles, feral and free roaming dogs (don't get me started), and spotty food resources. It is cruel to let feral cat populations continue.

Unfortunately the cute and cuddly factor comes into play with management issues such as cats. It is the same with the over-population of deer, mute swans etc. People recoil at the thought of cats (deer, invasive swans) being destroyed, euthanized, culled, killed, slaughtered (please feel free to use what ever verb works for your comfort level or ideology). As the result decisions that would best sustain native or other natural fauna get put aside. I have a hard time believing that any one would be promoting a TNR program for feral pet iquanas, or Burmese Pythons.  So, as a result of public outcries, proper decisions get set aside.

What can we do. Well, you can take the approach that Rob Fergus, of The Bird Chaser, has advocated much more eloquently than I could.  Be active in trying to change poor decisions by, first of all by the City of Cape May and secondly by other municipal governments that promote TNR programs. Few things will get the attention of communities that make money from tourists, such as Cape May, as people staying away. If you are a birder, or a person who cares about birds, stay away from Cape May.  Let the community know that you will not be patronizing them as long they have a TNR program in place. Tell the mayor, tell your friends, and if you blog - tell the world. 

More importantly if you have a pet cat, keep it inside.

Oh, and before I leave the topic, please don't write to tell me that "Yes cats kill some birds, but more birds are killed by habitat loss, climate change, building strikes, deer over population, carpal tunnel syndrome or what ever." Birds are under threat on many fronts, almost all human driven (including feral and outdoor cats), ignoring one problem because there are others isn't the solution.  People often ask what they can do to help birds, keeping cats indoors and opposing feral cat TNR programs is one simple thing you can do.  There are many others.

And for those of you who support the Cape May TNR program and do not wish to see feral cats destroyed I offer the following solution. The feral cats are trapped and divided up among the people who wrote supporting the TNR program, provided of course that they release Cape May from any damages resulting from injuries from the now wild cats and/or any diseases they may carry AND that they agree to keep the cats indoors AND that any additional costs from a trapping distribution program versus a cull are divided up among the people who get the cats.

Cleaning up

I sort of got away from the Blogosphere lately.  My posts dropped off, and I was hardly reading any of the blogs that I normally do.  I'm not sure what caused this blog torpor, but I'm crawling slowly back into the virtual world.  In the course of all of this I've started cleaning up my sidebar. My northern bloggers list has been purged of dead links, and those who haven't posted in at least 6 months.  I've started trolling for more Northern bloggers and will add them as I find them.  If you know of any that aren't up on my sidebar, let me know.  I also plan on doing more cleaning up of the site as the mood takes me.  Perhaps even a new look is in order.  Who knows.

Who says sugar makes kids hyperactive

I and the Bird #60

David Ringer is a gifted wordsmith who, in addition to his day job as a publicity writer for a Dallas based non-profit, writes the wonderful Search and Serendipity.  This is his second turn at hosting I and the Bird, and once again has hit upon a unique, highly entertaining premise for hosting.  Anyone who follows I and the Bird, the premiere bird carnival on the web, will remember his first foray into hosting, a unique take on Chaucer. This time he has become the first Video Host of I and the Bird, in a inimitable mocumentary style.

As always, there is a wealth of good bird blogs to chose from. I'd like to single out Rob Fergus's post on the plight of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, an issue that has been covered many times by Charlie of Charlie's Bird Blog 10,000 Birds.

Hooray for Brown-headed Cowbirds.

My mum in Australia wants to talk to you. Part two.

Link to Part one.

My first thought when she spoke to me was “But I don’t even know anyone in Australia. The only person there I knew was a woman I dated in University, but that was like 24… years… ago…  Nah. Couldn’t be.” It wasn’t.

When I went into the kitchen and picked up the phone I spoke to a woman who was both frantic and relieved.  She was indeed the mother of the tearful woman who greeted me at the door, intent on making my coffee break disappear. The mother was frantic because her daughter who was traveling far on the other side of the world from her hadn’t contacted her in a couple of weeks. Not only that but her bank account had been emptied and her credit card was over its limit. She was relieved as her fears that her daughter was in an unmarked grave somewhere had proved unfounded. She had also been in touch with the mother of a friend traveling with her daughter and he also had not been heard of and no longer had money or space on his card.

There were two young women in the restaurant that day, and sitting down with them we quickly determined that they had been traveling with two other Australian youths, another woman and a man. In Vancouver they had met a man who had offered them all a dream job, leading rafting tours on the Yukon River. For the past two or three weeks they had been traveling across western and northern Canada while waiting for the river to break up. He had told them that he was looking after all of the expenses and had already put them on the payroll. He had their credit cards for “safekeeping”. His name? Leo.

A quick check on the computer revealed several warrants for fraud related offences for Leo, including one from Interpol. The light was slowly dawning on the two youths sitting across from me, their dream job was actually a nightmare.

One of the features of their travels around the country was that they were never able to call home to their families. Leo always had an excuse when they went to call home, phones not working, something else to see or do. When they reached the Northwest Territories they headed north to Yellowknife and were actually on their way south again, but the lake ice from Great Slave Lake had broken up and had filled the river, stopping the ferry.  They were stranded on the north of the mighty MacKenzie River, and would be for anywhere from a couple of days to a week. 

The group checked into Big Rivers motel.  Leo wanted to go explore the area, and sensing an opportunity to finally call home our first victim feigned sick. The other girl offered to stay behind to care for her while the three others went exploring.  One phone call home and the young woman found herself broke, in debt beyond her ability to pay, and a long long way from home.

Finishing the Reader’s Digest version of the story, the woman looked out the window as a Toyota FourRunner pulled in beside the restaurant. Leo had returned.

To be continued....

A very pleasant lunch

One of the nice things about the summer/fall/early winter season here is that it (eventually) brings the return of a friend of mine to Arctic Bay. Stewart Klebert is a Captain with the Canadian Coast Guard, whom I first met my first summer here, 1999.  We share an interest in Arctic History, and Arctic issues and usually get together for supper, either on board the ship, or here once a season.  Last year our get together was cut short by a call to assist another ship, and I watched my dinner guest steam away shortly after his arrival. It is truly unfortunate that our opportunity to get together is usually limited to a single visit a year, as we much enjoy his company.

We hadn't heard much about the CCGS Louis S. St. Laurent, the ship he was commanding this year. We knew it was doing scientific work in the Canada Basin, and we were told that it was unlikely that it would stop here on it's journey south.  But when a CCG helicopter landed in our yard the day before yesterday we happily saw that it was Stewart.

The ship had stopped at Nanisivik to unload some cargo and do some more work before going south, and yesterday stopped at Arctic Bay. We were invited out to the ship for lunch. Travis couldn't have been more excited for the opportunity to visit the ship (it was to get even better for him later on), and as soon as he was out of school we headed down to the breakwater for the zodiac trip out to the Louis.  It was Hilary's first boat trip, and for all intents and purposes, Travis' also. For although he had travelled by Zodiac out to the Louis in the past, he was a small baby, tucked inside of Leah's amautiq.  He was very excited.

Lunch with Stewart was very pleasant, the cooks on the ships are excellent, and afterwards we took a tour of the Louis, which is my favourite ship.  We even got to see the massive engines/generators which produce the 35,000 HP the ship has available to them.  When it came time to go ashore, things got even better for Travis (and the rest of us too) as the helicopter was detailed to fly us back. Captain Klebert instantly became my son's hero, for there are few things in life that excite him more than the sight of a helicopter and he was besides himself with prospects of flying in one.

As always it was company and conversation that was the highlight for me, and I look forward to next year, when once again (hopefully) we will get our visit in. I'm pretty sure that the highlight for Travis was the helicopter, and perhaps the ice cream and cookies that kitchen staff kept giving him.

Our ride landing back at the ship after dropping us off. (unfortunately we left the camera behind so the only pictures we took were from shore afterwards)