Victoria Advocate - Dozens of nilgai antelope killed to stop tick spread (http://www.thevictoriaadvocate.com/723/story/35910.html)

What a waste, it is a small refuge but ideally suited to a draw type hunt that would allow hunters access to this resource. They have hosted several "youth" nilgai hunts but it has been quite a while since the last. Over the last couple of years, I've called the refuge to see when they would hold another drawing for the hunt but I've always been told the population doesn't warrant it. Nothing but government don't give a **** BS.

Probably afraid the bunny huggers would be all over them if they made it public.

Shame, though - waste of natural resources and potiential for operating funds. Same can be said for managing the elk/buffalo herds in Yellowstone.

USFWS and the NPS think the same way. They know hunters could do the same job at a lot less cost. Why they don't let hunters take the excess animals or eliminate problem animals (deliterious or otherwise) is beyond me. If US FWS thinks they couldn't arrange a hunt in time or didn't know where the animals were, so they could allow the hunt, I guess that is a horse of a different color.

My only question is don't the deer, feral hogs, javelina, skunks, coyotes, foxes, ground rodents, etc. etc. all carry those same ticks? If memory serves me, ticks, are not species specific like lice, ticks will attach themselves to ANY warm blooded mammal. JMO.

Yup - them ticks will attach to anything that has blood in it. Nasty things! :(

Newspaper article here called them 'cattle ticks.' Found this with a search:

Cattle are the main hosts for cattle ticks although they may be found on horses, goats, sheep, deer, camelids and buffaloes. Other animals are considered insignificant as hosts for the cattle tick.

Don't know why nilgai are singled out, unless they are harder to keep fenced in?

I think it all boils down to the fact that the nilgai isn't a native game animal despite being here 100-years and free ranging across the southern tip of Texas. This ticks reside on feral hogs and this property is loaded with them. I wonder if they are making plans to kill them.

The administrators of this land missed a good opportunity. The refuges in South Texas charge $100 for a two day deer hunt. I think hunters would have been more than willing to pay $500 for a permit to hunt them.

Now another thing. My ranch helped to fund the start of a Hunter's For The Hungry program here in my county. I believe in it. The program is not allowed to collect non-native game for distribution, only game animals. The nilgai is a non-native animal just like a feral hog. What gives?

It's just back to doing whatever you want to do if you are a fed. The rules NEVER apply. The refuge manager did exactly what he wanted to do.

Agreed, Michael - those ol' boys probably have their minds made up prior to even making announcements.

BTW - Up in the Cundiff area and when hunting with TPV, I've been taking my game into a processor in Bowie so's I could have it packaged and frozen for the trip home. When I take in extra game I can't/don't want to bring home, they charge me the nominal fee for dressing it out and donate it to a local Catholic orphan's home. Might be something for your area to think about.

Hey Kdub, I'm a willing contributor to Hunger's For The Hungry. How the program works here is that local hunters take the deer to the designated processor and drop it off. That's it, no fee unless they want to contribute but everything is paid for. The meat is ground up and distributed through our food bank system. The organization contracts with the processor for an amount per animal and the organization pays the fees through donations. Before this started, those folks depending on the food bank received only 1 chicken every three weeks. That's not much protein. I wish they could take hogs but the State's Department of Agriculture won't allow it (the monitoring agency), game animals only.

Back to the refuge, I will bet good money that hunter $$$ were used to process the nilgai. There is just no doubt in my mind.

I've hunted the NWF system in South Texas since 1968, I do it every couple of years just for the challenge because hunting is so poor. After 35+ years of observing a property, I feel that the NWF system represents some of the poorest managed properties in this portion of State. The decisions made wouldn't cut it with private lands, the managers would be sacked. I do realize that some of these decisions are made from sources far removed from South Texas.