Letters: Sep. 13, 2004

Saving the Big Cats

"Until we are able to control human overpopulation, any species that competes with Homo sapiens for space and food is doomed." KARLA KELLENBERGER Stow, Ohio

I applaud time for its cover story [Aug. 23] on the vulnerable status of big cats (lions, tigers, snow leopards, cheetahs and others)--surely one of the saddest legacies of today's world. Human overpopulation, hunting, poverty and ignorance--along with the horrendous practice of buying and selling animal parts--have proved to be obstacles too tough to overcome, even for creatures as magnificent as the big cats you pictured. Every solution mentioned by the scientists and conservationists is worth trying. We owe these animals our best efforts. GILLIAN BEACH CIERI West Palm Beach, Fla.

I fear that humankind's plundering of the habitat of these majestic animals and misguided attitudes toward them will be their downfall. I respect the right of ranchers to protect their herds from predators, but a global realization of the threat of extinction should motivate us to protect the big cats and allow for their survival. BRETT I. GINGOLD Bend, Ore.

Big cats are only doing what humans do: they are predators, and so are we. IRVING STANTON ELMAN Pacific Palisades, Calif.

You provided a great overview of the problems facing all big-cat populations. If we can protect the megafauna, we can also protect whole ecosystems. And if we can't, then what about our future? LINDA REIFSCHNEIDER St. Louis, Mo.

It must be a great consolation to the family of the victim killed by a mountain lion in California to know that the death was simply a result of "being in the wrong place at the wrong time." Best of all, by being some cat's dinner, the victim contributed to its survival. Any man-eating animal is our natural enemy. Are we willing to sacrifice human lives to prevent their extinction? RICHARD PACKHAM Roseburg, Ore.

Your report suggested that trophy hunting of lions and tigers might be an approach to conserving these species. The dwindling populations of big cats won't be saved by allowing trophy hunters to kill the animals. Trophy hunting not only removes the biggest and most genetically fit animals but also helps create markets for big-cat parts--undermining the long-term conservation of increasingly isolated populations. Conserving big cats is a culturally and socially complex issue but not so complicated that the direct killing of the fittest animals can turn out to be helpful. WAYNE PACELLE, PRESIDENT HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE U.S. Washington

Save the big cats! finally, a cover story to be enthusiastic about. A trek into the savanna--a land unpopulated by those other man eaters, Bush and bin Laden. What I would give for this vacation to never end! LEIF JOHNSON Orinda, Calif.

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