Sierra Speaker Series: Cougars and Conservation with Dr. Rick Hopkins

Our relationship with predators is driven by a fascination and primal curiosity. We tend to fear rare occurrences (such as large predator attacks on humans) over the common and every day ones (heart disease, car accidents, etc.) to the point of preemptively eliminating  those extremely slim possibilities. One example is the killing of cougars by recreational sport-hunting or prophylactic control methods – the kill strategy. It is assumed that an overly simplistic approach is sustainable, and will achieve conservation. Dr. Hopkins argues that these “traditional kill strategies” not only do little to reduce conflict, but more importantly do little to conserve the species.

Rick Hopkins is co-owner and Senior Conservation Biologist at Live Oak Associates, Inc. (LOA), an ecological consulting firm based in California. Dr. Hopkins will shift the discussion from the untested word or narrative models (We kill predators – there must be less – conflicts must have declined concomitantly) and will review the scientific literature, exploding notions that there is any support in the literature that killing predators accomplishes any long-term goals in reducing conflicts between humans and predators (i.e., attacks on humans, change in prey populations and change in depredations).

Complimentary refreshments will be served, with beverages available for purchase. A $5 donation is suggested for this free program. Parking is free.

Doors open at 5 pm | Program begins at 5:30pm