Foes: Cougar plan failed once before

SANTA FE – Opponents of the expanded cougar hunting being considered by the state Game Commission say it’s an end run around a proposal that failed during the legislative session. The commission on Thursday is expected to vote on whether to allow licensed hunters to trap or snare cougars on private land – and, for the first time, on nearly 9 million acres of state trust lands – without special permits. That could be done every November through March, under the recommendation from the state Department of Game and Fish. The department also recommends increasing from two to four the number of cougars an individual hunter could kill in most areas of the state during the year-round season for hunting with guns. The changes are supported by the livestock industry as a means of predator control. “It allows us a tool to protect the food supply we’re providing for the citizens of this state and this country,” Chad Smith, CEO of the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau, said Tuesday. But critics say the changes aren’t science-based and don’t have the support of the broader public. Traps are cruel and inhumane, will catch other wildlife as well, and will be hazardous for humans and their dogs on public lands, they contend...more