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Senate Bill 76, sponsored by Sen. Mark Moores and Sen. Jeff Steinborn, will prohibit coyote killing contests in New Mexico.
Coyote killing contests are organized events in which participants compete for prizes—typically cash or firearms—by attempting to kill the most, largest and smallest coyotes over a time period. There are at least 25-30 contests held in the state every year.
Killing contests harm our state’s reputation. New Mexico killing contests have attracted national and even international outrage. These contests occur frequently, all year round, across New Mexico on both private and public lands—and contest promoters rarely share with the public the locations where the contestants are competing, putting at risk anyone enjoying outdoor recreation. Mass indiscriminate killing, in violation of fair chase ethics, sends a dangerous message that life is cheap in New Mexico and that senseless, indiscriminate killing is a cause for celebration.
Killing contests are ineffective at managing coyotes. A three-year N.M. Department of Game & Fish program (2000-2003) that killed over 1,200 coyotes, aiming to enhance deer herds, was scrapped after there was no evidence the killing increased fawn survival (Albuquerque Journal, 7/16/2003, “State Halts War on Coyotes”). Published research has confirmed that mass killing of coyotes disrupts pack social structure, due to more litters born (because young females are released as breeders) and higher pup survival following exploitation (because of a temporary increase in prey).
Killing contests violate conservation hunting ethics. They are designed to reward people for indiscriminately killing as many animals they can—a concept that conflicts with the conservation values and science-based North American Model of Wildlife Conservation that guides most hunters.
Killing contests damage New Mexico’s rural economy. Scientific studies show coyotes whose pack structures are disrupted by random mass killing will breed more, making them more likely to attack livestock to feed their young. The booklet “Lines of Defense: Coping with Predators in the Rocky Mountain Region,” available from the USDA-APHIS website, states that as a livestock producer, “Your first line of defense against predators involves using good animal husbandry practices. As a general rule, the more effort expended with livestock, particularly during vulnerable periods, the less opportunity predators will have to take animals.”
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