LETTER: Trapping serves an important purpose in Nevada

In response to Fred Voltz’s Jan. 11 letter condemning trapping in Nevada:

Mr. Voltz makes many mistakes in his description of what he calls an “archaic practice.” He says traps are usually unidentified. Not so: Trap registration is required by law. He says traps are lethal. They are not: Most traps used in Nevada are foot “holding” devices or cage-type traps.

But more importantly, Mr. Voltz misses the boat completely by saying trapping is unnecessary. In its support for trapping, the prestigious Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies note: “Regulated trapping is a safe, efficient and necessary means of capturing individual animals without impairing the survival of furbearer populations or damaging the environment.”

The equally prestigious Wildlife Society likewise supports trapping as their official policy. And the American Veterinary Medical Association changed its opposition to support after studying modern trap designs and improvements such as offsets jaws and swivels on traps that are used in Nevada.

The necessity of trapping boils down to the fact that, under regulated hunting and trapping programs, all wildlife species benefit. Wildlife populations tend to be abundant and healthy when regulated and managed. And the general public benefits as well by having a means to control wildlife when it becomes necessary.

This is especially important to many people in Southern Nevada today who have found their neighborhoods invaded by aggressive and pet-killing coyotes. State Department of Wildlife records show the agency received more than 1,600 complaints about coyotes in 2018 in Clark County — double the number from 2016. Trapping is the only effective way to remove coyotes in addressing this growing problem.