February 2, 2018
By Rick Holmes
Gauthier, Miss. — This used to be the heart of a great American savanna. (click here) Now it’s about all that’s left....
...For centuries the savannas (click here) went largely undisturbed, even after Europeans settled the Gulf Coast, in part because people couldn’t figure out how to squeeze profits out of it. But after World War II, timber companies figured out a way. They bought up the savannas and got government to buy it as state and national forests for their use. They cut ditches to drain the swamps and turned them into pine plantations: acres and acres of scratch pine trees, planted in neat rows. The ones I saw barely grow big enough for a two-by-four before they are harvested and chipped up for composite products.
People also started putting out the wildfires that sustain the savanna habitat. And with the advent of air conditioning, the population grew, turning savannas into parking lots and subdivisions in the process.
By the mid-1970s, the wet savanna habitat had shrunk to less than 5 percent of its previous size and the Mississippi sandhill crane was on the brink of extinction. Naturalists counted 30 to 35 still in the wild, with just five breeding pairs. The Interstate Highway System threatened to finish the job, with I-10 slated to slice through the middle of what was left of the cranes’ domain....
Ecotourism is about the "OOohhs and Ahhhs" when bird watchers and tourists come to view the incredible vistas of wildlife. When species become so endangered they have to be protected from any and all tourists, that doesn't really bring in big tourist dollars.
Please note: (click here) Most of the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge is off limit to the public due to the endangerment status of the birds and the wet pine savanna environment. However, there are a number of wildlife-oriented recreational activities to do including hiking, photography, education, and the visitor center. No Camping or picnicking allowed on the refuge.
I am skeptical about the protections, for the cranes (click here) especially because wild hogs are a problem in the south as are the hunters that have no clue about the wildlife so much as their dogs and pigs they hunt. The population isn't increasing by much and there have to be reasons.
