1 00:00:02,840 --> 00:00:06,840 Speaker 1: From Mediators World News headquarters in Bozeman, Montana. This is 2 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:11,360 Speaker 1: Cal's weekend review, presented by Steel. Steel products are available 3 00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 1: only at authorized dealers. For more, go to Steel Dealers 4 00:00:15,320 --> 00:00:22,200 Speaker 1: dot com. Now here's your host, Ryan cal Callahan. A 5 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:26,520 Speaker 1: couple episodes ago, we called on scientists to genetically engineer 6 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:29,280 Speaker 1: a vegan cat for the sake of all the songbirds 7 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 1: out there. Unfortunately, that one's going to remain a fantasy. 8 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:36,800 Speaker 1: Scientists have long known that cats are obligate carnivores, meaning 9 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:40,559 Speaker 1: they have no alternative to eating meat. Without the vitamins, 10 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:44,199 Speaker 1: meno acids and fatty acids and animal tissue, felines will 11 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: lose their eyesight, shed their hair, lose the ability to 12 00:00:47,400 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 1: clop blood and fight off infections, will suffer brain damage 13 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,640 Speaker 1: pretty soon die. I'm no fan of cats, but I 14 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:58,280 Speaker 1: don't wish that on them. However, in a recent study 15 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:03,200 Speaker 1: that old Snortokus is been working to suppress, researchers found 16 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:07,640 Speaker 1: that quote the healthiest and least hazardous dietary choices for 17 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:11,920 Speaker 1: dogs are nutritionally sound vegan diets. We'll dive into the 18 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:15,919 Speaker 1: study in a moment, but first some background. Although dogs 19 00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 1: are passionately devoted to carnivores. They're not obligate carnivores the 20 00:01:20,160 --> 00:01:23,919 Speaker 1: way cats are and human beings are the reason. About 21 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: forty thousand years ago, Homo sapiens in Europe began a 22 00:01:27,280 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 1: shifting away from so called hyper carnivory and began to 23 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: incorporate more and more plants into their diet. Then, around 24 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:39,319 Speaker 1: sixteen thousand years ago, the first intentional dog breeding began. 25 00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:43,440 Speaker 1: Humans started selecting for genetic traits that had already started 26 00:01:43,480 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: to separate the canines following human migrations from the wolves. 27 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:51,120 Speaker 1: The wolves may have been seeing into a future where 28 00:01:51,280 --> 00:01:55,920 Speaker 1: miniature pugs where sunflower hats and decided to keep their distance. 29 00:01:56,240 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: Will never know. Disney Pictures presents Bitli. One of the 30 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 1: genetic signatures that scientists use to determine the age of 31 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 1: this split is the mutation that allows dogs to digest 32 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:14,120 Speaker 1: starches and vegetables in a way wolves cannot. So snort. 33 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: I'm sorry to say that this new study does have 34 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:20,800 Speaker 1: a leg to stand on. However, the paper in question 35 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:24,000 Speaker 1: doesn't have me convinced to switch all snort to tofu 36 00:02:24,120 --> 00:02:27,560 Speaker 1: and kale just yet. Here's the problems with this so 37 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:31,680 Speaker 1: called study. It was funded by an outfit named pro Vege, 38 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:34,920 Speaker 1: a vegan lobbying group that aims to reduce the global 39 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:39,120 Speaker 1: consumption of animals by by the year two thousand forty. 40 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:42,480 Speaker 1: Strike two. The study was based on survey answers from 41 00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:47,520 Speaker 1: participants rather than direct lab trials. No pun intendent, I 42 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:50,400 Speaker 1: don't know about you, but I always answer a questionnaire 43 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:53,720 Speaker 1: to make myself look a little bit better or so 44 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:57,920 Speaker 1: than I really am. And Strike three controlling for age, 45 00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:01,280 Speaker 1: weight and other factors. The study also found that a 46 00:03:01,400 --> 00:03:05,760 Speaker 1: raw meat diet and a vegan diet were about the same. However, 47 00:03:05,880 --> 00:03:09,400 Speaker 1: both were better than conventional dog food. So at least 48 00:03:09,440 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 1: one thing we can take from this maybe toss the 49 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:14,639 Speaker 1: dog a few more scraps and dial back the food 50 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,400 Speaker 1: from a bag when possible. If you don't want that 51 00:03:17,520 --> 00:03:20,520 Speaker 1: corn cob let us stump or all those little eyesy 52 00:03:20,560 --> 00:03:24,720 Speaker 1: gouge out of potato, I know someone who definitely definitely does. 53 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:30,840 Speaker 1: This week, we've got more Land Access Initiative, eggs sucking bobcats, 54 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:34,920 Speaker 1: and earthy house moms who deplete white sage. But first, 55 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:38,320 Speaker 1: I'm gonna tell you about my week. If you were 56 00:03:38,320 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 1: watching the Old Meat Eat or YouTube channel, you may 57 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 1: have caught an episode of cow in the Field where 58 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:46,440 Speaker 1: I get my butt kicked diving for white sea bass. Well, 59 00:03:46,680 --> 00:03:49,720 Speaker 1: right now I'm out diving for them again. I may 60 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:52,120 Speaker 1: in fact be getting my butt kicked again. But this 61 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:55,120 Speaker 1: time around I convinced my friends Kimmy Werner and Justin 62 00:03:55,160 --> 00:03:58,560 Speaker 1: Turkowski to come down and join a local white sea 63 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:02,880 Speaker 1: bass obsessive, My grabe and myself. With this crew, we're 64 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:05,040 Speaker 1: definitely gonna put some sort of meat on the table. 65 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:08,080 Speaker 1: It is, of course, my first diving session of the year, 66 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:13,280 Speaker 1: breaking out from landlocked Montana. And speaking of landlocked, help 67 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:16,720 Speaker 1: us open up landlocked public land to the public by 68 00:04:16,800 --> 00:04:20,240 Speaker 1: checking out the meat Eater Land Access Initiative found at 69 00:04:20,240 --> 00:04:23,360 Speaker 1: the meat eater dot com, where you can submit properties 70 00:04:23,440 --> 00:04:26,560 Speaker 1: that may need an easement or an outright purchase in 71 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:30,000 Speaker 1: order to permanently provide access to our shared heritage of 72 00:04:30,040 --> 00:04:33,600 Speaker 1: public lands. Now Here are a few examples of reasons 73 00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:38,560 Speaker 1: for this program. First one is an oddball. Designated wilderness 74 00:04:38,640 --> 00:04:42,200 Speaker 1: areas are public land that are free for non residents 75 00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:45,840 Speaker 1: to utilize much of the year. However, requiring a resident 76 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:48,960 Speaker 1: guide for non residents to hunt that public land is 77 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:52,480 Speaker 1: potentially more absurd than the battle to allow Sunday hunting 78 00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:56,159 Speaker 1: in my home state of Pennsylvania. Seasonal restrictive access on 79 00:04:56,240 --> 00:05:01,880 Speaker 1: public land based upon residency creates perhaps biggest legislative driven 80 00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:05,719 Speaker 1: access issue in the country. That person is referring to, 81 00:05:05,839 --> 00:05:09,400 Speaker 1: of course, Wyoming, where the state of Wyoming somehow is 82 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:12,680 Speaker 1: getting away with preventing non residents who draw tags in 83 00:05:12,720 --> 00:05:16,360 Speaker 1: that state to hunt designated wilderness areas, which I agree 84 00:05:16,520 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: is absolutely ridiculous. Every day I watch beautiful wildlife habitat 85 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: get turned into slabs of concrete and homes all across Florida, 86 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,280 Speaker 1: and I need to try and help preserve some parts 87 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:32,440 Speaker 1: of natural Florida. The Tampa Bay Area is one of 88 00:05:32,520 --> 00:05:35,839 Speaker 1: the fastest growing areas in the entire country, and development 89 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:39,279 Speaker 1: continues to spread well beyond the immediate areas of Tampa, 90 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:43,840 Speaker 1: which has continued to fracture Florida's shrinking wildlife corridor. Two 91 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:48,200 Speaker 1: large tracts of public lands, Citrus Wildlife Management Area and 92 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:53,120 Speaker 1: Croom Wildlife Management Area are each areas of concern, along 93 00:05:53,120 --> 00:05:56,360 Speaker 1: with a couple of smaller tracts of preserve lands in between. 94 00:05:57,000 --> 00:06:01,479 Speaker 1: As quote progress bulldozes its way towards this frail and 95 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:05,440 Speaker 1: narrow section of the Florida Wildlife Corridor. Many developers are 96 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:10,159 Speaker 1: rapidly consuming the wildlife habitat on Florida's quote Nature Coast. 97 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:13,880 Speaker 1: Development is inevitable and it will happen in the rural 98 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:17,320 Speaker 1: areas near this Wildlife Corridor. But we must preserve as 99 00:06:17,400 --> 00:06:20,760 Speaker 1: much as we can to keep the Florida Wildlife Corridor 100 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:25,640 Speaker 1: intact and keep Florida's Nature Coast. The Nature Coast. Developers 101 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:28,400 Speaker 1: have been trying to get property reasoned for years to 102 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:31,599 Speaker 1: cram a thousand cookie cutter homes in this rural part 103 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:34,600 Speaker 1: of Hernando County. I do not feel we can hold 104 00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:37,520 Speaker 1: them off for much longer. There is shady stuff going 105 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:40,800 Speaker 1: on between the developer and the current dairy farm owners. 106 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:43,120 Speaker 1: Maybe you can buy this land to keep it in 107 00:06:43,200 --> 00:06:46,000 Speaker 1: part of the Wildlife Corridor. Maybe you can help get 108 00:06:46,040 --> 00:06:49,080 Speaker 1: it reasoned into one acre lots with room for wildlife 109 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 1: to pass in between the homes instead of another wall 110 00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:55,000 Speaker 1: of concrete. There are no large neighborhoods like the thousand 111 00:06:55,080 --> 00:06:58,039 Speaker 1: home plan in the rural Brooksville area, and it gets 112 00:06:58,080 --> 00:07:02,000 Speaker 1: reasoned from agriculture land to tiny residential lots than other 113 00:07:02,080 --> 00:07:06,400 Speaker 1: areas nearby would quickly sell to developers, fragmenting and destroying 114 00:07:06,400 --> 00:07:11,040 Speaker 1: the already thin wildlife corridor in irreversible ways. Now is 115 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:13,880 Speaker 1: the time to act on these properties before they're on 116 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:17,560 Speaker 1: the chopping block and greedy developers come in offering more 117 00:07:17,600 --> 00:07:22,080 Speaker 1: money to turn prime wildlife areas into giant slabs of concrete. 118 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:27,559 Speaker 1: Texas is big on private property but small on public land. 119 00:07:27,960 --> 00:07:30,640 Speaker 1: We have a growing population with little to no access 120 00:07:30,680 --> 00:07:33,360 Speaker 1: to rome for hunting. I would like to see the U. S. 121 00:07:33,400 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 1: Forest Service General lb J National Grasslands grow in access 122 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:41,640 Speaker 1: and land mass to provide more hunting opportunities to those 123 00:07:41,640 --> 00:07:44,400 Speaker 1: who want to provide meat to their families without having 124 00:07:44,440 --> 00:07:48,680 Speaker 1: to bump into another hunter. LBJ is increasingly becoming more 125 00:07:48,680 --> 00:07:52,920 Speaker 1: crowded with horseback riders and hikers bumping game and harassing hunters, 126 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:55,960 Speaker 1: so having more units restrictly for hunting would be ideal. 127 00:07:56,520 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 1: There is a rumor going around that horse groups are 128 00:07:59,040 --> 00:08:02,320 Speaker 1: pushing for more trade els in hunting units. Hunting rules 129 00:08:02,360 --> 00:08:04,400 Speaker 1: and regulations point out that we have to be one 130 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,880 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty yards away from any marked trail, road, 131 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:11,520 Speaker 1: or structure. This one and fifty yard rule puts hunters 132 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:14,600 Speaker 1: on tiny, little islands to hunt in units that share 133 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:19,400 Speaker 1: land with writers and hikers. I stumbled upon this piece 134 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:22,800 Speaker 1: of land while searching for pronghorn units in Wyoming. It 135 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:27,840 Speaker 1: is about fifteen thousand, three hundred acres of landlocked public land. 136 00:08:28,280 --> 00:08:31,560 Speaker 1: It's a mix of state BLM and national grasslands. In 137 00:08:31,600 --> 00:08:36,040 Speaker 1: one location, it's accessible by a corner crossing, but we 138 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:39,160 Speaker 1: are still unsure what will come from that in this state, 139 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:43,040 Speaker 1: and in another it misses a public road by two 140 00:08:43,080 --> 00:08:46,840 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty yards. It also nearly connects to another 141 00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:51,439 Speaker 1: accessible piece of BLM by seven hundred yards. I'm not positive, 142 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:53,680 Speaker 1: but I think this could be an easy piece of 143 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:56,600 Speaker 1: land to get access to and open up a large 144 00:08:56,600 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 1: amount of public land. I grew up in Jackson, New Jersey, 145 00:09:01,679 --> 00:09:04,040 Speaker 1: and they are taking so much beautiful land away to 146 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:07,480 Speaker 1: build homes, draining lakes, all stuff that needs to be stopped. 147 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:11,040 Speaker 1: Jackson is filled with deer and great fishing. If they 148 00:09:11,120 --> 00:09:14,000 Speaker 1: keep building these homes when I have kids, they will 149 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:16,920 Speaker 1: never know what the town was truly like. It is 150 00:09:16,920 --> 00:09:19,520 Speaker 1: a great place to hunt for deer, waterfowl, fish, and 151 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:23,760 Speaker 1: upland bird hunting, but it has been made inaccessible except 152 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:27,800 Speaker 1: by the stream access law. This property has been closed 153 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:31,600 Speaker 1: off by sprawling subdivisions and small ranches owned by people 154 00:09:31,640 --> 00:09:34,360 Speaker 1: who either don't like hunting and fishing or want the 155 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:37,760 Speaker 1: public land just for themselves. It is becoming all too 156 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:40,480 Speaker 1: common in the Bozeman area, as I'm sure you are 157 00:09:40,520 --> 00:09:43,040 Speaker 1: aware of. It seems that you have to drive further 158 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:46,520 Speaker 1: from Bozeman every year to get any conflict free hunting, 159 00:09:46,679 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 1: and I'm sure this prevents many people with limited time 160 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:52,480 Speaker 1: or those who are just getting into hunting from going 161 00:09:52,480 --> 00:09:56,600 Speaker 1: out and enjoying it. I grew up hunting and fishing 162 00:09:56,600 --> 00:10:00,199 Speaker 1: on this amazing piece of state forest land. Unfortunately, when 163 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:02,680 Speaker 1: the surrounding lands sold, the new owners put a gate 164 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:05,840 Speaker 1: across the township road about four hundred feet from the 165 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:09,600 Speaker 1: previous parking area. This land is an amazing stretch of 166 00:10:09,679 --> 00:10:13,320 Speaker 1: big woods in the River Valley. The views are amazing, 167 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:17,840 Speaker 1: and so is the hunting and fishing. Those are just 168 00:10:17,960 --> 00:10:22,040 Speaker 1: examples from one round of submissions to the land access Initiative. 169 00:10:22,240 --> 00:10:25,240 Speaker 1: They're coming in from all across the country, and just 170 00:10:25,520 --> 00:10:29,240 Speaker 1: like I'm sure you are, these folks are passionate about 171 00:10:29,360 --> 00:10:32,960 Speaker 1: access to public lands and they're seeing stuff go away fast. 172 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:36,640 Speaker 1: So let's get on it raise money and provide more access. 173 00:10:40,440 --> 00:10:44,200 Speaker 1: Moving on, smudge stick poachers are doing a number on 174 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 1: the native white sage of southern California, according to a 175 00:10:47,559 --> 00:10:50,840 Speaker 1: recent report in the Los Angeles Times. If you're wondering 176 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:53,360 Speaker 1: what a smudge stick is, you haven't been spending enough 177 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:57,200 Speaker 1: time on social media. Smudge Sticks are small bundles of 178 00:10:57,240 --> 00:11:00,079 Speaker 1: white sage that members of native tribes have you is 179 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:03,840 Speaker 1: for thousands of years for spiritual and medicinal purposes. The 180 00:11:03,920 --> 00:11:06,679 Speaker 1: sages burned slowly and the smoke is spread across a 181 00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:09,640 Speaker 1: room or a person to purify them from evil spirits 182 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,920 Speaker 1: and energy. The plant is also used for shampoos, calming teas, 183 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:18,400 Speaker 1: and as an antibiotic. Unfortunately, over the last several years, 184 00:11:18,679 --> 00:11:23,000 Speaker 1: sage stick smudging has become a global phenomenon. You may 185 00:11:23,000 --> 00:11:26,520 Speaker 1: have seen celebrities use smudge sticks on movies and TV shows, 186 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:29,320 Speaker 1: and a quick search on Instagram pulls up thousands of 187 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:32,760 Speaker 1: photos and videos, all with captions promising to cleanse your 188 00:11:32,760 --> 00:11:34,840 Speaker 1: home of bad energy and get you in that next 189 00:11:34,880 --> 00:11:39,040 Speaker 1: big pay raise. For a while, Urban Outfitters and Anthropology 190 00:11:39,160 --> 00:11:41,960 Speaker 1: two of my favorite clothing stores, until they told me 191 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,000 Speaker 1: that I couldn't get my jeans any skinnier? Excuse me? 192 00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:48,800 Speaker 1: Do these effectively hide my thunder? Both of those outfits 193 00:11:48,800 --> 00:11:52,880 Speaker 1: sold smudge stick kits that included white sage. The problem 194 00:11:52,920 --> 00:11:56,400 Speaker 1: is with the smudge stick boom. Just like youth sports, 195 00:11:56,720 --> 00:12:01,400 Speaker 1: opinionated wealthy moms got involved and ruined it. White sage 196 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:04,840 Speaker 1: is limited to southern California and northern bah It's the 197 00:12:04,920 --> 00:12:07,840 Speaker 1: only places in the world where white sage grows naturally. 198 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:11,600 Speaker 1: Inspired by the social media trend white sage, poachers have 199 00:12:11,720 --> 00:12:14,520 Speaker 1: descended in droves, and members of the native tribes are 200 00:12:14,559 --> 00:12:17,600 Speaker 1: concerned that plants won't survive in the wild much longer. 201 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:20,920 Speaker 1: There's all kinds of areas where white sage was growing 202 00:12:21,040 --> 00:12:25,080 Speaker 1: that have now been decimated. Teresa Romero, the environmental director 203 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:27,520 Speaker 1: of the Santa and As Band of Chumash, told The 204 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:31,479 Speaker 1: l A Times. White sage is not officially threatened or endangered, 205 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:34,520 Speaker 1: but members of native tribes don't like where things are headed. 206 00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:38,520 Speaker 1: Poacher's target preserves with ideal white sage habitat, like the 207 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:42,560 Speaker 1: North Etan Wanda preserved near San Bernardino. They hike in 208 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:44,959 Speaker 1: at night with big duffel bags, cut the tops off 209 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:47,360 Speaker 1: a plant, and leave with seventy to one hundred pounds 210 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:51,480 Speaker 1: of sage. These poaching outfits make a pretty penny. Wholesale 211 00:12:51,480 --> 00:12:54,880 Speaker 1: prices ranged between thirty and sixty dollars a pound, so 212 00:12:55,040 --> 00:12:57,560 Speaker 1: one big Duffel bag could be worth as much as 213 00:12:57,600 --> 00:13:01,760 Speaker 1: six thousand dollars. Sage poacher don't just disrespect a culturally 214 00:13:01,800 --> 00:13:05,480 Speaker 1: important plant to native tribes, they also hurt the ecosystem. 215 00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:08,800 Speaker 1: White sage is a cornerstone species of the coastal sage 216 00:13:08,840 --> 00:13:12,319 Speaker 1: scrub habitat in southern California, and it's an important food 217 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:15,880 Speaker 1: source for a wide array of animals. Bees, butterflies, and 218 00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:20,200 Speaker 1: hummingbirds eat the nectar, not just Gwyneth Paltrow what's in 219 00:13:20,200 --> 00:13:25,000 Speaker 1: the box. Small mammals sparrows, grouse, and quail eat the seeds, 220 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:28,320 Speaker 1: and deer, antelope, elk, and mountain sheep brows on the 221 00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:32,600 Speaker 1: plant itself. As with most poaching issues, conservationists are trying 222 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:36,439 Speaker 1: to address both the supply and demand side. Nature preserve 223 00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: managers are working to stop poachers, and groups like the 224 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:42,840 Speaker 1: California Native Plant Society are working to educate the public 225 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:46,720 Speaker 1: about the white sage crisis. They encourage smudge stick users 226 00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:50,280 Speaker 1: to purchase sage from Sustainable Farmers order grow their own 227 00:13:50,320 --> 00:13:53,480 Speaker 1: at home. It might be more expensive or less convenient 228 00:13:53,559 --> 00:13:56,320 Speaker 1: and ordering from Amazon, but that will help dry up 229 00:13:56,360 --> 00:14:00,120 Speaker 1: the market for poached sage and hopefully ensure that the 230 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:04,400 Speaker 1: unique white sage habitat survives for years to come. Shut 231 00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:08,880 Speaker 1: down your Etsy page, mom. Next up, the squirrel desk. 232 00:14:10,559 --> 00:14:14,439 Speaker 1: Some of you might remember the Inconvenient squirrel from episode 233 00:14:14,480 --> 00:14:16,800 Speaker 1: who made a habit of filling a man's red Chevy 234 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:20,240 Speaker 1: pick up with walnuts every fall. Well, a listener named 235 00:14:20,240 --> 00:14:23,240 Speaker 1: Sean Wohler recently wrote in to tell me about another 236 00:14:23,280 --> 00:14:27,840 Speaker 1: inconvenient squirrel. This one nearly got someone killed. Wohler is 237 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:30,520 Speaker 1: an engineer for a fire department in the St. Louis area, 238 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:32,440 Speaker 1: and he got a call last week about a car 239 00:14:32,560 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 1: on the side of the road engulfed in flames. The 240 00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:37,720 Speaker 1: driver appeared to be unharmed when they arrived at the scene, 241 00:14:37,880 --> 00:14:40,640 Speaker 1: but as they were extinguishing the fire, the driver said 242 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 1: something to Wohler that made him do a double take. 243 00:14:43,640 --> 00:14:47,680 Speaker 1: I heard the car owners say something like, sir, he 244 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:49,280 Speaker 1: was he was all burnt up. I pulled him off 245 00:14:49,280 --> 00:14:50,520 Speaker 1: to the side of the road, but I think he's 246 00:14:50,520 --> 00:14:54,360 Speaker 1: still alive. He needs help, and obviously that got got 247 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:56,480 Speaker 1: my attention. I had no idea what he was talking about. 248 00:14:57,040 --> 00:14:59,920 Speaker 1: Wohler soon realized that the burn victim wasn't a purse, 249 00:15:00,160 --> 00:15:03,440 Speaker 1: but a small gray squirrel. The fire truck engineer isn't 250 00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:05,920 Speaker 1: a squirrel biologist, but it was obvious to him that 251 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:08,360 Speaker 1: the little guy wasn't going to make it. He said, 252 00:15:08,360 --> 00:15:10,800 Speaker 1: the burns looks like third degree burns on a person, 253 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:12,920 Speaker 1: so he took the animal from the driver and put 254 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:15,880 Speaker 1: it out of its misery. Wohler had listened to episode. 255 00:15:16,600 --> 00:15:19,320 Speaker 1: When he told his captain about the inconvenient squirrel in 256 00:15:19,320 --> 00:15:22,720 Speaker 1: North Dakota, they quickly worked out what happened. The car 257 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:25,560 Speaker 1: was almost entirely burned up by the time they got there, 258 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:27,760 Speaker 1: but it looked like the squirrel had built a nest 259 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: near the top of the motor on one of the 260 00:15:29,640 --> 00:15:32,960 Speaker 1: exhaust manifolds. The driver said the car hadn't been driven 261 00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:35,080 Speaker 1: in a while, which gave the animal enough time to 262 00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:38,120 Speaker 1: build the nest. Once the car had stopped and caught fire, 263 00:15:38,280 --> 00:15:41,280 Speaker 1: the squirrel managed to escape and crawl out towards the driver, 264 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:45,080 Speaker 1: but not before sustaining some pretty serious burns. The little 265 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:47,400 Speaker 1: thing was just it was hanging onto his arms like 266 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:49,640 Speaker 1: it like it didn't want to let go, So you 267 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:52,200 Speaker 1: tell he was pretty pretty moved and broken up about this. 268 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:55,680 Speaker 1: I think Wohler spoke for all squirrel hunters when he 269 00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:58,320 Speaker 1: told me that even though he enjoys squirrel hunting with 270 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:00,760 Speaker 1: his son, he hates to see us squirrel in such 271 00:16:00,800 --> 00:16:03,720 Speaker 1: bad shape. The story might be a total downer, but 272 00:16:03,760 --> 00:16:06,360 Speaker 1: it's not quite over. While Wohler and his team were 273 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,920 Speaker 1: extinguishing the fire, the driver found another little gray squirrel 274 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:12,520 Speaker 1: running around the road near the scene. This one was 275 00:16:12,560 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 1: also singed, but was in much better shape than the first. 276 00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:18,520 Speaker 1: The fireman who works in Wohler's truck knew about a 277 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:22,520 Speaker 1: wildlife rehabilitation center nearby, and the driver decided to take 278 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:26,119 Speaker 1: the animal in. Wohler doesn't know whether the squirrel survived, 279 00:16:26,200 --> 00:16:28,040 Speaker 1: but he said it looked like it was okay when 280 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:31,000 Speaker 1: it left. I asked Woller whether he's running across any 281 00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:34,160 Speaker 1: other arsonists squirrels. He said he's never dealt with the 282 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:36,240 Speaker 1: car before, but he did hear about a squirrel that 283 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:39,040 Speaker 1: got caught in a transformer on a power line. When 284 00:16:39,040 --> 00:16:41,480 Speaker 1: the charred body fell to the ground, it started a 285 00:16:41,520 --> 00:16:45,000 Speaker 1: twenty acre brush fire. Bottom line, if you leave your 286 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:47,480 Speaker 1: car parked outside for a few days, be sure to 287 00:16:47,560 --> 00:16:50,360 Speaker 1: check the engine bay for a squirrel nest. And here's 288 00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:53,040 Speaker 1: a fun fact for you. A squirrel nest is actually 289 00:16:53,080 --> 00:16:56,520 Speaker 1: called a dre. Dre could also be the nest of 290 00:16:56,560 --> 00:17:00,440 Speaker 1: a flying squirrel or a ringtail possum. On top of that, 291 00:17:00,760 --> 00:17:03,760 Speaker 1: I really gotta say to the driver, you are a 292 00:17:03,920 --> 00:17:07,800 Speaker 1: nice human being. Good on you. You're not concerned about 293 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:09,680 Speaker 1: your car melting down on the side of the road, 294 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:13,440 Speaker 1: but you are concerned about a sin gray squirrel enough 295 00:17:13,480 --> 00:17:16,440 Speaker 1: to take them to an animal rehab facility anyway. Good 296 00:17:16,520 --> 00:17:22,280 Speaker 1: job to the first responders as well. Moving on, biologists 297 00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:25,040 Speaker 1: from the U. S Geological Survey captured footage of a 298 00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:29,240 Speaker 1: native bobcat feasting on the eggs of an invasive Burmese python. 299 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:33,560 Speaker 1: Long time listeners will recall our near pathological coverage of 300 00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:37,120 Speaker 1: the python's devastating effects in Florida and the various attempts 301 00:17:37,160 --> 00:17:40,480 Speaker 1: to control them. Everything from Truman the Sniffing Dog, to 302 00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:44,200 Speaker 1: Judah snakes, to the Python bowl hunting competition to high 303 00:17:44,200 --> 00:17:48,480 Speaker 1: fashion handbags have been engaged in knocking back the python 304 00:17:48,600 --> 00:17:52,879 Speaker 1: situation in Florida, But what if one of the everglades 305 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:55,960 Speaker 1: own native species started adapting to the new animal on 306 00:17:56,000 --> 00:18:00,000 Speaker 1: the landscape. In June of last year, scientists studying pithe 307 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:02,520 Speaker 1: on reproduction set up a camera trap near one of 308 00:18:02,560 --> 00:18:05,800 Speaker 1: the snake's nests in the Big Cypress National Preserved west 309 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:09,480 Speaker 1: of Miami. To their surprise, the footage revealed a twenty 310 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:14,960 Speaker 1: pound bobcat repeatedly visiting the untended nest, investigating, sniffing, feeding, 311 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:18,720 Speaker 1: and even burying the eggs for safe keeping, a behavior 312 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:22,400 Speaker 1: known as cashing. Even when mama python returned to sit 313 00:18:22,440 --> 00:18:25,359 Speaker 1: on the nest, the bobcat didn't give up, not only 314 00:18:25,440 --> 00:18:29,000 Speaker 1: prowling nearby, but even trading several swipes with the snake 315 00:18:29,200 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 1: and living to tell the tale, or at least living 316 00:18:32,000 --> 00:18:34,440 Speaker 1: to show up on the camera again. By the end 317 00:18:34,440 --> 00:18:36,879 Speaker 1: of the raid, forty two of the sixty four eggs 318 00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:39,640 Speaker 1: had been destroyed, and none of the remaining eggs hatched 319 00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:42,840 Speaker 1: when scientists brought them back to the lab and incubated them. 320 00:18:42,880 --> 00:18:46,000 Speaker 1: The devastation was so complete that the footage ends with 321 00:18:46,080 --> 00:18:49,320 Speaker 1: a possum and a hisped cotton rat, two species that 322 00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:52,600 Speaker 1: pythons eat like peanuts. Criss crossing over the nest in 323 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:56,080 Speaker 1: what almost looks like a victory dance. There's every reason 324 00:18:56,240 --> 00:18:58,520 Speaker 1: to hope that python eggs become a staple of the 325 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:02,240 Speaker 1: Florida bobcat's diet. A feline who's thrived on the eggs 326 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:05,560 Speaker 1: of ground nesting birds is perfectly suited to find and 327 00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:09,439 Speaker 1: eat the eggs of ground nesting snakes. Pythons also do 328 00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:12,320 Speaker 1: not eat when they sit on their eggs, a behavior 329 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:16,119 Speaker 1: known as brooding time and orexia. They can defend a nest, 330 00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:19,199 Speaker 1: but they're not likely to kill predators, which could be 331 00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:22,359 Speaker 1: the reason the cats survived in this video. However, our 332 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:25,840 Speaker 1: python problem is not solved yet. Estimates put the number 333 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:29,160 Speaker 1: of pythons about equal to the number of bobcats in Florida, 334 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,639 Speaker 1: which seems even, but the most fertile bobcat only has 335 00:19:32,680 --> 00:19:36,040 Speaker 1: about twenty kittens a year, while the average python lays 336 00:19:36,080 --> 00:19:39,959 Speaker 1: about one hundred eggs a year. Pythons can also thrive 337 00:19:40,040 --> 00:19:43,400 Speaker 1: over a much wider range of Florida habitats, and if 338 00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:46,119 Speaker 1: you are a hisped cotton rat listening to the show, 339 00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:50,040 Speaker 1: it's kind of like a preseason ball game. You don't 340 00:19:50,119 --> 00:19:53,480 Speaker 1: really care who wins. You just know the outcomes are 341 00:19:53,480 --> 00:19:57,800 Speaker 1: gonna affect you equally. Still, it's encouraging to see at 342 00:19:57,880 --> 00:20:01,760 Speaker 1: least some Floridians effectively combat adding these snakes from the 343 00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:05,160 Speaker 1: heart of Bozeman, Montana and on behalf of my uncle 344 00:20:05,200 --> 00:20:10,120 Speaker 1: Mike cal Callahan, who played on the national championship team 345 00:20:10,160 --> 00:20:13,520 Speaker 1: and still has a luscious head of hair. Go Bobcats. 346 00:20:16,320 --> 00:20:18,159 Speaker 1: That's all I've got for you this week. Thank you 347 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:21,720 Speaker 1: so much for listening. Remember to write in to a 348 00:20:22,000 --> 00:20:24,320 Speaker 1: s k C. A L. That's asked Cal at the 349 00:20:24,359 --> 00:20:26,640 Speaker 1: Meat Eater dot com and let me know what's going 350 00:20:26,680 --> 00:20:29,240 Speaker 1: on in your neck of the woods. And if you've 351 00:20:29,280 --> 00:20:32,000 Speaker 1: noticed that your woods are starting to look pretty poor, 352 00:20:32,359 --> 00:20:34,879 Speaker 1: should probably go pick up a brand new steel chainsaw. 353 00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:40,000 Speaker 1: Start by heading to www dot steel Dealers dot com 354 00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:43,680 Speaker 1: to find a local, knowledgeable steel dealer near you. They'll 355 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:45,800 Speaker 1: be happy to see you, they'll set you up with 356 00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:47,800 Speaker 1: what you need, and they won't try to send you 357 00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:50,840 Speaker 1: home with what you don't. Thanks again, and I'll talk 358 00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:51,560 Speaker 1: to you next week.