Letters

National Wildlife, Oct-Nov, 2000

Surprise Visitor

I'm one of the statistics you referred to in your recent article about alligators ["Visiting the Heart of Alligator Country," June/July 2000], which said that between 12,000 and 14,000 nuisance gators are reported in Florida annually. Three years ago, I was about to go for a swim in our backyard pool when I discovered that a huge alligator had taken up residence there. How it got there I don't know, but I would hardly have called it a nuisance. I was thrilled to see such a magnificent animal up close. Fortunately it was safely removed by state agents.

Stan Allison

Miami, Florida

Strange Abnormalities

Your article pointed out that water polluted badly by certain chemicals is causing some strange abnormalities among alligators, such as masculinized females and feminized males. Is there any evidence that the same sort of pollution is causing similar problems in people?

Barbara Allen

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Editor's note: Scientists are increasingly finding evidence that some pesticides, industrial solvents and other toxic substances may send false signals to the endocrine (or hormonal) systems in a human body. Such endocrine-disrupting chemicals are now associated with health problems ranging from developmental deficiencies in children, to smaller penises in some pubescent boys, to infertility.

Sea Otter Decline

I was saddened to read that the sea otters off California are declining again in numbers ["Struggling to Stay Afloat," June/July 2000]. It doesn't seem so long ago that I read how these adorable animals were recovering so well that the federal government was considering taking them off the Endangered Species List. I hope you will keep us posted on this situation.

Susan Carpenter

San Diego, California

Editor's note: The results of this year's survey of California sea otter populations, released in June after our article was already in print, offer some good news. According to the federal and state biologists who conduct the annual survey, the overall number of southern sea otters increased by nearly 11 percent over the 1999 figure. "While we are encouraged by the larger numbers, it is too soon to know if this signifies a true increase in population size," observes James A. Estes, a U.S. Geological Survey scientist. "Wildlife surveys are inherently imprecise and this is not the first time we have obtained counts that departed substanitally from existing trends. Therefore, a sustained trend over the next several years will be required before we can say with any confidence that the period of decline is over."

Arachnophobia

I'm scared to death of spiders. I know it's silly, but I can barely even stand to look at a photograph of a spider. So when I came across your article on tarantulas ["Natural Inquiries," June/July 2000], I shut my eyes and quickly flipped the page. Then my husband read to me the paragraph explaining that tarantulas do not harm people. It wasn't much consolation. I'm still afraid. I hope you're not planning to publish any more spider articles soon.

Jeri Edwards

Jacksonville, Florida

Editor's note: Ms. Edwards may be happy to hear that currently we do not have any spider features scheduled in upcoming issues.

Sequential Error

Your article on Ira Gabrielson ("Conservation Hall of Fame," June/July 2000] includes a sequential error. Namely, it states that Gabrielson took over as chief of the Bureau of Biological Survey in 1935 and "in the years that followed he worked ... to pass such key measures as the Duck Stamp Act." In fact, the act was passed on March 16, 1934.

Eric G. Bolen

Wilmington, North Carolina

Editor's note: Mr. Bolen is correct. The act was passed in 1934.

Ill-Conceived Plan

What is it about crooked rivers that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers doesn't like? The article on the Corps' plans to dredge a straight navigation channel through a portion of the winding White River in Arkansas ["Where River Flows Through Forest," June/July 2000] was one more example of an ill-conceived and probably unnecessary project that would cost taxpayers millions of dollars. I didn't know much about bottomland hardwood forests before I read the article, but now I know enough to realize that we've already destroyed more than enough of them in this country. Perhaps it's time to protect what is left.

T. T. Jensen

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Send letters to Readers' Views, National Wildlife, 8925 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, Virginia 22184; or fax them to 703-790-4544. You can also e- mail comments to pubs@nwf.org. Letters should include your address and daytime telephone number. They may be edited for space and clarity.