HAWAIIAN HUNT
As an environmentalist and a hunter, I was pleased to see an article recognizing the important role hunters can play in helping to manage non-native species ("The Boar Wars," March/April). But I was appalled to see that author Daniel Duane went off on a hunt even though he was clearly unprepared to do so. No one should ever hunt with a gun they have not practiced with, nor without thorough knowledge of their prey.
James J. Menegazzi
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Daniel Duane states that "once hunters get interested in a species ... they'll do everything in their power to make sure that it and its habitat don't disappear." Unfortunately, that often includes attempting to eradicate competing predators, as discussed in the same issue in "Air Strikes" on aerial wolf hunting in Alaska ("Sierra Club Bulletin"). Andrea Cimino
Montgomery Village, Maryland
Sport hunting is only one aspect of the equation in Hawaii. Subsistence hunting of axis deer, mouflon sheep, goats, and pigs makes up a large part of the foods consumed in rural communities. Hunting is, for many country folk, their major food source. Lance Holter
Chair, Sierra Club Maui Group
Maui, Hawaii
AMONG OTHER PROBLEMS
The prediction that global climate change will shift the North American breadbasket north into Canada overlooks a serious obstacle ("Lay of the Land," March/April). The area portrayed on the map as "viable" for wheat in 2050 is mostly within the Canadian Shield. This area has very thin soil and is largely unsuitable for farming. Tim Maret
Shippensburg, Pennsylvania
INVISIBLE MINORITIES
I wanted to let you know how much I appreciated the "Profile" of John Francis ("The Walking Man," March/April). As a black person, I find that the media tend to ignore us, as though somehow you cannot be a minority and also care about the earth. I've recently made the decision to go without a car, and I now use a bicycle and walk as my primary means of transportation. It's not much, but at least I am taking baby steps to reduce my carbon footprint. Sabrina Messenger
Corvallis, Oregon
AND THE ANSWERS ARE ...
The answers to the "Landscape Lexicon" contest in the March/April issue can now be revealed: 1. Those soaring rocks are bread-crust, or volcanic, bombs. 2. The frosty crust in calm polar seas is called nilas. 3. The dark layer on exposed rock faces is desert, or rock, varnish. 4. The flotsam left by tides is a wrack, or strand, line.
Three winners were chosen in a random drawing of correct entries; they have been notified. For their names, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Sierra. Thanks to our generous sponsors: Adventure Medical Kits, Eureka, Katadyn, La Sportiva, New England Natural Bakers, Sierra Club Outings, and Tilley Endurables.
CORRECTION
The March/April "Decoder" misidentified Chris Nolin of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a political appointee. She is, in fact, a career employee.
CONTACT US Sierra welcomes letters in response to recent articles. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Write to us at 85 Second St., 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105-3459; fax (415) 977-5794; e-mailsierra.letters@sierraclub.org.
