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Asses to Asses, Dust to Dust
An Overview of the Wild Donkey Population of Bonaire Island
Kayla Flinn
Appendix
Appendix I.
Appendix II.
Appendix III.
Content: A letter by Dr. Dallen J Timothy, a professor and senior sustainability scientist at the Global Institute of Sustainability that was presented to the government of Bonaire. In this letter he explains that the donkeys are in fact inextricably linked to the colonial heritage of Bonaire, and that protecting the donkey population is closely aligned to the goals of UNESCO in its efforts to protect natural and human heritage
Content: Dr Daniel Rubenstein is a professor of zoology at Princeton University who specializes in the social and population dynamics of equids – horses, zebras, and asses- and how they impact humans and their livelihoods. In this letter to the government of Bonaire he formally requests a delay in the decision of the fate of the wild donkeys.
Content: Waltraud Kugler is the Project Director of SAVE foundation, a European umbrella organization for the conservation of rare breeds and verities. In this letter she appeals not to allow the decimation and probable eradication of the donkey population of Bonaire before investigations on the population and their impact are done.
Appendix IV.
Appendix V.
Content: Craig C. Downer is a wildlife ecologist who wrote this article titled Bonaire’s Wild Donkeys, Why They Belong and What Can be Done. In this article he covers a variety of topics including the ecological benefits to having the donkeys on Bonaire, overpopulation, and proof of endangerment.
Content:DR. E. Gus Cothran is a clinical professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He has been involved in domestic animal conservation for over 30 years and currently serves on the Livestock Genetic Diversity Conservation committee of the International Society for Animal Genetics. DR. E. Gus Cothran has done genetic testing on over 30 of the donkeys on Bonaire and concluded that the observed level of genetic variability within these donkeys does not indicate any evidence of inbreeding. In this letter he wrote to the executive council members of Bonaire, he explains that in addition to the Bonaire donkeys showing no signs of inbreeding, he has tested over 40 feral populations and breeds of donkeys and many have far lower genetic diversity then that of the Bonaire donkey.
Appendix VI.
Appendix VII.
Content: Craig C. Downer is a wildlife ecologist who wrote this article titled Bonaire’s Wild Donkeys, Why They Belong and What Can be Done. This is a quick Summary of that article.
Content: An official survey listing the amount of humans, goats, sheep and donkeys in Bonaire from the 16th century until 1956.
“It will be lonely here without you,
That’s what happens when the sunshine goes away”
–Eeyore.
Working draft of article by Kayla Flinn
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