Friends of Animals Mourns the Passing of Dr. Gordon Haber
A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. - Albert Einstein.
by Anai Rhoads
AnaiRhoads.org — Friends of Animals mourns the passing of a dear friend, Dr. Gordon Haber. Gordon was a co-worker in the cause of fairness in this world, but entirely unlike your typical activist. Without an interest in furthering his own name, Gordon inspired others to join in the cause to save the most misunderstood and wrongfully feared animals in all the world - the wolves. Gordon’s passing should not be the end to a lifetime of work devoted to the wolves he respected and loved so dearly, as he left behind an encyclopedia of knowledge - research that will benefit those who will now follow in his footsteps.
For decades, Gordon advocated for wolves who wandered outside of the Denali Park National Park and Preserve’s boundaries, where they constantly ran the risk of being hunted or trapped. In his early 20’s, he began studying wolves as a temporary park service employee. It was 1966.
Gordon Haber quickly became a prominent figure, battling it out with other biologists in the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game - and overcoming a multitude of obstacles to protect his revered Toklat wolf pack.
On October 14, 2009, Gordon Haber set out to fly over Denali with his newly appointed pilot, Daniel McGregor.
The two began their flight at noon and were expected to return by nightfall. By midnight, there was no word of the team, and the park service was notified that the plane was overdue.
The plane was eventually spotted among trees on a mountainside near the east fork of the Toklat River, approximately seven miles downstream from the park road. The 67 year-old biologist’s remains were discovered by the National Park Service in the burned wreckage of a Cessna 185, located on a steep slope.
The badly burned McGregor managed to survive the crash and was discovered by two backpackers after he had spent hours walking some 20 miles. He confirmed the body in the wreckage was that of Gordon Haber.
Dr. Gordon Haber began working with Friends of Animals in 1993 as an independent contractor. He conducted aerial surveys of wolves, studied their relationships to each other and to other animals, and developed scientific arguments to help with legal challenges. A number of these arguments blew holes in the reports fashioned for the state of Alaska.
His on-the-ground observations were conducted during the summer months inside Denali. During the fall, winter and spring, Friends of Animals supported the flights around the entirety of the wolf control areas, allowing the monitoring of wolf families, and producing reports on targeted and missing wolves.
Priscilla Feral, president of FoA, fondly remembered her good friend and colleague’s “child-like wonder and never-ending awe when watching and hearing about the wolves he cherished,” and recalled: “He took me inside Denali many summers. I watched wolves run, chase prey, play with others, and go about their business of living. I jogged down the road inside Denali — yards away from a female wolf from the Toklat family who was searching for ground squirrels. It’s a favorite memory; one I’ll always treasure. Gordon’s heart and mind were exquisite.”
Priscilla Feral and Gordon Haber met at a wolf summit former Alaska governor Walter Hickel had arranged, to which FoA was invited after Hickel called off the state-sponsored wolf control program. Friends of Animals had called for a tourism boycott in the fall of 1992. It had such an impact on bookings for summer travel to Alaska that Hickel cancelled the killing scheme.
Priscilla Feral continued reflecting.
“Cantankerous on a personal level, so he didn’t make a habit of cultivating friends, as all his energies were devoted to wolves. But he had the brilliance and moxie to stand up to wolf -haters in all forms. Bureaucrats, other scientists. He put wolves first, exposing the wrongs in public policies, and the state’s biologists who create them with their result-oriented science. Gordon expected me to talk about the ethics, so that’s how we defined our roles. He was an expert at challenging the state’s data on moose, caribou and wolves. Gordon would shine a light on the lies that installed the obscene killing plans.”
The wolves were heard howling when the small aircraft was found. Do they mourn their greatest advocate, as we do?
A memorial is planned for November 7. Donations in Gordon Haber’s memory may be sent to:
Friends of Animals
777 Post Road
Darien, CT 06820
You may also make a donation online at http://www.friendsofanimals.org.
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2 Comments
On October 17, 2009, Susan Caswell wrote:
When I called Dr. Haber on October 3rd and identified myself as a writer in the nonfiction MFA program at University of Iowa, he said, “I won’t waste my time talking to reporters,” then continued to talk with me for almost two hours. He was a passionate defender of Alaskan wolves, and the Denali families in particular. He expressed that most people are too ignorant to pay attention to what is really happening to them, especially people who want to make the cause simple in order to feel that they are making a difference, sometimes exacerbating their plight by representing a small or insignificant gain (passing a bill for instance) as a solution in toto.
When I asked questions betraying the obvious fact that I hadn’t read all of the reports, he referred me back to his works online. He said, “Read the goddamn thing if you don’t understand it, and if you have to, read it 14 times.” He stressed that there is no place for dumbing down the issue, it is complex and must be approached with intelligence.
He said he saw little distinction between people doing the killing (biologists & hunters), politicians, and sentimental defenders of the wolf in the level of culpability, misunderstanding and mismanagement they display. He was especially derogatory about one wolf conservation group that claimed a victory through legislation at the State level in Alaska that guaranteed a sustained population, which as he pointed out, meant basically that the killing could continue unabated. This “victory” was especially difficult for him to stomach when as he put it, “We were just a cat’s whisker away from losing the [Denali] group entirely.” It made people think that they could stop worrying about the wolves while they continue to be destroyed in their dens by state biologists. Sterilization, snaring, aerial hunting, and other predator management techniques continue to be endorsed by biologists as components of an Alaskan predator management plan.
The situation of the Alaskan wolves, he said, “Is far worse than what you imagine.” He apologized profusely for being abrupt. “It’s not about you personally,” He said. I assured him that I found his attitude refreshingly direct and real. I will read what he has posted, and I plan to write about it too. He gave me permission, as long as I read it all and don’t try to take anything out of context. As he said, “It takes a lot more than good intentions to help these animals.”
On January 7, 2010, Morgan Benson wrote:
Does anyone know where Dr Haber is buried, or what happened to his body, if he was not buried? Thanks.
[ Blog editors’ note:The tragic plane crash amounted to a cremation, and whatever remains are gathered are considered for burial at a site he mentioned privately.]