Lions and tigers and bears. Oh my! Well, maybe bears, but certainly not lions (of the African sort) and tigers.

People described in an Associated Press report as &uot;prominent ecologists&uot; have floated the idea of transplanting endangered African animals to the Great Plains of North America. In the pantheon of really dumb ideas, this one stands out.

First, there is no shortage of native animals on the Plains. The return of the bison, wolf, mountain lion, deer, elk, antelope and bear is well-documented. Establishing sprawling ecological parks and preserves for nonnative modern African species, such as elephants, makes no ecological sense for the Plains.

Second, nature selected out ancient North American animals, such as the saber tooth tiger, camel, mastodon and mammoth. It seems ecologically irresponsible to put modern elephants on the Plains as some sort of phony re-creation of the Pleistocine Epoch.

Restoring populations of native animals &045; bison, mountain lion, etc., &045; makes sense because unenlightened human activity reduced populations in the first place.

Third, the notion that introducing African animals to the Plains would &uot;restore the balance&uot; is poppycock. If anything, alien species would upend what balance there is among stressed and healthy populations of native animals.

Finally, the people again have to endure academic arrogance that concludes the region is withering, and some sort of goofy animal introduction scheme would save the region from doom.

The Plains region surely is changing. Fewer people might live in rural counties, but the cities of the Plains are doing quite well.

One result of that demographic shift has been restoration and preservation of habitat for native species. In North Dakota,

wildlife scientists have concluded there are more deer in the state than at the time of settlement more than 150 years ago.

Throughout the plains the buffalo has been re-established, both in free-ranging herds and on vast tracts in national and state parks. There are wild turkeys everywhere. The bald eagle has made a spectacular comeback. Elk and big horn sheep populations, once decimated, are stable because of management. The mountain lion’s range and numbers are expanding.

Purveyors of the Africa animal transplant idea said it would simulate ecotourism. But ecotourism (by many other names) on the Plains is among the fastest growing tourist activities already.

Nearly every state’s tourism department promotes low-impact nature tourism. The notion that the Great Plains has to be &uot;restored&uot; to some sort of modern-day Ice Age theme park is just plan silly. It’s not going to happen.

Moreover, the evolution of the Plains &045; in effect a restoration &045; has been under way for decades, a response in part to flawed land and water use policies of the past. African elephants have no role in that natural process.

&045; The Fargo Forum