Wild wolf killed in Pike County
DNA tests confirm third one spotted in state since 2002

By CHRIS YOUNG
OUTDOORS EDITOR
Published Wednesday, February 22, 2006


DNA tests have determined that a gray wolf shot in Pike County in December was wild and probably traveled hundreds of miles to reach west-central Illinois.


Seth Hall of New Canton shot the wolf while hunting for coyotes. The animal was taken to a local taxidermist and then to the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Lab in Ashland, Ore., where scientists concluded the wolf was wild and part of the Great Lakes pack originating in Minnesota, Wisconsin or Michigan.

Illinois' wolf population was nearly exterminated by the 1860s, and no wild wolves are thought to have lived in the state since the early 1900s.

However, the Pike County animal is the third wild wolf confirmed in the state since 2002, and some wildlife experts think that is a sign that wolves are on their way back to Illinois.

Young adult wolves occasionally wander for miles after leaving the packs into which they were born.

"We know that we've got wolves dispersing out of (the Great Lakes pack), but we only hear about them if they are killed or recovered somehow," said Mike DonCarlos, wildlife program manager for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. "They're looking for new territories, and some animals will disperse very long distances, hundred of miles."

One wolf was killed by a vehicle in Lake County in 2005, and another was shot near Henry, in Marshall County, in 2002.

Minnesota has about 3,000 resident gray wolves, while Wisconsin has more than 100 packs and 425-455 wolves. Michigan had about 360 wolves in 2004.

Gray (or timber) wolves are a federally threatened species. They were once abundant in Illinois, but extermination of wolves was encouraged 'in the early 1800s, and bounties were paid to those who killed wolves.

Tim Santel, resident agent in charge for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Springfield, said he is working with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to get the word out that wolves are moving south and may be encountered from time to time in the state.

"It's probably just a matter of time before these wandering males start bringing along some females and starting packs," he said. "Who knows when that may be, but it is certainly possible."

DonCarlos said Minnesota's wolves stay away from people for the most part.

"People do see wolves on occasion, but it is still fairly rare to see one," he said.

"Livestock depredation is an ongoing problem, but our program for selective wolf control seems to be addressing the need," he said.

Wolves, while listed as threatened, may be killed if they pose a problem for farmers.

With protected wolves occasionally showing up in Illinois, wildlife officials will try to educate hunters. DNR plans to include information on wolves in the next Digest of Hunting and Trapping Regulations.

Taxidermist Jeremy Priest of Longbeard Taxidermy in Pittsfield said he didn't have any doubt Hall's animal was a wolf.

"A wolf has a lot bigger body," Priest said. "A lot of people say they look like a German shepherd with a big collar around their head."

Priest said coyotes normally weigh 20 to 25 pounds, with large ones topping off at 30 pounds.

"This (wolf) weighed 90 pounds and was 51/2 feet long," he said. "It was pretty good sized."

The challenge for coyote hunters will to differentiate between coyotes and wolves at a distance.

"On average, wolves are going to appear twice as big as coyotes," said DonCarlos. "If it looks really large, that is the best indication at long range."

Santel said the responsibility ultimately falls to the hunter.

"It's really no different than hunting any other type of game," he said. "You have to know your target and identify your target prior to pulling the trigger."

Other protected species sometimes are mistaken for game animals.

"We've seen this issue with the swans that have been killed (mistaken for snow geese), as well as whooping cranes and eagles," Santel said.

He said no charges have been filed in the case of the Pike County wolf, but "it is still considered a pending investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."

Aaaah, suddenly wolves are not just a Western problem! Nate

My father worked at the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant for many years.(1 hour S.W. of Chicago)He was a maintance supervisor and spent a good bit of time driving around to different ares on the 36,000 plus acres.And for as long as I can remember he claimed that there where wolves there.Concidering that it was mostly high fenced for security reasons I could see why the said wolves never strayed out of the place.Some mighty impressive whitetail herds on the place that could also sustain a wolf pack.

Its been closed for a long time now.E.P.A. cleaned up all the toxic crap.Production lines long gone as aid to some third world country.Was to be turned into Midwin National Tallgrass Prairie.Restocked with elk and bison.

http://www.fs.fed.us/mntp/cultural_jaap.htm

Good to see wolves may be improving their range in that part of the world....

DO they need more? We can spare a few hundred...

IV

quote:

Originally posted by Kathi:
Wild wolf killed in Pike County
DNA tests confirm third one spotted in state since 2002 He said no charges have been filed in the case of the Pike County wolf, but "it is still considered a pending investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."

Well, can't see how you can charge someone with killing something that isn't officially there anyhow...

I hear stories about 50-pound coyotes in Southern California, like similar stories in Maine.

They aren't purebred coyotes.

Isn't that great.... Wolves moving into what is statistically the largest producer of B&C Whitetail's in the country. And Pike County no less which is arguably the best county for whitetail in Illinois.

quote:

Originally posted by TomP:
I hear stories about 50-pound coyotes in Southern California, like similar stories in Maine.

They aren't purebred coyotes.

They get a good bit bigger than that in Maine and New Hampshire, and yes, they are purebred coyotes. They are, according to the biologists, increasing in size to better hunt the moose and large deer. They cannot interbreed with feral dogs (which are also a problem), and DNA studies have clearly shown that they are not part wolf.
This is not to say that the tree hugging wolf kissing bleeding hearts aren't well on the way to ruining more than 100 years of careful and effective wildlife management. They are. Until the government smartens up (right after hell freezes over and what with global warming don't hold your breath) it's back to basics: SSS Shoot. Shovel. Shut up. Works for the "collared coyotes" here, should work for wolves there.

This isn't really anything new. A tagged Wis. wolf was killed in In. I few years back had to go thru Il. or Mi. to get there. I am sure there are more wolfs there. But if the actions of other fish and game are to be followed the Il. fish and game will lie about about the population.

In west central IL, we have had occasional wolf sightings for many years. Much larger than a normal coyote. We have also had the occasional "coydog". My father shot one of the first encountered in Il. Conservation officers took it and told him that it would be placed in a museum. But then that was back when they said we didn't have coyotes here either.

MFH

Wolves and deer get along just fine here in Canada. We also produce a few trophy deer

I'm kinda happy to see them expand back into their former range. We all know that some states have unhealthy and overpopulated deer herds to begin with. The difference should be that if the wolf population gets too large, there should be a limited draw application to go hunt one!

quote:

Originally posted by Versifier:They get a good bit bigger than that in Maine and New Hampshire, and yes, they are purebred coyotes. They are, according to the biologists, increasing in size to better hunt the moose and large deer. They cannot interbreed with feral dogs (which are also a problem), and DNA studies have clearly shown that they are not part wolf.

Some Mainers say U. Maine went to the legislature one year wanting them to approve a deal to release some coyote/wolf hybrids. The legislature told them no, so the story goes. They think U. Maine was hoping to legitimize something that had already happened by accident. Maybe this is bunk? Who did the DNA study, and did they get enough of a sample for decent statistics?

quote:

Minnesota has about 3,000 resident gray wolves, while Wisconsin has more than 100 packs and 425-455 wolves. Michigan had about 360 wolves in 2004.

If 1,000 wolves in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have killed off all the elk, I wonder if there any deer left in MN, WI and MI.

465H&H

BigNate:

Who says wolves are a "problem" to anyone except ranchers and sheep herders? For the rest of us- what's your excuse for shooting the ancestor of all dogs? You want to shoot for sport the animals that wolves live off and that is your real "problem". Personally, having seen real live wolves in the wild and talked to people who lived around wolves 365 days a year I suggest you follow their attitude - wolves are a part of Nature and are dealt with as such. Shoot them as required - but they are no more of a "problem" than any other of Nature's predators. (If anything, coyotes are a "problem")

quote:

Originally posted by IdahoVandal:
Good to see wolves may be improving their range in that part of the world....

DO they need more? We can spare a few hundred...

IV

Can you really? Minnesota is supposed to have 3000 and they are no significant problem there.

We have had a couple in Iowa, but no established packs yet. Should be soon I hope.

Brent

There was one shot during the Archery season near Trenton Missouri a couple of years ago. It was tagged from Minnesota or Michigan, can't remember which.

Gerry375, My "problem" isn't with having wolves in their natural habitat. My problem is with the "re-introduction" crap. There were already a limited number of wolves in NA, but the states didn't have a management plan for them because of the cost and low numbers. They were already protected. I personally saw one in Southern Oregon quite a few years ago and it wasn't collared. They were there naturally.

Man has intervened in way to many ways for reintroduction to be an unregulated event. We (modern man) have pushed the vast numbers of prairie dwelling game into the mountains, we have caused enough of a problem that in many western states feeding programs are costing huge amounts of money. Now we go and "reintroduce" a rather large killing machine into the mix with no control on the population. The use of dogs for running bear and lion has been banned in several states. Hunting of lion has been banned entirely here.

All of this would mean little if there were enough of a game population to adequately feed this rapidly growing number of predators. There isn't that level of game population. Read the reports. Yellowstone's elk heard has dwindled to a dangerously low level and it's probably the most watched over, regulated, and protected of all the elk heards. Mule deer populations have plummeted, whole bands of Big Horns have disappeared, and the elk and mulie population in the area I hunt in Idaho has dropped significantly.

If these losses are not due to the sudden impact of reintroduction and lack of controlling the number of predators what is it attributed to?

You seem to have taken my statement pretty personal. That’s ok with me. You are in New York not in any Western state, and although you may travel to hunt, you don't live there. I have family that ranch. I have friends in game management/ law enforcement, and I can tell you first hand the game populations are way down.

So now it's a problem. Not that the wolves can't be around in some manner, but we need to balance things out. Blindly protecting the predators while the game population dwindles is a crime! The change is happening rapidly and if we don't do something we will really have a mess in just a few years that will take several generations of conservation minded people to regain a balance.

Would you like to see Big Horns disappear in order to have wolves? Doesn't the Elk heard in Yellowstone have the same majestic appearance as a wolf? What are the wolves eating when they start having a hard time finding deer and elk to eat?

Mountain lions kill people here regularly, wolves have attacked people. Maybe you don't see what I do. I don't want to see the present generation cause my children to miss out on the hunting experience. I don't want them to have to show thier kids pictures of game I once hunted and have to tell them they are gone, or so few in population they are no longer huntable. The wolves are not being handled properly. Nate

Here is another thread that might as well be linked at this point.More reading

Kind of funny. I now live in eastern Iowa, right on the Mississippi. Since I moved here, I have been seen a coyote every once in awhile. Didn't think anything of it, after all they are all over Nebraska.

Turned out that the Iowa DNR says that "There are no coyotes in eastern Iowa", until they had to pick up a few that got smashed on I-80.

Wouldn't surprise me if there were a few wolves also.

NEJAck,
You probably need to do a bit more research - the first coyote officially "discovered" by Europeans was an Iowa Coyote - by the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

They have been here all along and are nothing new.

Wolves will be here soon. Other than an odd wanderer, there are no wolves here yet, but with luck, they will be here soon.

Brent

We had them forced fed to to us by lies here in Montana.They Died out for a reason,Now the elk and deer heards in the horthern west Yellowstone region are dying out,the elk herds are so low its not a even worth trying to apply for a hunt there anymore.We used to drive out there just to see the thousands of elk but no more.The wolf came in and the elk arn't there anymore.Drop-Shot

BigNate:

I read your response to my post and hasten to say that perhaps you and I are not so far apart as may seem. I am not a sentimentalist about Nature and I do understand your point about dwindling game. I happen to be opposed to the re-introduction of wolves into the southeastern US ( gray wolves, I believe in the Carolinas) because the time of wolves in that part of our country has passed. You are correct that I,living in NY don't live in "wolf Country" and what the Westerners want to do with wolves is for them alone to decide. I'm simply hoping that we all can agree that we want to keep wolves around and not have them spoken of like the dodo. I guess the whole question is one of balance. (BTW, I used to hunt black bear in Canada and heard from the locals, how, in a mild winter, the wolves starved - and how in a bitter winter of heavy snow, the wolves feasted. (Moose and deer floundered in heavy snow while the wolves ran over the frozen surface from the cold snap of the night before) I just don't think that wolves are responsible alone for diminishing game levels - or even that they bear a major responsibility. If that were so then, surely, wolves would haved eliminated the game locally over not too many years. (Honestly, can you tell me of one species of animal that wolves have even pushed near extinction-much less to actual extinction?) I freely admit that I am sentimental about wolves - because I think they are symbolic of our wild country - like loons on a pond - eagles circling to grab fish - or even a chipmunk on a stone wall. I never wanted to shoot any of them - and I hope that only people who have to shoot wolves will do so. I'm soon to be 76 in a few weeks and was a lifelong hunter. I'm no sentimentalist about shooting animals that need shooting. I just think that there should not be "sport" shooting of wolves. I appreciated your reasoned remarks. Regards.

I live with wolves 365 I see tracks on a weekly if not every day.

The trouble is we are not able to shoot them as needed.

I would love to see a wolf season. I hear more and more stories about wolves not being afraid of people. We are raiseing generations of wolves that have no fear of humans.

Where one is seeing the impact on the deer herd is in the low deer population zones the big blocks of woods were the deer numbers are not high.

The over all deer herd is high in the state because the farming areas have a very high population bring the avg up.

The latest info is that 2,000 wolves live in Northern MN and they are a problem.

The population objective is around 1,500 wolves.

When I worked in Red Lake Falls area in the agriculture industry, I was told the state ran out of money to repay damages every year.

Wolves are not endangered in North America and need to be controlled. Because we will never be allowed to hunt them in the national Parks, they have a safe haven and will never be wiped out again.

Most Western Elk hunters hate the idea of wild wolf

The moose hunters might too... If wolves were better swimmers

many Deer hunters in many states live in horror of a resurgence in wolf populations.

And while all this is going on the Coyote hunters are reconsidering that 204 ruger they wanted in preference to the Bull Barrel 25-06 they were looking at in the 2006 Savage catalog

Now, what was that tanning formula to prevent hair slippage?

AllanD