I agree with the horsre deal----->kill em' they were not part of the evolutionary trajectory of North America over the last 10000 years or so. They are a detriment.

Can you say "Wild Horse Tag?"

.......I'll bet my .338 RUM with 225 TSX and 101 grains of H1000..........

Gee Noel , ya suppose that introduced wolfies could prevent the need for elephant culling ??

Dunno about that, but I'd be willing to bet that if it happened, there'd be folks complaining that political upheaval and mass starvation were caused by them.

quote:

agree with the horsre deal----->kill em' they were not part of the evolutionary trajectory of North America over the last 10000 years or so. They are a detriment.

Can you say "Wild Horse Tag?"

"Oh my God" we agree on something!

Wyo goes it alone on wolf delisting

By CHAD BALDWIN
Star-Tribune staff writer Thursday, June 30, 2005




NewsTracker

* Last we knew: Wyoming officials appealed U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson's dismissal of a lawsuit seeking to force the federal government to accept the state's wolf management plan.

* The latest: State officials are preparing to petition the Interior Department for removal of wolves' federal protection.

* What's next: The state Game and Fish Commission will vote on the issue July 13 in Rawlins.

Wyoming officials are preparing to petition the federal government to remove wolves from Endangered Species Act protection, the state Game and Fish Department said late Wednesday afternoon.

The move continues the state's battle with federal officials over how wolves should be managed outside Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks. In essence, it seeks to force the hand of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which has rejected Wyoming's plan for managing the animals once they're removed from the threatened and endangered species list.

The state's plan would classify wolves as trophy game in areas of northwest Wyoming the state considers suitable wolf habitat. Outside those areas they would be considered predators that could be shot on sight.

"Removing (wolves) from the endangered species list will allow the state of Wyoming to assume management of wolves within its borders and keep populations at a level that makes sense for Wyoming while also maintaining a recovered population," Game and Fish Department Director Terry Cleveland said in a press release. "This petition is the next step toward getting wolves delisted and under state management."

The Game and Fish Commission will consider signing the petition to delist at its July 13 meeting in Rawlins. The department said Gov. Dave Freudenthal will also sign the document, which has been drafted by the agency and the state attorney general's office. It will then be submitted to Interior Secretary Gale Norton.

Freudenthal couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday evening.

In March, U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson dismissed a lawsuit by Wyoming against the federal government that sought to force acceptance of the state's wolf management plan. Johnson found that the federal government had not violated the Endangered Species Act, because rejection of the state's plan did not constitute final action by the Fish and Wildlife Service. Had Wyoming petitioned the federal government to remove protection for wolves, he could have considered more of the merits of the state's case, the judge said.

The state has appealed that ruling to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Attorney General Pat Crank previously said it was likely the state would pursue both the appeal and a petition to delist.

The Fish and Wildlife Service's plan has been to submit its own petition to delist wolves once it has acceptable management plans from Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. Those two neighboring states have received such approval, and in fact already have been given management authority over the animals within their borders.

Once Wyoming's petition is filed, Fish and Wildlife has 90 days to determine whether it believes the action may be warranted. If a positive 90-day finding is issued, the federal agency then conducts a more detailed review. A final decision is issued 12 months after the petition is filed.

Wolves were reintroduced into Wyoming and Idaho in 1995. Last fall, Fish and Wildlife estimated the population had grown to at least 66 breeding pairs and 835 individuals -- far more than the objective of 30 breeding pairs and 300 individuals. It's estimated that 260 wolves are in Wyoming.

"Wolves are now a part of the ecosystem in northwestern Wyoming," Cleveland said in the press release. "As their numbers continue to grow, and as they continue to expand outside of suitable habitats, they almost always become involved with livestock depredations and other conflicts that result in the lethal take of wolves.

"Expanding wolf populations are also affecting Wyoming's wildlife. Last winter, wolf packs continually moved elk off of feedgrounds and onto private lands and even highways, where public safety and an increased risk of brucellosis transmission to cattle became a real problem."

Cleveland said the state's dual-classification system would help maintain and control wolf numbers.

"The state of Wyoming is committed to managing a recovered population of wolves in northwestern Wyoming," he said. "Wyoming's plan includes elements that will ensure wolf populations remain at recovered levels. We have no intention of allowing this population to become jeopardized to the extent that it must again be listed under the Endangered Species Act."

Federal officials have said Wyoming's plan jeopardizes wolves' recovery.

"The clearest path (for Wyoming) is to look at getting the state plan that the (Fish and Wildlife Service) can approve," said Ed Bangs, wolf recovery coordinator for the federal agency, in March. "We want to continue to work with Wyoming Game and Fish and the state of Wyoming to get through this issue."

E

I have lived in Idaho for a little over 40 years and have hunted elk and deer a good number of those years. I have also been envolved in the management of those species. During the past 40 some years, I have seen elk populations go up and down. The population changes have been large and depended on the hunt unit as far as timing. How did it happen? In most cases restrictive hunting harvest led to increased elk populations. During those years hunters were happy, they killed a lot of elk and had lots of hunting oppurtunity. The fly in the ointment was that elk depredation on private lands increased dramatically. Farmers and ranchers complained to the state legislature and put extremely heavy pressure on IDF&G. Local conservation officers tired of handling depredation complaints wanted elk populations reduced. Seasons and harvest levels were increased and elk populations dropped. Hunters complained that elk populations were too low and they wanted it back to the old days. They complained to their legislators and the legislators put pressure on IDF&G to increase elk populations. It turned into a visiuos circle. Hunters and the legislators now have no confidence in IDF&G. At least those that don't understand the history.

Question - Since there are some surplus elk can we allot some of these to the wolf and stabilize our hunter harvest to avoid this problem? The key to good wildlife populations is good management. I believe that we must manage the predator populations as well as the ungulate populations. Especially those predator populations that can become a limiting factor on an ungulate population. Wolf population management by the state DNRs is absolutely necessary. No sense in debating whether the wolf should be here that argument is history and they are here to stay. Let's get to managing all of our wildlife resources.

I moved to Idaho in the late 60,s just after the Bald Eagle Protection Act was passed. I remember the predictions that that would be the end of deer, sheep and antelope populations in Idaho. My old buddy Elmer Keith was one of the leaders in that position. It didn't happen. Wolves have the potential to be more of a population control factor then raptors though.

Just one mans opinion!

465H&H

I hate like hell to admit it, but I bought the latest edition of Bugle at the store today. Some good reading on the wolf issue. RMEF has changed presidents and thier stance is a little more conservative than it was when reintorduction took place. Good for them, they don't seem to be stadleing the fence!

Well Kudu, the RMEF really hasn't changed its stance, but I'm glad you have taken the time to learn what it is. They are neutral on the issue of reintroduction, but they have consistently advocated delisting wolves and allowing states to manage their wolf populations. That has been their stance since the mid-90s. Where some people got the idea that they were trying to promote wolf reintroduction I have no idea. That has never been the case.

And by the way, join RMEF and you won't have to buy the "Bugle" at the store.

McInnis, in the beginning they were very pro wolf and said so in thier responses to , Letters to the editor. I actually wrote to them, and they responded, verbaitum, "we believe wolves are a very important part of an eco system and fully supported the reintrodcution" It was printed in the front of the Bugle magazine and directed to about 10 negative responses to, the, then president of RMEF who wrote an article the previous issue about the wild howl of a wolfand how excited he was that the wolf was back. I am assuming,
that jack ass is no longer president.

My only regret was throwing that issue away!

I spend my money on Mule Deer foundation, DU,NRA, and SFW!

I think I got it this time......

Lets kill off all of the wolves and introduce uncia uncia (snow leopard) to the ecosystem!

They are far more effective at killing and those stinkin wolves wouldnt know what to do!

Granted, they were apparently never native to North America, but why get caught up in the little details?.........

How much will people really pay to hunt a flea infested canine anyway? Now, snow leopard hunts?.........think of the profits.....


IV

More intellectual drivel and lame attempts at hillarity by our resident "intellectual" - I see!
Idaho Vandal - wake the fuck up!
The Wolves are way way way more populous than what your brother intellectuals promised us and the populations are triple what was desired and considered to not harm our big game herds! When are you gonna wake up man and get SERIOUS! No one wants to kill all the Wolves - just keep them to promised numbers and protect our hard fought for Big Game herds!
Or do you care about our hard fought for Big Game herds?
The dick warts at the rmef obviously don't and the greens in the various governmental agencies sure as hell don't either!
I would not like to be considered part of the green intellectual groups of lying and back stabbing sons of bitches and daughters of whores who got the ranchers, business people and Big Game Hunters of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho into this mess - with the out of control Wolf populations and the resulting damage they do!
I simply can not understand what is in some peoples minds - you ignore the problem yet profess your superior intellect. Not a smart thing to do in my estimation! I again warn any and ALL persons that read this posting NEVER TRUST AN INTELLECTUAL (or to a slightly lesser extent ANYONE from the government)!
Hold them accountable at every turn!
Someone in an above posting made me burst out into laughter when "it" suggested "lets just let some of our EXTRA Elk be eaten by the nice little Wolves" maybe that will solve the problems!
Get a grip you dim bulb! HOW ARE YOU GONNA STOP THE WOLVES from doing what THEY want?
Are you gonna stand by the roadside and hold up a sign that says "ALL RIGHT WOLVES YOU HAVE EATEN ENOUGH ELK - TIME TO STOP! LOL!!!
There is a Wolf problem now - triple over population goals, and they are hungry and they are eating our hard fought for Big Game herds not just the Elk! And they are stressing them out in my opinion doing further damage (less quantifiable albeit!) to our herds. And I have spent a lot of time in the mountains of one of the affected states observing these stress's!
Human Hunting opportunities are being lost, Game herds are being decimated in many locales, commerce is being affected by this overpopulation of predators right now and there appears no end in sight!
Deny these realities if YOU wish but do not poo-poo these troubles and expect anyone to go along with you.
The Wolves are a clear and present danger to Hunting, commerce and ranching in many areas now, and will be, in many areas in the future if left unchecked.
We need to KILL OFF most of the Wolves ASAP get them back to the 325 number that the feds and many others promised would be the maximum allowed!
Thanks for nothing rmef! You green bunch of blithering idiots!
Or should they be called the rocky mountain Wolf foundation? Stupid is as stupid does!
Yeah go hold up signs on some roads and see if the Wolves read them and heed them! Ha-ha-ha!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Whew!....I was beginning to think you were ignoring us.......

IV

Varmit Guy!

Perhaps you should go back and this time READ what I said in my post. My point was that states must be able to manage the predator populations including wolves. Perhaps you don't understand what manage means. Look it up! I said that we must manage our predator and prey populations to achieve our end goals for each. I surely don't want the feds managing our resident wildlife. The state may decide it wants minimal wolf populations or some level above that but it should be a STATE decision. If your going to quote me then understand what I am saying.

Also we would take your comments much more seriously if you could curb your fowl mouth. Your not in a patrol car when your on here.

Other then that I really enjoy your posts!

465H&H

quote:

The Game and Fish Commission will consider signing the petition to delist at its July 13 meeting in Rawlins. The department said Gov. Dave Freudenthal will also sign the document, which has been drafted by the agency and the state attorney general's office. It will then be submitted to Interior Secretary Gale Norton.

Heard any news?

--Mike

They sent the petition to the USF&W and specifically to Gale Norton.

Wyoming asks feds to delist area wolves
By MIKE STARK
Of The Gazette Staff

The state of Wyoming on Wednesday asked the federal government to remove wolves in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho from the endangered species list.

The 89-page petition unanimously approved by the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission on Wednesday morning says wolves in Wyoming are "unacceptably impacting" big-game herds and are increasingly preying on livestock.

"I think it's time for Wyoming to be able to manage the wolves," said Linda Fleming, chair of the Game and Fish Commission. "I would hope they look favorably on our petition."


The request was signed later in the day by Gov. Dave Freudenthal.

Ed Bangs, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said federal officials will read the petition and decide within 90 days whether further review is warranted.

"We'll take a hard look at it and give it a fair shot," Bangs said.

The petition is the latest salvo in a long-running dispute between Wyoming and the federal government over the future of wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains.

All sides agree that the wolf population, estimated to be more than 800 in the three states, has exceeded recovery goals.

The Fish and Wildlife Service, though, has rejected Wyoming's proposed plan to manage wolves, largely because of provisions that would classify some wolves as predators that could be killed without regulation.

The state plan - intended to assure that the wolf population won't dip to low levels - is a key prerequisite for delisting wolves. The federal government has approved plans for Montana and Idaho but has delayed delisting wolves in the three states because of Wyoming's rejected plan.

Earlier this year, a federal judge in Cheyenne denied a claim by Wyoming state officials that the government had violated federal law in rejecting the state's plan. The decision, which is being appealed, noted that the state's case might be more ripe if Wyoming had submitted a formal petition to remove wolves from listing under the Endangered Species Act.

Pat Crank, Wyoming's attorney general, said Wednesday that the petition is intended to meet that provision in the judge's ruling and urge federal officials to make a decision on delisting wolves.

"It makes a very sound legal and biological argument that should be granted," Crank said. "I hope they read it with an open mind and really look at it."

onthenet
Petition to remove area wolves
from the endangered species list
(pdf)

The petition spends several pages discussing the impacts the expanding wolf population has had on livestock and game animals since the wolf's reintroduction to Yellowstone National Park 10 years ago.

The state says several elk herds in the state have been adversely affected by wolves compared with other herds without wolves' influence. State officials predict losses in hunting license revenue are about $225,000 and that local communities stand to lose about $2.9 million in expenses by hunters for motels, restaurants and other amenities.

Nine of 10 wolf packs in Wyoming have attacked livestock in the past year, according to state officials. "This problem grows exponentially as time marches on," Freudenthal wrote in a letter to Interior Secretary Gale Norton on Wednesday.

But wolf advocates - and some federal officials - have argued that Wyoming's plan doesn't go far enough in protecting wolves.

Suzanne Stone, of Defenders of Wildlife, said that delisting would move faster - and states would get management control sooner - if Wyoming simply would craft a management plan that secures a healthy population of wolves into the future.

Recent lawsuits and now the delisting petition promise to stretch out the process further, she said. "It very clearly delays a delisting process," Stone said.

Meanwhile, states with approved wolf management plans, including Montana and Idaho, are in talks with the federal government about delisting wolves in those states.

Carolyn Sime, head of the wolf program for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and the Fish and Wildlife Service have the same goal: to delist wolves as soon as possible.

"Wyoming's petition is just one other way to get to delisting. Our sense is it won't be any faster or any better than the one we're taking," she said.

The federal government has 90 days to review the petition and decide whether it contains enough information to warrant delisting wolves. If so, a final decision must be issued within a year of the petition's filing.


Copyright © The Billings Gazette, a division of Lee Enterprises.





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Heres a better idea: Lets get rid of the wolf and transplant 350 Californians to Wyoming...I promise if their population grows beyond 1000 they can be classified as varmints and taken with any centerfire .24 cal or larger between Aug 1 and March 31....provided the clip or magazine does not have a capacity greater than 10. Also, no assault weapons may be used. Of course, tags for residents will be alotted 90/10 and the non-residents will....woops...wrong thread.

IV

To late, they have already released a 1000 of the bastards!

Were you talking wolves or kalifornians! None the less too many of both! No longer endangered! They will just load a bunch more of the wolves and move them to another state who does not want them!

The answer is - SSS...

I dont mean kill them all by any means, but they're not endangered in too many places if any anymore, so time to cull some of them.

The idiots in Kalifornia dont let you shoot Mtn Lions yet they're THICK in the entire state now. The claim from Liberals is that they were endangered in the '70s but now they're all over and yet NO thought is ever given to hunting seasons.

Dont wait for those morons to open a season, they never will... Wolves and Lions have no bag limits, no hunting season. Makes little sense to me.

A ctually 1000's of both!

This is just too good to stay out of! I live on the East coast, in Virginia, but here is my take on it. Rather than letting the wolves consume a large part of our wildlife and do zero about it (Brent) , or pay our tax and license dollars to hire predator control folks, why not let the trappers do some trapping? You certainly don't have to pay them to run a trapline, and many would jump on the chance to trap some wolves.

If you look back at past cycles, the predator/prey ratio never stays static, but is constantly changing; it was that way even a hundred years ago.

As far as papers written by "experts", I know a Vietnam era Ranger that left colledge after challenging his history professor about "facts" he was teaching about Southeast Asia. The professor told him, "I'm an EXPERT on Vietnam....I have written four books about Vietnam! When the Ranger asked him if he had actually BEEN to Vietnam, you know what his answer was......no. So much for "experts".

The USFWS is introducing cougars here in the swamps of Eastern Virginia. Nobody in this area was told ANYTHING about it. Only after many sightings/stalkings, did anybody admit that, yes, big cats were reintroduced into the area.

Brent, please don't tell us about "knee capping" any folks or critters with your trusty BB gun. Big cats EAT PEOPLE. There have been more big cat attacks on people in the last ten years than in the previous one hundred years. Look at this website.....http://users.frii.com/mytymyk/lions/attacks.htm

Despite what many experts might say, I figure a pack of hungry wolves would rip an unarmed liberal hiker to pieces, if the opportunity avails itself. Ding! Round 9!

America, land of the free....Jim

And I am glad that both of them have finally seen the RMEF as it really is. "NUTIN"

I would have to throw my two cents worth in.....
RMEF = REMF's, and that is the real problem. Jim

Riverrat: When did you visit RMEF headquarters?

IV

Idaho, I've never been there........was just being a wise ass!

Jim

So, you guys can't hunt grey wolves? They're good eating! And believe it or not, Ballistic Tips tear them to shreds.

AH! MY favorite thread, it rises from the ashes with truths and the consequences!

Face it, they, the pro-wolf folks, want hunting to end and any restriction on us, hunters, brings glee to thier life! This was in the paper today.

Bush must accelerate wolf restoration in East

By DAVID GRAM
Associated Press writer Saturday, August 20, 2005




MONTPELIER, Vt. -- A federal judge Friday ordered the Bush administration to step up efforts to restore the gray wolf to four northeastern states, a ruling environmentalists called a major victory.

"The wolves are howlin"' in celebration, said Patrick Parenteau, director of the environmental law clinic at Vermont Law School. Parenteau, lead attorney in the case, said his students "did all the hard labor in the case. It's a nice victory for our students."

Judge J. Garvan Murtha, sitting in the U.S. District Court for Vermont, found that the Department of the Interior violated federal law in 2003 when it issued a rule saying no further efforts to restore the wolf were needed. The ruling covers Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York state.

Efforts to restore wolves had been successful in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The government wanted to lump those states in with the Northeast in a new, 21-state eastern region, and declare that enough had been done to restore wolf populations throughout the eastern United States.

But Murtha wrote that the Fish and Wildlife Service "simply cannot downlist or delist an area that it previously determined warrants an endangered listing." Murtha said, the government's plan "lumps together" the population of the upper Midwest "with a low to nonexistent population outside the core area."

A Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman, Diana Weaver, said agency officials would not be available immediately for comment.

Environmental groups, including the National Wildlife Federation and state groups in Vermont, Maine and New York, joined in the lawsuit. They argued that good wolf habitats exist in northern Maine and in New York's Adirondack Mountains, and that northern Vermont and New Hampshire likely would become an important corridor for wolves migrating between those two habitats.

Wow, this thread just hit home. At first I was simply blown away by the obvious ignorance of people that want the wolf population to flourish like it has been. But now I see that Maine and New Hampshire are among the next bull's eye for deer population and game destruction. Being from southern Maine this news hit me like a hammer. Unbelievable...

I dont really have anything to add, just wanted to bring this back to the top to welcome VG back from his travels.......

IV

Idaho Vandal: I loved your post about the transplantation of Californians!
LOL!
I see the greenies at the rmef might be feeling the heat of the consequences of their past stupidities regarding Wolves!
The latest issue of "The BUNGLE"! magazine includes some real life attributions of the wonderful furry little darlings that wayne "THE BRAIN" carleton so slathers over (Wolves!)! And these recent attributions to the Wolf have a MUCH, MUCH, MUCH more TRUTHFUL ring to them than the green blather that has oozed out of "The BUNGLE" magazine and the TV show, Elk Country Journal, in the past!
I would say that the greenies at the rmef have realized what side of their bread "the butter" is on!!!
LOL!
Green assed intellectual idiots always show their true stripes, eventually, ALWAYS!
DO NOT SEND THE GREENS AT THE RMEF ONE RED CENT UNTIL THEY PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR PAST MISTAKES AND PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THEY WILL WORK TO PROTECT ELK IN THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS! And until the rmef holds all governtmental agencies feet to the fire until the Wolf problem is solved.
Personally I do not see the intellectual idiots at the rmef capable of or interested in doing this!
Thanks for nothing rmef!
I suggest all concerned Elk Hunters immediately cancel their memberships in the rmef and quit supporting them in any way. The green assed money strirrers at the rmef simply have to choose - are they pro-Wolf or pro-Elk!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I used tbe a member in the RMEF-but found out they were not returning the money to the states where they got the money on their banquest etc. So came a long the Arizona Elk Society and they have just about put the RMEF out of business here in Arizona! Want some wolves-you can have all our Ted Turner cross-bred wolves that have been proven not to be fullblood-mexican greys-or you have all our mexican border crossers-as the USFS just called them-Mexican Nationals-I have another name for them-wetbacks! Maybe open a season on them! But only 1 per season-thats a daily bag limit!

Good thing they only kill the weak and the sick! And of course only what they can eat!

Rancher suspects wolves killed 28 sheep

By CAT URBIGKIT
Star-Tribune correspondent Tuesday, August 23, 2005




NewsTracker

* Last we knew: Federal agents destroyed a female wolf and four pups on lambing grounds near Farson after sheep were killed. A male wolf and two pups were not found.

* The latest: Twenty-eight dead sheep were discovered in the same area.

* What's next: Federal officials are investigating whether the sheep were killed by wolves.

FARSON -- Federal wildlife officials are investigating a case of nearly 30 head of dead domestic sheep near the Prospect Mountains east of here.

Their owner suspects they were killed by wolves.

Mike Jimenez of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday that because the sheep carcasses had been in place for up to 10 days, it was proving "very difficult to find out what's going on."

Jimenez said, "I have no idea what's going on."

USDA Wildlife Services specialists were in the area over the weekend and earlier this week to investigate, but they had not yet made a determination, according to Jimenez.

The sheep belong to Wyoming Stock Growers Association executive Jim Magagna. He explained that the small herd of sheep, which included late lambers that weren't moved to the high country, was in a small fence pasture consisting of mostly private land. Being in a contained area next to the road, this herd is not tended to by a herder, Magagna said. Ranch workers drive by and can see the herd and every few weeks enter the pasture to replenish the salt for the animals.

On Aug. 2, a ranch worker counted 49 head of sheep in the pasture, including 30 ewes and 19 lambs, Magagna said. A week ago, the worker drove by and could see the sheep in the pasture and thought everything appeared to be in order.

Then last week, the worker entered the pasture to find most of the sheep dead. He loaded the 16 sheep that were still alive and unharmed and hauled them to the ranch. Magagna entered the pasture Friday, photographing 28 individual dead sheep, most of which were pretty decomposed, he said.

Magagna contacted federal officials, who entered the area to investigate over the weekend, he said.

Magagna suspects wolf depredation. This herd is in the same area where a female wolf gave birth to pups on a domestic sheep lambing ground this spring, only to begin preying on the sheep herd. Wildlife Services killed the female wolf and four of her six pups, but a male wolf and the remaining two pups were never found. Fish and Wildlife had expected that the pups were too young to survive on their own.

With nearly 30 dead sheep, some with whole quarters moved away from the rest of the carcasses and completely cleaned, Magagna said, "I can't think of anything else that would have caused that."

Jimenez repeated that it is "very difficult" to try to determine if wolves killed the sheep because the carcasses are decomposed. He said Wildlife Services would soon return to the area to continue the investigation.

In other wolf news, a wolf has been confirmed as killing a ewe and lamb in the Hams Fork River area near Kemmerer, Jimenez said. Wildlife Services has been authorized to kill one wolf. The canine culprit appears to be alone and is not wearing a radio collar, Jimenez said, but has been in an open area where it can be killed.

Good thing they only kill the weak and the sick! And of course only what they can eat!

Rancher suspects wolves killed 28 sheep

By CAT URBIGKIT
Star-Tribune correspondent Tuesday, August 23, 2005




NewsTracker

* Last we knew: Federal agents destroyed a female wolf and four pups on lambing grounds near Farson after sheep were killed. A male wolf and two pups were not found.

* The latest: Twenty-eight dead sheep were discovered in the same area.

* What's next: Federal officials are investigating whether the sheep were killed by wolves.

FARSON -- Federal wildlife officials are investigating a case of nearly 30 head of dead domestic sheep near the Prospect Mountains east of here.

Their owner suspects they were killed by wolves.

Mike Jimenez of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday that because the sheep carcasses had been in place for up to 10 days, it was proving "very difficult to find out what's going on."

Jimenez said, "I have no idea what's going on."

USDA Wildlife Services specialists were in the area over the weekend and earlier this week to investigate, but they had not yet made a determination, according to Jimenez.

The sheep belong to Wyoming Stock Growers Association executive Jim Magagna. He explained that the small herd of sheep, which included late lambers that weren't moved to the high country, was in a small fence pasture consisting of mostly private land. Being in a contained area next to the road, this herd is not tended to by a herder, Magagna said. Ranch workers drive by and can see the herd and every few weeks enter the pasture to replenish the salt for the animals.

On Aug. 2, a ranch worker counted 49 head of sheep in the pasture, including 30 ewes and 19 lambs, Magagna said. A week ago, the worker drove by and could see the sheep in the pasture and thought everything appeared to be in order.

Then last week, the worker entered the pasture to find most of the sheep dead. He loaded the 16 sheep that were still alive and unharmed and hauled them to the ranch. Magagna entered the pasture Friday, photographing 28 individual dead sheep, most of which were pretty decomposed, he said.

Magagna contacted federal officials, who entered the area to investigate over the weekend, he said.

Magagna suspects wolf depredation. This herd is in the same area where a female wolf gave birth to pups on a domestic sheep lambing ground this spring, only to begin preying on the sheep herd. Wildlife Services killed the female wolf and four of her six pups, but a male wolf and the remaining two pups were never found. Fish and Wildlife had expected that the pups were too young to survive on their own.

With nearly 30 dead sheep, some with whole quarters moved away from the rest of the carcasses and completely cleaned, Magagna said, "I can't think of anything else that would have caused that."

Jimenez repeated that it is "very difficult" to try to determine if wolves killed the sheep because the carcasses are decomposed. He said Wildlife Services

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

WHat better gift for VG, Kudu56, Ivan, Brent and all the other wolf lovers.....than to bring this back to the top.....

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas to you and your family to!


Wolf lovers!


Thanks, Love ya man! Elk numbers down for the third straight year!

RMEF Stance on Wolves

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation supports sound, science-based wildlife management that maintains a sustainable balance between predator and big-game prey species. We neither support nor oppose the federal wolf recovery program, but we do favor existing plans to remove wolves from the endangered species list so they can be managed locally by state wildlife agencies.


In keeping with that intention, the Elk Foundation has been fulfilling its appropriate role of providing funds for research, monitoring and fact-finding to be used by designated decision-makers and the public for management actions.


Even after states are given due management authority, debates over the relationship between wolves and elk will continue as a complex political, economic and social issue. These debates over appropriate management actions will be intense and divisive. There will be no inherently “right†answers, and intelligent, dedicated and well-informed Elk Foundation members will come down on different sides. We encourage our members to use the public process, making their voices heard for the action they favor by federal and state agencies and legislators. But for us as an organization to take a side cannot avoid promoting divisions in our membership. Any such division would weaken the Elk Foundation and divert attention from the longstanding, imperative focus on our mission - the protection and enhancement of critical wildlife habitat.


Habitat - food, water, shelter and space to roam - is the indisputable basis of healthy wildlife populations, and its loss to subdivision and development remains the most serious threat. Once gone, it cannot be replaced. Therefore, the Elk Foundation’s focus will remain, as it always has, on protecting and enhancing places for elk and other wildlife to live.

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I am on committees for RMEF plus a Life Member of the organization and friends with some of the founders. RMEF is a habitat conservation organization, they are not a lobby group. If millions of dollars are spent on lobbying, ground will be bought for development instead of open space. Unoffically they do not like wolves since they do eat a bunch of elk, offically they cannot say that.

How many other BIG GAME groups have conserved as much ground as the RMEF. I sure as hell know the the Southeast Idaho Mule Deer Foundation or the Arizona Elk Society, or the North American Moose Foundation haven't conserved as much ground as RMEF. Visit the new headquarters it makes you proud that you are a member. If you haven't seen it, go. Don't just talk shit about it. If you read Bugle then read the articles from Lee Hart, Broken Heart Ranch, who was an outfitter and went out of business from wolves. Bugle tells both sides. I have worked for Bugle, and Wapiti Magazine, all of the people working for the magazines are good people with most of them being hunters. I have spent a hell of a lot of money and time contributing to the RMEF because over 90 cents of every dollar but in goes back to habitat only 10% is used for admin fees. All people who work for RMEF are not becoming millionaires, they work there because they like to conserve land. I don't like wolves, but if RMEF comes out against them, they will loose a lot of donors if they say they are anti-wolf. I would rather stay on the fence and gain $100,000 from people who like wolves. Wouldn't you. RMEF returns money made at the local chapters to PAC projects (which go to local state lands), no not all money is returned to the states, but I don't think elk in Florida would work??????

Feel free to discuss any of these issues with me either here or by PM.

Whats going on with the wolves at the moment?

quote:

Originally posted by bulldog563:
Whats going on with the wolves at the moment?

They switched from eating elk to eating reindeer (so no Christmas for Kudu or IV),
and are now trolling the internet stirring up fights while searching for Ray and JudgeG.

Brent

I havent heard or read much that is going on with the wolf. A hunter north of Cody shot a yearling male, this past weekend, mistaking it for a coyote. Thats the only good news I have heard.

The Wyoming Game and Fish lifted thier gag order on comments from thier employees a month ago. Now they can speak out or answer questions. The two employees I have spoken with, a game warden and a biologist, both had nothing good nor positive to say about wolves. Elk numbers are declining as well as success rates in heavliy populated wolf areas.

The game warden said no good will come of the wolf in Wyoming. I agree, things were fine before, now they are worse. The liberal, conservative, limp wristed supporters got thier way and we have to live with them and put up with them!
wolf supporters!

Ok this is for you limp wristed wolf and grizzly lovers. Sign away!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/577900741

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/984880998

I signed, but I used my real name,Mr. Kiss my Ass!