Wolf Weekly Wrap-up

Summer = coexistence time — Summer is upon us, and that means it’s about time to kick-off our annual proactive season, when Defenders helps ranchers across the West reduce potential conflicts between their livestock and native wildlife. This marks the fourth year of the Wood River Wolf Project, and once again, Defenders will be sending a team of field technicians into the central Idaho wilderness to keep an eye on thousands of sheep as they move through the heart of wolf country. Check out this new video we put together that features our wolf expert Suzanne Stone and last year’s head field technician, Roger Olson. Suzanne discusses the history and importance of the project; Roger, a former law enforcement officer for Idaho Fish and Game, demonstrates the nonlethal tools that our field team uses to keep wolves away from the sheep. This year we’re exploring ways to expand the project across the entire county to include cattle ranchers as well as sheep producers and to protect against cougars, bears and coyotes as well as wolves.

Misplaced blame in Oregon – As described in this Greenwire story that got picked up by the New York Times, some environmental groups have been quick to criticize state wildlife managers in Oregon for removing several wolves so far this year in response to livestock depredations. But our wolf experts in the field see things differently. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has been working hard to meet the state’s recovery goals, while doing their best to promptly address ongoing conflicts with livestock. It’s the federal agents from the local USDA Wildlife Services office that have been quick to blame wolves for any livestock loss. Across the West, Wildlife Services continues to poison the well on wolf recovery by making wolves out to be the #1 villains. If Wildlife Services spent more time helping ranchers avoid conflict in the first place, fewer livestock would be lost and ODFW wouldn’t have to kill as many wolves.

Patience is a virtue (that some people don’t have) – Even though the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service has officially proposed delisting wolves in the western Great Lakes, that hasn’t stopped anti-wolf extremists from pushing for a more immediate political solution. Rep. John Kline (R-MN) sent a letter around this week to his colleagues in Congress, looking for support for HR 838, a bill he introduced back in February that would cut gray wolves in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota out of the Endangered Species Act and give states the sole authority to manage wolves. Kline and his co-sponsors must be hell-bent on stripping federal protections as quickly as possible, since the Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposed delisting would likely take gray wolves off the list as early as the end of the year. Clearly, this is more about catering to Safari Club International (who supported the letter) and other extreme hunting groups than it is about doing what’s best for America’s native wildlife. Who needs scientific integrity and responsible state management? We can just let Congress decide which species need protection!

Last chance to speak up for Montana’s wolves – Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is proposing to allow up to 220 wolves—nearly 40 percent of the current estimated population—to be killed during the fall wolf hunt this year. That quota is simply too high and will undo more than 15 years of successful recovery. Help Defenders set a more reasonable course for wolf management in Montana. Don’t miss your chance to submit public comments and tell MTFWP to dial it down. The deadline is 5pm on Monday, June 20.

Already, Montana is taking aggressive action to take out wolves that are implicated in livestock depredations. The Missoulian reported last night that two more wolves were targeted by federal agents from a privately-funded helicopter, after two wolves were trapped and euthanized earlier in the month. So far, no wolves have been killed in response to a horse that was supposedly killed by wolves near Darby, though five permits have been issued to the landowner.