Delisting the Gray Wolf

Montana Extends Comment Period for Potential Wolf Hunting Season

By David Nolt, 2-11-08

	Caption: Photo courtesy of Doug Smith, Yellowstone National Park.

With the federal government inching toward removing the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (MFWP) is allowing the public until February 13, 2008 to comment on the proposed wolf season.

According to MFWP, there were a minimum of 316 wolves in Montana at the end of 2006. There are approximately 1,500 wolves in the Northern Rockies.

Among the three Northern Rockies wolf states (Idaho, Montana and Wyoming), Montana is leading the way in an effort to manage the wolf as any other wildlife species. In 2001, a broad-based, citizen-led Wolf Management Advisory Council released a report followed by the MFWP’s draft Montana Wolf Conservation Management Planning Document in 2002. This process laid the framework for Montana’s current management plan.

Montana’s process stands in contrast to Wyoming’s wolf management plan, which the federal government rejected in 2004. Federal delisting is currently stalled pending a lawsuit over the new Wyoming plan.

Montana is required to maintain at least 10 breeding wolf pairs and 15 breeding pairs in order to have a wolf hunt. The wolf would be treated as a trophy game animal in Montana. The Wyoming plan calls to treat wolves as “predators,” allowing citizens to shoot wolves on site without a permit in parts of the state.

Details on the tentative wolf-season proposal are available on the FWP website.  Click “Montana Wolf Season.” Comments must be postmarked by February 13. Mail to: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Wildlife Division, Attn: Public Comment, PO Box 200701, Helena MT 59620-0701.

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I am outraged and saddened at the plan that is in store for wolves in the Rockies and around The Yellowstone Park area. I am also saddened that the inhumane practice of aerial gunning of wolves continues in Alaska and for what? To artificially boost deer and elk populations so trophy hunters have more to kill? This is wrong! All trophy hunting is cruel, inhumane, and it needs to be banned outright! Trophy hunting and the right to bear arms are two different things and sometimes there are things that are more important morally than money. I think the wolves should be left alone. I also think its time to get legislation started to have trophy hunting banned and outlawed in this country.The only reason why this government allows trophy hunters to kill natural predators is to artificially boost deer and elk populations only so there is more deer and elk to hunt for greed and its not right. It is the trophy hunters themselves that have depleted the deer and elk populations.Wolves hunt to survive, most humans hunt just to kill.It is not right to slaughter predatory wildlife just so some morons can have an artificially increased deer population to shoot at. I say since lack of deer is such a problem for trophy hunters to blame predators while trophy hunters take far more deer than natural predators ever will, then its time for trophy hunting to be banned and let the numbers even themselves out. The natural predators have more of a right to the herbavores anyway. Hunting is no longer essential to human survival. This is not right! Besides, anyone who decorates their home with dead animal corpses is only a few steps away from being like Jeffery Dahmer in my opinion. If we are going to allow cruelty such as trophy hunting then we might aswell pardon people like Micheal Vick, and allow dogfighting. I am so sick of the double standards of what animal cruelty is and isn't. Just because its not a pet or a domestic animal, does not make trophy hunting right. Either way, all trophy hunting is animal cruelty and it needs to be banned all together period! I say ban it like anything else that is inhumane and cruel.

David

A correction. When Dirk Kempthorne took over at Interior, the FWS suddenly decided to approve Wyoming's wolf plan, which establishes predatory animal status for the wolf throughout 90% of the State. All it took was a slight increase in the trophy game area in northwestern Wyoming to cover the FWS decision, which, if one knows the Endangered Species Act and the terms of reference for delisting as established in the original 1994 rule for recovery and delisting, is illegal.

In any case, we expect the FWS to formally announce the delisting of the wolf in the Greater Yellowstone and central Idado areas later this month or early next month. This will bring immediate lawsuits against lawsuits, primarily over the inadequacy of Wyoming and Idaho's plans.

Interestingly, the lawsuit by Wyoming against the feds for originally rejecting its dual status wolf plan to which you refer above is still in the courts. Wyoming is keeping all its bases covered.

RH

A wolf hunt remains to be seen. Without de-listing there can be no wolf hunt. But it will probably end up in court by actions of radical environmental organizations anyway. Don't be to concerned if there is one. With 500 permits they will be lucky to harvest 3. Even in Alaska with thousands of wolves the hunter success from the ground is low. After a few shots they will be more nocturnal then now.FWP wants 5 more breeding pair min. then in the USFWS own wolf recovery plan. FWP wants more not less. The gray wolf was fully recovered 6 years ago with the USFWS own data. Bottomline is wolf reintroduction was the best anti-hunting tool ever invented and should never have been allowed to happen. The introduction was illegal and PR dallars were used by then Jamie Clark USFWS Director,illegal again and all was in the Congressional report. Jamie left and with the Defenders now, no surprise.Then the 'mystery wolves' from Alaska were brought into YNP in the early 1970's and confirmed by a NPS research biologist, illegal again.Wolves were in YNP and adjacent to YNP before the illegal introduction.NPs and USFWS violated the ESA by not "allowing the existing population to recover". Follow the wolf and you will follow federal laws violated by federal and state agencies. No, I would rather see elk,deer,moose,wild sheep,beaver, coyote and about everything else but don't care if I ever see a wolf, not interested. I do like to hunt however started when I was 10 and every year since.I wouldn't buy the $19 wolf tag for an animal you will never see it's just a money making trick very few will be shot so what's the problem? Just follow the ESA money trail as well lots of state and federal people dependent upon that wolf welfare check every month. I'ts not the species it's all the gimmics behind it.

This whole thing about the wolves is pretty disgusting to me. I can't stand how when a dumb ole cow that stands in a field with a dumb ole look on its face all day long gets taken out by some wolves, it means death for wolves. I think it's funny...do they investigate the crime scene? Look for paw prints and trace the killers? How do these people know which wolves to kill in retaliation for the stupid cow that was killed? Aren't farmers reimbursed for their loss anyways? Aren't there more cows than people in this state? Why the big fat deal over a dead cow? I'm sure that the wolves would rather NOT kill a cow. After eating wild game for centuries...I would think that the preference for wolves is and always will be wild game, but when it's scarce, hey...a wolf and its pups have to eat right? As a Native person, I am horrified that there may possibly be people hunting wolves for trophies. When Native people hunt, it's to provide food for families. Trophy hunting ANY kind of animal is an outrageous concept that only disrespectful, ignorant people would value and condone.

Despite the wolves, elk are at record numbers in the Northern Rockies; above target numbers in Wyoming and Montana, and at target numbers in most of Idaho. Individual herds have always experienced periodic ups and downs with or without wolves. If hunters can't find them, it's because they are lousy hunters. I have no problem finding them to photograph. My neighbor has no problem finding them to hunt. The wolves have no problem finding them. Fish and Game has no problem finding them to count. Then again, we are all willing to get out of the pick up truck or off the ATV and go LOOK!
I have no problem "controlling" problem wolves. Wolves that are hanging out around human habitation, killing livestock etc. Trophy hunting, on the other hand, is reprehensible. When the wolf population reaches a certain level, they will "manage" themselves. It's called "carrying capacity".