Posted on 03/19/2008 6:18:09 PM PDT by george76
Montana’s wolf population increased 34 percent over the past year, to an estimated 422 wolves in 73 packs...
The wolves are nearly equally distributed between northern and southern Montana...although the bulk of the population growth was in northwestern and far western Montana...
Wolves are still listed under the Endangered Species Act. Delisting was set for late March, but lawsuits are expected to delay that.
As for conflicts with ranchers, the FWP reported an increase in the number of confirmed cattle deaths due to wolves, from 32 to 75, and an increase in the number of sheep deaths, from four to 27.
Two llamas and three dogs also were confirmed killed by wolves...
“We know Montana’s wolves inhabit places where people live, work and recreate,” Sime said. “We expect and try to anticipate conflicts and gear much of our wolf-management work toward helping landowners reduce the risk of livestock depredations.”
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service planned to delist the gray wolves in the Northern Rockies n Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and parts of Washington and Utah on March 28.
The recovery goal, at least 300 wolves for three consecutive years, was reached in 2002 and has been exceeded every year since...
(Excerpt) Read more at bozemandailychronicle.com ...
Thanks George. I always learn so much from your posts.
Did you know that there is three kinds of Canadian geese?
The greater, lesser, and the giant Canada goose which is only native to a few counties in southern Michigan.
The giant Canada goose will weigh up to 18#!
good
Thank you for the needed correction.
Has anybody read “Call Of The Wild” or “White Fang” by Jack London? This could be good news.
I guess the ranchers won’t be able to let their animals wander. It’s a lot more work actually having to keep an eye on them.
223. The idea would be to kill a deer and leave it somewhere where wolves would find it, set up to shoot, and then leave the dead wolves in a heap on the lawn of the govt agency responsible for the ****....
Sounds like they need some new rules for compensation of wolf damages. Either that or kill the wolves.
There is a reason for a few hundred to a few thousand acres of pasture besides preventing overgrazing.
These predators were eliminated by the people who sought to keep their homes, families, and means of making a living safe. Their return has been mandated by people who do not live anywhere near the threat.
Maybe the wolves should be live-trapped and sent in batches to L.A., NYC, D.C. and SF, just to name a few places, and we could see what the reaction was there.
Family ranchers must “ let them wander.” It is also called federal grazing permits.
These federal allotments allow cattle, sheep...( for a fee of money and required labor on the forest permit area )...to eat during the summer on the mountains so that the valley fields can rest and produce feed for the winter.
As you destroy family ranchers, your food supply will increasingly be corporate feed lots. Think growth hormones and lots of other drugs...with higher food prices for the consumers.
The good news for liberals who like Ted Turner and his friends : you will see many new eco-lodges available for the rich Hollywood crowd.
Second, the family rancher is likely not keeping “ an eye on them “ 24 hours a day. He likely has other work to do.
We do need new rules.
That is one of the current struggles.
The USFWS promised self defense but the eco-nuts are ...
Nope, one month hunting season on wolves in Montana. Hunters will come from all over the country for that.
They descend on the pastures here and munch the grass down to a nubbin depriving the farmer of feed for his herds...
The USFWS loves to introduce new predators from foreign countries, then manage the mess that they have created.
Another large federal tax payer funded program.
The beaurocrazies do not want and will fight against us taxpayers ( hunters, etc. ) from helping.
I’m not much of a hunter, but given given the speed of a wolf the the distance I think a .223 would work. When I was a kid my uncle, a WWII vet, could shoot the a$$ off a fly with out of those.
I just checked the article to see if they were still on the list. It said they were removed in 2001 and there are now 100,000 to 130,000. From extinction? That's quite a population growth!
CO—that looks like an interesting book, have you read it?
I had to laugh at some of the ‘review’ comments at the Amazon link. Somebody was ranting on about reviews written by folks from “wolf hating red states,” writing off the book to “folklore” and calling folks arrogant and ignorant if they liked the book. I almost thought I was on an FR campaigning thread, LOL.
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