Agency considers wolf action

[Dave Workman]

Washington wolf debate enters new, lethal arena

The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife announced Tuesday that it had killed a wolf in the “Wedge” region of upper Stevens County, and indicated that by Wednesday afternoon, another of the predators would be killed.

http://www.examiner.com/article/washington-wolf-debate-enters-new-lethal-arena?cid=db_articles

[bearpaw]

NE Washington is right on course to evolve on this wolf issue just as Idaho and Montana have evolved. Drive into any ID/MT small town and ask around, wolf season never ends there. These people have been pushed beyond the limit of self control by an agency that was not responsive for many years. Now IDFG is playing catchup, they deserve credit for that, but the fact is, wolf season never ends in ID/MT and that mentality is supported by most residents in many small communities.

This last wolf season in Idaho's Region 1, half the wolves taken were killed from packs in areas F&G did not know wolves even existed. That is a quote from the Region 1 IDFG manager, Jim Hagedorn. In spite of ongoing year around wolf control by locals, the wolf population still expands in many areas.

Conservation Northwest made big claims in WA just as they did in ID/MT that they would pay for any cattle losses. 

Ask the McIrvins how many of the two dozen cattle lost last year they recieved a check for? Ask them how many checks they have recieved since 2007? Ask their neighbors how many checks they have recieved?

Mitch Friedman should put out or get out (of the way).

You can expect for this wolf issue to really explode in NE WA. These people are going to get tired of eating their losses. 

[Northway]

NE Washington is right on course to evolve on this wolf issue just as Idaho and Montana have evolved. Drive into any ID/MT small town and ask around, wolf season never ends there. These people have been pushed beyond the limit of self control by an agency that was not responsive for many years. Now IDFG is playing catchup, they deserve credit for that, but the fact is, wolf season never ends in ID/MT and that mentality is supported by most residents in many small communities.

This last wolf season in Idaho's Region 1, half the wolves taken were killed from packs in areas F&G did not know wolves even existed. That is a quote from the Region 1 IDFG manager, Jim Hagedorn. In spite of ongoing year around wolf control by locals, the wolf population still expands in many areas.

Conservation Northwest made big claims in WA just as they did in ID/MT that they would pay for any cattle losses. 

Ask the McIrvins how many of the two dozen cattle lost last year they recieved a check for? Ask them how many checks they have recieved since 2007? Ask their neighbors how many checks they have recieved?

Mitch Friedman should put out or get out (of the way).

You can expect for this wolf issue to really explode in NE WA. These people are going to get tired of eating their losses. 

I believe it was DOW that agreed to compensate ranchers for depredations in the NRM, and they did up until recently. Their goal was to eventually achieve buy-in through collaboration on issues like that. I think they failed to realize how virulently anti-federal, anti-environmentalist a lot of folks in NRM rural communities actually were at that time - especially in Idaho & Wyoming. The final nail in the coffin for that program ever being a success was delisting lawsuit filed by DOW, CBD, HSUS, etc.

It's too early to make a judgment call on how effective Idaho's new wolf management tactics will be. They are putting a lot of pressure on their wolf population, and I would be surprised if their numbers continued to climb over the next couple of years. Wolves are much hardier than a lot of wolf advocates make them out to be, but they're not coyotes. Mark Gamblin over at IDFG claims that their goal is to manage the population at somewhere above 150 animals, which would avoid a relisting situation.

Compensation for depredations is a tricky issue. In a perfect world, we would know exactly how many calves were taken by wolves every year. The reality is that compensation programs create a moral hazard that is difficult to navigate through. It's obvious that there are more depredations occuring than are confirmed in areas occupied by wolves, but how many more? My guess is that it falls somewhere in between what's reported by ranchers through the USDA and what's confirmed by agents of MFWP, IDFG, & WGFD. I'd bet money you could talk to Wildlife Services agents other than Carter Niemeyer who would confirm his assertion that ranchers can get it wrong when it comes to whether or not an animal was killed by wolves. I personally would like to see ranchers compensated for all wolf kills occuring on private property at a ratio of 2:1, and probably 3:1 or 4:1 on more formidable terrain, but it's going to take some creative minds to figure out how to get the compensation program working correctly, and relatively free from fraud. I would also like to see some studies done on how wolves contribute to a reduction in the weight of cattle.

Mitch Friedman's moderate stance is actually not popular with some folks in the environmental community. If you think you have contempt for him, ask some of your ranching contacts in Idaho what they think of Jon Marvel and WWP.