Fish and Game Considers Wolf Baiting in Northern Idaho

[bearpaw]

http://magicvalley.com/news/local/fish-and-game-considers-wolf-baiting-in-northern-idaho/article_dbf63110-94d6-11e3-9fca-0019bb2963f4.html

Fish and Game Considers Wolf Baiting in Northern Idaho

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) — Officials with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game in northern Idaho are proposing hunters be allowed to use bait to kill more wolves as a way to bolster elk numbers in the Panhandle region.

The Spokesman-Review reports that Fish and Game officials also want to expand hunting for bears and cougars to kill more of those predators.

Wayne Wakkinen of Fish and Game says the agency is developing a predator management plan for the Panhandle region with the goal of increasing elk calf survival.

Wildlife managers say calf ratios should be 30 per 100 cows, but that aerial surveys have found ratios have dropped to the teens and low 20s in some areas.

[ICEMAN]

Amazing.

It seems to me that "wildlife managers" could have learned this lesson by examining the history of wolf populations, instead of letting things play out naturally before their very eyes.

[bearpaw]

Amazing.

It seems to me that "wildlife managers" could have learned this lesson by examining the history of wolf populations, instead of letting things play out naturally before their very eyes.

   Many, many hunters told them this too, but they ignored us.

[jackmaster]

i have baited pretty much everything there is to bait, and since wolves arent an everyday thing, how does one go about baiting them, is it as easy as buying a dead cow and yarding it out into the bush and just setting up in it do you bring an ecaller and use alot of coyote sounds to attract the wolves to your bait station or is it just a waiting game? thanks for any advice

[bearpaw]

You can bait them just like bear, guys baiting bear in Idaho have wolves that come to their baits.

[jackmaster]

You can bait them just like bear, guys baiting bear in Idaho have wolves that come to their baits.

so wolves come to big piles of bread and doughnuts and stale beer  works like a charm for bear, oh and a couple buckets of fry grease 

[idahohuntr]

Amazing.

It seems to me that "wildlife managers" could have learned this lesson by examining the history of wolf populations, instead of letting things play out naturally before their very eyes.

   Many, many hunters told them this too, but they ignored us.

Ignored?  I don't think so...more like there hands were tied while wolves were listed.  They ended antlerless OTC hunts for much of the panhandle a few years ago and continue to evaluate ways to meet population objectives .  There have been significant efforts to decrease predators...its not like IDFG woke up this morning and said oh, gee, we should look into this wolf thing a little bit.       Of course, if they didn't have staff wasting time explaining to people not to eat wolf feces so they don't get any diseases maybe we would be further down the road of better managing predators. 

[KFhunter]

I just look at all the things Idaho is doing and think,  Washington isn't going to do that.

There won't be no wolf baiting here, no trapping and WDFW isn't going to spend 2 million to have wildlife services kill them.


Nothing,  we have no avenue to kill or manage wolves.

[pianoman9701]

There won't be any baiting, there won't be any trapping, there won't be any proven management techniques employed in WA. There won't be many ungulates, either.

[singleshot12]

Baiting is a good start to putting a dent in the wolf population.may take a couple years.but ultimately wolves will eventually need to be poisoned like they were back in the day in order for us to have deer and elk herds to peak numbers

Hopefully Washington will follow and we can once again control our growing wolf population. Maybe some day F&G will realize again that the best management tool for predators was leg hold traps,hound hunting,and baiting.just maybe gotta think positive

[Machias]

just maybe gotta think positive

All evidence to the contrary. 

[Machias]

Of course, if they didn't have staff wasting time explaining to people not to eat wolf feces so they don't get any diseases maybe we would be further down the road of better managing predators. 

I guess we don't still have the BS smiley.   

[dlaw]

http://missoulian.com/news/local/idaho-proposes-wolf-baiting-to-protect-elk-herds/article_748230ce-94cc-11e3-8053-001a4bcf887a.html

[bearpaw]

Amazing.

It seems to me that "wildlife managers" could have learned this lesson by examining the history of wolf populations, instead of letting things play out naturally before their very eyes.

   Many, many hunters told them this too, but they ignored us.

Ignored?  I don't think so...more like there hands were tied while wolves were listed.  They ended antlerless OTC hunts for much of the panhandle a few years ago and continue to evaluate ways to meet population objectives .  There have been significant efforts to decrease predators...its not like IDFG woke up this morning and said oh, gee, we should look into this wolf thing a little bit.       Of course, if they didn't have staff wasting time explaining to people not to eat wolf feces so they don't get any diseases maybe we would be further down the road of better managing predators. 

  an expected comment 

[deaner]

correct me if im wrong, but i believe when i checked the idaho regs out it said that it is okay to kill a wolf over bait if the wolf kill is incidental to bear baiting.  so in theory, wolf baiting was already legal in idaho if you have a bear tag in your pocket?