Sad trip to the NE.

[KFhunter]

They're just culling back the moose population so the wolves don't expand as fast, try to minimize the yo-yo effect.

[PA BEN]

Idaho has over 1,000 wolves, offers 190 bull moose tags in Units 1 and 2 alone, and most (*not all) of those units hover in the 80-90% harvest success range and have for a long time.  Some specific sub-units in unit 1 have seen some big declines. However, based on those numbers I really don't see 20 more tags as some panacea of doom in very nearby NE Wa. 

Not to mention, if you guys are making another one of those "moose will be gone in 2 years" predictions like we saw in a recent thread on this site, then why not let state hunters take them while there are some left?  I mean, if the wolves and the Yakamas are going to devastate the moose anyways...wouldn't you support us getting our share since they are going extinct?

So why don't you show us this thread where 2 years was predicted.

[idahohuntr]

Idaho has over 1,000 wolves, offers 190 bull moose tags in Units 1 and 2 alone, and most (*not all) of those units hover in the 80-90% harvest success range and have for a long time.  Some specific sub-units in unit 1 have seen some big declines. However, based on those numbers I really don't see 20 more tags as some panacea of doom in very nearby NE Wa. 

Not to mention, if you guys are making another one of those "moose will be gone in 2 years" predictions like we saw in a recent thread on this site, then why not let state hunters take them while there are some left?  I mean, if the wolves and the Yakamas are going to devastate the moose anyways...wouldn't you support us getting our share since they are going extinct?

So why don't you show us this thread where 2 years was predicted.

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,48084.0.html 

[bearpaw]

I heard yesterday that the Spokane Tribe is counting their moose calves, last fall not one calf was seen with a cow, the Spokane Reservation is on the south end of GMU 121. This is going to seriously impact the herd in that area in a few years.

Last weekend a local horn hunter found a cow moose recently killed by wolves and two sheep which also were most likely killed by wolves last summer. The wolves found him before he made it off the mountain and he had wolves skirting him for a half mile until he was back to his vehicle. Scared him bad, close to the same area the wolves had the bow hunter treed in 121 two seasons ago. He's lucky they didn't attack him like they attacked the elk hunter in GMU 111. He had no gun, but I doubt he will be unarmed in the future, more and more people are packing firearms just for a walk in the neighborhood these days.

[bearpaw]

Another interesting piece of info, the Spokane Tribe issued 6 wolf harvest permits but none were filled.

[boneaddict]

Like I said Bobcat it's all smoke and mirrors to give the impression that everything is ok but we know it's not, we aren't as dumb as they think! 😡

Very common tactic I have noticed used a lot in the Methow.  Now we have a simple poor decision about antler less harvest to take some of the blame off the wolves and that stupidity.   

[M_ray]

Like I said Bobcat it's all smoke and mirrors to give the impression that everything is ok but we know it's not, we aren't as dumb as they think! 😡

Very common tactic I have noticed used a lot in the Methow.  Now we have a simple poor decision about antler less harvest to take some of the blame off the wolves and that stupidity.

Yep, good point!

[TommyH]

I've seen a few kills this winter, and have been hearing of quite abit more. 117/121

[bobcat]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

[Curly]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

Not if they're dead.

[jasnt]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

Not if they're dead.

what if their undead

[Jonathan_S]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

Everybody wants to talk about wolves and that certainly is a salient issue that needs to be addressed but I would wager that most people are wildly unaware at the HUGE cougar numbers in these units too.

Bearpaw...what say you?

[Curly]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

Not if they're dead.

what if their undead

If they're undead, I suggest trying silver bullets. 
 

[fishngamereaper]

Wish I had more time to spend up there. The times I have been up there though I generally see a lot of moose. I don't know that more tags are a good thing though. Kind of the like the increase in cow elk tags this last year in most of the 300gmus. Seems counter productive to herd productivity. If it comes down to sustainability of food in the area than ya, ok I get it.  But just to increase because of a good survival year and seemingly good populations, Im torn.

Im curious what the Moose tag holders from last year have to say. Generally those hunters fill out the questionnaire's, ie moose seen, cows seen, bulls seen etc. Seems most of the moose stories I read the hunters saw a fair number of moose before harvesting.  If their reports reflect good moose populations Im sure WDFW takes that into consideration.

[bearpaw]

Wolves do need to eat, and so do cougars.

Everybody wants to talk about wolves and that certainly is a salient issue that needs to be addressed but I would wager that most people are wildly unaware at the HUGE cougar numbers in these units too.

Bearpaw...what say you?

I think most of us in the NE know about the cougar impacts that are occurring and the big worry is adding wolf impacts to the cougar and bear predation. Overall cougars are by far the most serious problem at this time. WDFW has limited cougar harvest so much that the NE is saturated with cougars to the point they are eating the wolves. Three of the (maybe 10 or 12) collared wolves have been eaten by cougar, no other state has had that high of cougar predation on wolves, that in itself proves that cougars are a problem in the NE.

WDFW listens to a professor at WSU for establishing cougar seasons. Maybe WDFW will figure out that Wielgus is just trying to prevent lethal cougar management. I'm not sure how to convince them their are as many cats as we have, they seem to ignore anything you try and tell them regarding predators. Maybe the fact that they now know a good portion of the wolves are being eaten by cats will bring some intelligent thinking.