Maybe buy someone an annual membership for an excellent Christmas gift...
November All-Member Meeting
by President, Robert Roman
Tuesday, November 7th, F4WM held an all-member meeting in Ponderay, Idaho. We had twelve members show up for what turned out to be a very pleasant and productive meeting. Information and ideas were exchanged and mutual appreciation was expressed. We discussed threats to the program and our rural lifestyle. Namely, the ongoing grizzly lawsuit and then pending (now historic) listing of the wolverine under the endangered species act. A purely political move to close down human activities on the land, the endangered species act is again used as a tool by the far left to further their evil agenda.
Lawsuits, paid for by your tax dollars, will soon be used to fill the greenies’ pockets. They will attempt to stop logging, trapping, snowmobiling, cattle grazing, and a host of other human activities. Without considering that these two species do not recognize the US/Canada border as a restriction, greenies will push their false notion of remote populations hanging on by a thread.
We also discussed fundraising ideas, and general wolf trapping/hunting topics. All in all, it was a successful all-member meeting. We try to have three all-member meetings a year, held the second Tuesday of May, August and November. If at all possible, we would sure like to see you at one or more. Thank you to those who made the effort to participate!
Sincerely,
Robert Roman
President, F4WM
Join us tomorrow, Tuesday November 28th for the worldwide Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday is a movement that unleashes the power or radical generosity around the world. While Giving Tuesday is a year-round affair, we humbly ask that you consider a donation to The Foundation for Wildlife Management during their annual celebration tomorrow. Simply click the image above to be taken to our donate page. Remember, every dollar helps allow us to put money back into the pockets of sportsmen and women just like you that help save our wildlife, livestock and our way of life. We at F4WM say thank you for your generous donation!
Gary with his wolf harvest
Letter from the Vice President
by Vice President, Gary Finney
Hello F4WM members!
I hope you are all having a productive fall season, with your freezer full of meat and your traps full of wolves. 😁 I have had a very enjoyable season, hunting many days with my sons. I get more enjoyment from seeing my sons or daughters fill their tags than myself. Recently, my son Ben was out deer hunting and spotted three wolves. The first one was a white wolf, but it got into the thicket before he could get a shot. There were two black ones just a short distance behind. Ben was able to drop them both with 3 shots from his 6.5 Creedmoor. That put an end to the deer hunt for the next few hours as he decided to skin them right away. If you have ever skinned a wolf, I think you might agree with Ben, when he said that those wolves are disgustingly stinky animals. They do not smell good, to say the least. A couple of weeks later we discovered why those wolves were in that area. We found what remained of the calf elk that they had killed. Well, I guess those 2 wolves are done killing elk. I set three wolf traps the next day, in hopes of catching the white wolf. It howled a short distance away while I was setting the traps. Now two weeks have passed and still my traps are empty.
Gary’s son Ben with his wolves
We held our F4WM all-member meeting last week in Sandpoint. Though we had a small number of attendees, we had some good discussions. One topic that was discussed was: what can we do to get more young people to join and get involved with F4WM? What comes to my mind is that we all need to be mentoring young people, whether it’s our nieces, nephews, kids or grandkids or whoever we can be teaching our way of life to. If we don’t teach the younger generation about this great outdoor heritage that we grew up with, then just how will these kids learn about it? It seems to me that we need to get the youngsters to put down their phones and get involved with an outdoor activity like hunting, hiking, backpacking or trapping. When I was a youngster, my dad had to work 6 or 7 days a week to feed his family of 10 children and my mother. I remember my brother Dave and I just yearning to go hunting or scouting for elk. We just didn’t get to go near enough.
We had a family friend by the name of Stieg Gabrielsen who was a forester for a local timber company. Stieg was a very successful elk hunter who my brother and I pretty much idolized. Even though Stieg had a wife and three children of his own, he would take my brother and I on trips to the St. Joe to bugle and scout for elk. Also, backpacking trips, overnight campouts and elk hunting. We learned so much from Stieg. Especially how to properly field dress an elk and care for the meat, as well as just always being prepared. Things that I have now taught my own children.
I hear a lot of people say that they do not like eating wild game meat. When I see how some people care for their animals and how long it takes them to get the animal to the cooler, I think that they are eating spoiled meat. I am very grateful for the time that Stieg invested in me. Definitely some of my best memories.
Gary trapping with his sons Ben, Will and nephew Clay.
My nephew Luke has four children, two boys and two girls. Each year Luke sets a few coyote and bobcat traps on his property, just so his kids can learn the process of trapping, skinning, fleshing and properly caring for the pelts. Those kids get so excited each time they make a catch. Recently they caught their first fox. That was quite an exciting day. They are learning things that very few young children get to experience today. Think about someone that you might be able to mentor, it is an investment that could mean a great deal to a child. Now I have two grandchildren that I can invest in.
Bree, Becca and Caleb with their first fox
Well, I guess that’s all for now.
God bless you all,
Gary Finney
Vice President, F4WM
Robert and a couple of his wolf harvests
Happy Thanksgiving!
by President, Robert Roman
Here, I would like to thank all our members and everyone that makes this foundation function. I include all the people we negotiate with at the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the whole lot of IDFG employees. Thanksgiving has come and gone. Before you know it, Christmas will arrive. I think it's a great time to thank all the people laboring to keep Idaho great! From the lowly Vice President of F4WM ;-) to the mighty Idaho Governor. Thank you all for doing your part. Often, we like to complain of those vested with God's power. We like to murmur about the this and the that, but are we willing to step forward and do something? Or maybe we would find out there is more to the story than we first understood. I know a person who complained of a venue we have a banquet at. It just so happens the chapter chair is vacant. I suggested the person takeover the position and fix the problem. Er-ahh, what? I can't do that. ;-)
This Thanksgiving and Christmas season, let us keep in mind all the blessings that come with living in Idaho and Montana. Idaho has the most liberal wolf hunting and trapping seasons on the North American continent. Idaho and Montana have the most lucrative incentives to harvest wolves of anywhere in the world. If we all pull together as a team, we can make a difference!
Unfortunately, since I first wrote this, a judge has effectively closed the Montana wolf trapping season for now. I guess we will need to try and kill a few more wolves with the rifle. It's not as regular as trapping, but it is possible to do with a lot of hard work.
God bless you and your families. Keep each other in your prayers. Life and health are fragile. The older I get, the more people I know with health problems, including myself. Stay close to God and all will end well!
PS: I caught a couple more wolves on November 22nd!
God Bless,
Robert Roman
President, F4WM
Justin’s most recent wolf harvest November 21st
Executive Director’s Report
by Justin Webb
Happy Thanksgiving from the F4WM family to you and yours! I hope you all find yourself with much to be grateful for this season! As the last of the leaves fall, and many big game hunting seasons wind down, wolf hunting and trapping is ramping up in Idaho. Many of our members who target wolves started this season struggling to locate wolf packs where they had previously found wolf abundance, but then reported an over-abundance of wolf sign and activity once the first snows fell. Understanding wolf behaviors from one pack to the next can be extremely difficult. Coupled with the cyclical nature of the ebb and flow in wolf populations, the only thing that seems to remain consistent with wolves is change. That often leaves even the most seasoned of wolf hunters and trappers puzzled at times. Of the four pack territories I have personally trapped the last several years, one pack seems to have vanished, while another has altered the way they use the terrain within their home range, and a third has become so trap-savvy that my trail cameras show them searching for traps ten feet before they get to my sets. That said, I wanted to send a gentle reminder to those of you targeting wolves that patience and persistence are the main attributes of those members who harvest wolves consistently each year. Deep snows and freeze thaw conditions can hinder traps from operating and create access issues for hunters. Stay the course and keep working. Hard work and dedication will pay off eventually!
If you’ve not yet heard, U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy ordered a preliminary injunction requiring Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks to limit all wolf trapping and snaring in the state west of Billings, as well as Hill, Blaine and Phillips counties, to between January 1 and Feb. 15, 2024. Preservation extremist groups continued abuse of the Endangered Species Act, as well as the Equal Access to Justice Act, has absolutely nothing to do with “protecting grizzly bears” as they continue their un-warranted war on the state’s effort to properly manage their over abundant wolf populations. Montana Governor Greg Gianforte said it well with his response to Judge Malloy’s order:
HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today issued the following statement in response to U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy’s order to shorten wolf trapping season:
“Just ahead of Thanksgiving and the start of wolf trapping season, the judge’s sweeping order tramples the rights of trappers while a few environmental extremists abuse the ESA and ride the gravy train of judicial activism,” Governor Greg Gianforte said. “Montana has a healthy, sustainable population of wolves and grizzlies, and there has been no incidental take of grizzlies from wolf trapping in Montana since 2013. And yet misusing ESA protections for the grizzly to thwart the state’s wolf management plan, the activist judge has obstructed the state from responsibly managing wolves based on the sound science of FWP biologists. The state has appealed this textbook case of judicial activism and urges the federal government to review and approve the state’s petition to delist the grizzly which has recovered in Montana’s ecosystems.”
To ensure you fully understand the impact of these imposed restrictions, it’s important to remember that wolf hunter success rates are less than ½ of 1% while wolf trapping success has been up to 35% in some areas. 74,041 wolf tags were sold in 2021 across Idaho and Montana, only 411 got a wolf. 42 people took more than 2 wolves and more than 90% of those were trappers. The remaining season outside of this new federally imposed restriction leaves the few trappers who are productively assisting the state in controlling wolf numbers, having to fight deep snow, and freeze/thaw conditions that often render traps inoperable. Trying to convince a wolf to put its foot on a three inch square within their 180 sq mile to 250 sq mile home range is a huge feat. Forcing the trapper to attempt to do so while their trap is inoperable and frozen to the ground reduces catch rates exponentially. We will do our best to keep you posted. In the meantime, a large sportsmen effort to hunt wolves via calling or spot and stalk could help offset the lost trapping opportunity. Keep fighting the good fight in the field, and we will do what we can on our end.
Public comment on MT FWP Wolf Management plan due by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, December 19.
Please take the opportunity to read and comment on MT FWP’s proposed wolf management plan. Encouraging Montana FWP to follow Legislative Direction to reduce wolf numbers in the state, as well as pointing out that wolf populations have not fluctuated much more than 50 wolves up or down over the past 10 years, are great topics to cover. Continuing to allow social aspects of wolf management to outweigh the biological data they are gathering from most of Western Montana, will only end poorly for all involved, wolves included.
View the proposed MT FWP Wolf Management plan here:
https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content/assets/fwp/aboutfwp/public-comments/draft-wolf-plan/wmp2023_.pdf View the Draft EIS Here:
https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content/assets/fwp/aboutfwp/public-comments/draft-wolf-plan/wolfdeis_.pdfComments can be made Here:
https://fwp.mt.gov/aboutfwp/public-comment-opportunities/draft-wolf-mgmt-planOr sent here:
fwpwolfplaneis@mt.gov
All comment must be submitted by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, December 19, 2023.
I spent November 15th and 16th in Lewiston, Idaho at the IDFG Commission meetings where I was reminded how blessed we are in Idaho to have a sportsman as our IDFG Director. The public comment hearing ranged in topics from pelican management to concern over access loss in relation to newly proposed antler shed hunting restrictions. Numbers of people expressed concerns over the bear hunting questionnaire which seemed to intentionally “lead” sportsmen to provide answers that would skew the results of the survey to oppose bear baiting, hound hunting or both. Thankfully, at the actual commission meeting the following day when the director provides a review of the public comments received, Director Fredericks took a couple of minutes addressing the survey and made a commitment to sportsmen that IDFG will thoroughly review all surveys going forward to ensure their intention is better understood and that they do not turn sportsmen against one another. With states all around us suffering outcomes from having non-sportsmen appointed to their Game Management Commissions, this was one of many reminders of how blessed we truly are to have the department and commission that we have here in Idaho. There is much work left to do, and we don’t always get what we want, but we are thankful to be leaps and bounds ahead of many states.
If the current political climate in our country, the Idaho grizzly lawsuit, and now Judge Malloy’s injunction on MT wolf seasons weren’t enough to motivate you to get more involved, we are also at the end of November; the deadline requiring the US Fish and Wildlife Service to make a determination on listing wolverine as a threatened species. This action would strip state management authority and create yet another tool preservation extremist groups can use for leverage in their effort to stop all wolf management in the lower 48.
“The Service’s 2013 proposed rule to list wolverines as threatened in the lower 48 states is the current proposal,” Amanda Smith, a Fish and Wildlife public affairs officer, wrote. “Our final determination will be submitted to the Federal Register by Nov. 27, 2023, as required.” (Wyofile)
As of Thanksgiving Day I was still unable to locate online where this has been entered into the Federal Register (but my internet has been lacking at best so I may have missed it).
Ladies and gentlemen make no mistake - we are in a fight to maintain our way of life. Supporting the organizations that consistently show up to fight for your rights, becomes more important every day. Groups like The Foundation for Wildlife Management, National Trappers Association, Idaho Trappers Association, Outdoor Heritage Coalition, Montana Trappers Association, Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, Congressional Sportsmen Foundation just to name a few… If you are not a member of all these organizations, please consider joining. And think about making time to attend your State Game Agency Commission meetings. Learn the process of how to create the positive changes you wish to see. Show up, be present, be professional, and make your voice heard.
Stay the course, keep fighting the good fight, and we will as well. Make time to get out and enjoy the outdoors with your loved ones. A few deep breaths of high mountain air can do wonders to rejuvenate and re-empower a person. Remember, our time here is limited – make the most of every day!
Sincerely,
Justin Webb
F4WM Executive Director
justin@f4wm.org
208-610-4455
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