Could the emergence of the wolf and efforts to propogate it's numbers be the final straw for endangered caribou. Washington and northern Idaho are home for the last remaining caribou in the southern 48 states, a struggling herd of 46 animals that lives in the harsh environment of the Salmo Mtns of British Columbia, Idaho, and Washington.
The most disturbing factor is that there are no provisions in the Washington Wolf Plan to address the potential impact of wolves on this last remaining herd of caribou or potential impacts on endangered Columbian Whitetail Deer.
If wolves prove to be an additive predator on the struggling caribou herd, the continued existence od these Caribou will be questionable? At a minimum, the Washington wolf plan should outline measures to deal with wolf predation on endangered caribou. The plan indicates wolves are unlikely to populate the Salmo, yet one of the first confirmed packs is called the Salmo pack and lives in this area.
In fact 3 of Washington's known wolf packs live in the same county!
Wolf Plan, page 118:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00001/draft_wolf_plan_052311.pdf16 C. Wolves and Listed/Candidate Species
17
18 Gray wolves are likely to have few significant adverse impacts on any current federal or state listed
19 (endangered, threatened, sensitive) or candidate species (see Appendix A) in Washington in the
20 foreseeable future, with the possible exception of mountain caribou. Interactions with listed or
21 candidate carnivores and birds of prey (i.e., grizzly bears, lynx, wolverines, fishers, Cascades red
22 foxes, bald eagles, and golden eagles) are briefly discussed in Sections A and B.
23
24 Washington’s only population of mountain caribou, the Selkirk Mountains herd, spends most of its
25 time in the British Columbia portion of its range, with members infrequently entering Washington.
26 The herd increased from 33 caribou in 2004 to 46 caribou in 2009. Distribution in Washington is
27 restricted primarily to the Salmo-Priest Wilderness Area in northeastern Pend Oreille County. The
28 area is characterized by high elevations and extensive closed canopy forests, and therefore supports
29 relatively low densities of other ungulate species. Hence, few wolves are expected to reside in the
30 Salmo-Priest, meaning that predation on caribou would probably occur infrequently. Nevertheless,
31 any wolf-related losses to the herd would have a significant impact on the population.
32
33 Recent declines of woodland caribou populations in British Columbia have been linked to the
34 expansion of moose and the subsequent increase of wolves, which has resulted in greater predation
35 on caribou (Wittmer et al. 2005, Stotyn et al. 2007). To reduce the threat of predation, woodland
36 caribou attempt to isolate themselves from predators and other more abundant prey species by
37 selecting old forests and alpine areas, and avoiding areas near roads during all seasons (Stotyn et al.
38 2007). However, loss of mature forests and fragmentation of winter habitat may compromise this
39 strategy. Habitat overlap between caribou and wolves is greatest in the spring and calving season,
40 resulting in increased risk of predation for caribou. Localized reductions of specific wolf packs and
41 other large predators have been used to reduce the impact of predation on mountain caribou
42 populations in the province (G. Mowat, pers. comm.), but regular use of this type of management
43 may carry unacceptable ethical implications for the recovery of rare species in the United States
44 (Wittmer et al. 2005).
45
46 The population of Columbian white-tailed deer occurring along the lower Columbia River in
47 Washington (in Wahkiakum and Cowlitz counties; Figure 14) and Oregon numbered about 600
1 animals in 2009, including about 235 animals in Washington (Meyers 2009). Coyote predation is the
2 primary cause of fawn mortality and may limit the population (USFWS 2010b). Wolf predation
3 levels that might occur in the future if the two species overlap are difficult to predict, but could
4 potentially harm this deer’s recovery in Washington. However, if wolves were to reduce coyote
5 abundance in the area occupied by the deer, this could result in lower overall predation rates on the
6 deer.
