Post by: Elkaholic daWg on December 05, 2012, 03:55:37 PM
Colville Tribe opens wolf hunting season on reservation
Posted by Rich
Dec. 4, 2012 5:54 p.m
ENDANGERED SPECIES — Wolf hunting has arrived in Washington.
Although gray wolves are still listed by the state as an endangered species, the Colville Confederated Tribes have opened a wolf hunting season for tribal members on a portion of their reservation, according to the 2012 Tribal Member South Half Gray Wolf Regulations posted on the tribe's website.
Tribal officials aren't answering calls from the media, but Andy Walgamott of Northwest Sportsman magazine has put together a detailed report on this milestone in wolf management.
The Tribal Council approved a season that opened last week on the south half of the 1.4 million-acre reservation in Okanogan and Ferry Counties where at least two and possibly three packs roam.
At least 12 wolf packs have been identified across Eastern Washington.
The minimum number of wolf packs have not been formed to trigger steps toward a hunting season in Washington outside the reservation, according to the state's Gray Wolf Conservation and Management Plan.
Nine permits are available to Colville tribal members, according to the online regulations. The season is posted to run through Feb. 28 or until hunters have met the quota.
This fall, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officers set another milestone in the process of wolves reestablishing themselves in the state by killing an entire wolf pack that had been attacking cattle in northern Stevens County. http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/outdoors/2012/dec/04/colville-tribe-opens-wolf-hunting-season-reservation/ (http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/outdoors/2012/dec/04/colville-tribe-opens-wolf-hunting-season-reservation/)
Colville Tribes Holding Washington’s First Wolf Hunt
By Andy Walgamott, on December 4th, 2012
For the first time in the state’s modern history, a regulated wolf hunt is going on in Washington.
With approval recently from the business council, a season began about a week ago or so on the “south half” of the Colville Confederated Tribes’ sprawling reservation in Okanogan and Ferry Counties where at least two packs and possibly a third roam.
This is different from the hunt that state Department of Fish & Wildlife officers went on for the livestock-depredating Wedge wolves in late summer. It’s more like those now going on in Idaho and Montana.
It wasn’t immediately clear if any wolves had been taken so far. Northwest Sportsman made numerous efforts to reach tribal wildlife managers yesterday and today for their perspective but without success.
However, hunting regulations posted online provide some details about the hunt.
A total of nine permits are available to Colville members. Season runs through February 28 or until harvest quotas are met, and the daily limit is one wolf of either sex.
In the past, Colville spokesmen have said that while they have spiritual connections to the animals — the name of their first pack, the Nc’icns (pronounced nn-seetsin) means wolf in Okanogan — they rate the availability of deer, elk and moose for their members highly. It’s been clear for nearly a year that some sort of hunt would occur.
THE TRIBES CAN HOLD A SEASON because their lands are inside that part of the Northwest where wolves were Congressionally delisted in spring 2011.
In addition, they’re a sovereign nation.
“They get to manage wolves on their reservation any way they choose,” said the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife’s game division manager Dave Ware yesterday afternoon.
Wolves elsewhere in the Evergreen State and outside of other reservation boundaries are protected by state and/or federal ESA listings.
Ware says the Colvilles contacted WDFW several weeks ago as their wolf management plan was in its final stages of development and advised the state that they were considering a hunt but needed final approval from the council.
The agency is “not really” concerned about the hunt having an impact on statewide recovery, Ware says.
Outside the reservation there are at least four other confirmed packs in Northeast Washington, two unconfirmed packs and word in recent weeks of wolves to the west, south and east of the Wedge wolves’ former territory — and now apparently tracks right through it.
Additionally, there are two known packs in the Cascades and two unconfirmed ones elsewhere.
And yesterday Ware told Northwest Sportsman of unconfirmed reports east of Enumclaw and in the upper Cowlitz Valley, though the latter area has also seen releases of wolf-dog hybrids in the past.
A high-ranking WDFW wolf manager recently estimated that there were around 100 statewide; a final official year-end estimate is due out in a month.
AS FOR THE HUNT, the Colvilles have divided their 2,100-square-mile reservation into four wolf management zones, three of which are open for hunting. Three tags are available in each zone. No hunting will occur on state, federal or private lands in the “North Half.”
THE COLVILLE TRIBES' HUNT WILL OCCUR ON THREE OF FOUR WOLF MANAGEMENT ZONES ON THE "SOUTH HALF" OF ITS RESERVATION -- THE EXCEPTION IS THE OMAK LAKE WMZ. (CCT)
Additionally, “special predator permits” may be given out through the CCT Fish and Wildlife Department for lands to the northeast of Omak Lake and in the southeast corner of the reservation, the Hell’s Gate area where Lake Roosevelt hooks north.
Hunters may use electronic calls, but can’t use radio telemetry to track down collared wolves. At least three members of the Nc’icn and Strawberry Packs were captured and fitted with GPS devices earlier this year by tribal biologists and a retired federal wolf manager. Those animals are all off limits to harvest because of the importance of the tracking data from the collars.
The Nc’icns occupy the northeastern corner of the reservation and recently went north onto state lands in the Sherman Creek Wildlife Area. The Strawberry wolf appears to have remained on tribal lands, according to a source. There may also be two wolves east of the Sanpoil and south of Twin Lakes. Additionally, a U.S. Forest Service employee encountered two canids not far north of the reservation boundary near Hall Mountain this past summer.
Any wolves killed must be reported within 72 hours (509-634-2110) and its hide taken to a tribal office for sealing.
WOLF ADVOCATES FACE SOMETHING of a conundrum: They can prod WDFW this way and that, and friendly state senators can call the agency in for hearings, but they can’t really muscle the tribes.
“Wouldn’t we be better off moving them?” wondered Conservation Northwest’s executive director Mitch Friedman this morning.
He’d hoped to broker a deal between the Colvilles and Yakama Nation to move wolves to Washington’s South Cascades.
Friedman added that he’s a bit alarmed by the number of available permits for the apparent number of animals on the reservation, but then again, with now two and a half seasons under their belt, hunters in the Northern Rockies can attest that just because you have a tag doesn’t mean you’ll kill a wolf, let alone see one in the woods.
Hunting seasons down the road could impact state recovery goals, which require 15 successful breeding pairs — two adults and two pups through the end of the year — in certain numbers around the state, but there will probably be enough wolves elsewhere in WDFW’s eastern recovery region to make up for any shot on the reservation.
NORTHWESTERN TRIBES HAVE ALL SORTS OF different values when it comes to wolves, notes Hilary Cooley, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s regional wolf coordinator in Boise.
Some have no desire to hunt them because of their beliefs while others have concerns about the impact they may have on big game populations and members’ ability to provide meat for their families.
An article in Indian Country Today last month summarized a recent survey of Colville members:
Thirty percent of respondents said that spiritual or cultural importance [of wolves] was very important, while 47 percent said it was of little or no importance. Asked what they would consider to be sound reasons for harvesting a wolf, just 16 percent said for ceremonial or spiritual purposes such as regalia, whereas 40 percent responded that it would be to help promote healthy elk, deer and moose populations.
Predation on cattle didn’t seem to be a big concern. Only 20 percent listed that as their biggest fear, and in another question asking if the tribe should pay damages for confirmed cattle depredation, nearly 64 percent said no. When it came to wolf management, results showed a high preference for hunting by tribal members and U.S. Fish and Wildlife (Service) biologists. Only 13 percent felt wolves should not be hunted at all. Poisoning was definitely not desired, with only 16 percent saying it was acceptable. These results will all factor into management plans should wolf populations continue to increase.
IN OTHER RECENT WASHINGTON WOLF NEWS, a state wildlife biologist and game warden along with Stevens County Sheriff Kendall Allen recently investigated a dead cow discovered near Northport. It was marked down as unknown what killed it as “all parties” could not determine why it died, according to WDFW’s Nov. 19 weekly Wildlife Program report.
USFWS’s Coolley also tells Northwest Sportsman that the status review of wolves in the western two-thirds of Washington and Oregon will not be finished in December as was stated early last month (and at the end of September in midsummer, and …). The long-in-the-works document which may or may not turn into a listing proposal is “nearing the end” of federal biologists’ analysis and will then need approval from higher-ups, she says.
Last week, WDFW staffers underwent more wolf training — ecology, depredation, etc. — led by the Service’s national wolf coordinator, Mike Jiminez.
And as Scott Sandsberry details in this story, snippets from the BBC’s Land of the Lost Wolves film will be shown in Yakima tonight. We reported on that here. http://www.nwsportsmanmag.com/2012/12/04/colville-tribes-holding-washingtons-first-wolf-hunt/ (http://www.nwsportsmanmag.com/2012/12/04/colville-tribes-holding-washingtons-first-wolf-hunt/)
Post by: boneaddict on December 05, 2012, 04:01:03 PM
Quote
He’d hoped to broker a deal between the Colvilles and Yakama Nation to move wolves to Washington’s South Cascades.
Post by: jess on December 05, 2012, 04:08:42 PM
Post by: HighCountryHunter88 on December 05, 2012, 04:09:57 PM
Post by: elkaholic33 on December 05, 2012, 04:14:10 PM
Post by: boneaddict on December 05, 2012, 04:15:45 PM
Post by: Austrian Hunter on December 05, 2012, 04:16:53 PM
Well here is a NOVEL IDEA..... Have you done some of this before. :chuckle:QuoteHe’d hoped to broker a deal between the Colvilles and Yakama Nation to move wolves to Washington’s South Cascades.
:yeah: catch them and release them in Olympia!!!!!!!!! :chuckle:
Post by: MtnMuley on December 05, 2012, 04:18:03 PM
Hopefully the state will notice how the tribe manages thier wolf population.. But they havent noticed how they manage the deer and elk population perfectly so why would they notice how they keep the preadator population.
Explain how they manage their deer/elk population perfectly?
Post by: jess on December 05, 2012, 04:35:14 PM
Post by: hoytem on December 05, 2012, 05:56:36 PM
Post by: HuntNFish on December 05, 2012, 06:26:26 PM
Post by: Alchase on December 05, 2012, 06:40:18 PM
Nice work Colville Nation.
Post by: BuckNAze on December 05, 2012, 09:07:50 PM
Post by: Ridgeratt on December 05, 2012, 09:09:42 PM
Post by: JoeE on December 05, 2012, 09:34:02 PM
Where is the border of the North half? South border.
About 12 miles north of Inchelium and 6 miles north of Omak then a line staight across between those two points is the border.
Post by: Ridgeratt on December 05, 2012, 09:35:25 PM
Post by: cem3434 on December 05, 2012, 09:38:48 PM
You think we could slip a couple hundred Sea Lion tags in somehow?:chuckle:
Nice work Colville Nation.
I'm glad to see the Native's are being supported for a change. :tup:
Post by: h2ofowlr on December 05, 2012, 09:45:38 PM
Post by: PolarBear on December 05, 2012, 09:49:19 PM
You think we could slip a couple hundred Sea Lion tags in somehow?I know a couple of South Sound Tribes where some of their members are already killing harbor seals and sea lions.
Nice work Colville Nation.
Post by: huntnphool on December 05, 2012, 09:54:57 PM
Post by: Huntbear on December 05, 2012, 10:02:53 PM
How about organizing a state wide, hand in hand hunting drive right to the rez, pushing every wolf right to the hunters. :chuckle:
:tup: :tup: :tup: :tup: :tup: :tup:
Post by: grundy53 on December 05, 2012, 10:26:20 PM
How about organizing a state wide, hand in hand hunting drive right to the rez, pushing every wolf right to the hunters. :chuckle:I'm in! :chuckle:
Post by: PlateauNDN on December 06, 2012, 12:11:36 PM
Ill let you guys know if I harvest one. We also have a spiritual sense when it come to the wolf but we are a subsistance tribe first and our peoples well being comes first. Found a huge track the other day about 5 miles from the north half border. Was a huge track too
Well said and I share the same belief. Providing for my family and people comes first, then the wolf.
And as for moving them to the South Cascades, never going to happen because I know way to many tribal members that would......never mind......back to the subject.....Our People determine what occurs on this reservation and if they were to attempt to move or reintroduce in our area you better belief our people will "make" our Council act immediately or risk getting removed from office immediately. I don't know to many Yakamas that support or care for wolves in our areas. I don't have anything personally against the wolf, its nature but, if it intereferes with my abilities to provide then sorry, bud, you got to go. The big difference between us and the Colvilles though in regards to hunting is, if there was a management plan put in motion (after fed de-listing) we have the jurisdiction to manage within all territories (Reservation, Ceded and all lands under jurisdiction of the Tribe) under which our Treaty Governs. I pray the feds de-list because I know where i'd go to find a wolf and i'm sure I won't have any trouble getting help to find one.
Good luck Buck and keep us posted. (Hopefully my family member over there got a tag because I want to go film)
Post by: Special T on December 11, 2012, 06:48:48 AM
Post by: HUNTINCOUPLE on December 11, 2012, 07:21:27 AM
Post by: CAMPMEAT on December 11, 2012, 07:42:17 AM
Post by: Yak-NDN on December 11, 2012, 07:47:28 AM
Post by: pianoman9701 on December 11, 2012, 07:50:43 AM
Mitch Friedman needs to put his head where the sun don't shine and keep it there. Conservation NW, just exactly who the hell do they think they are ? Go do hippie crap and leave us alone. Hopefully ALL those type of antis will go on the Rez and have their rearends handed to them !!! These groups irritate me to no end. >:( >:(
Now that CNW has a board member on the Wildlife Commission, their "ideals" will be made into rules. I'm glad the Colvilles are taking control of their wildlife. I hope it spreads.
And as far as Indians guiding whites to shoot wolves, I'm pretty sure that a white man killing a wolf anywhere in WA would be in serious hot water.
Post by: Elkaholic daWg on December 11, 2012, 07:51:57 AM
We have wolf's on the Yak rez they are few and far between and are not the same as the ones that are being reintroduced they are a small wolf about 60lbs.
And if Mitch and CNW gets their way those would be wiped out by the bigger variety. Extinction by the ESA.
Post by: Boss .300 winmag on December 11, 2012, 08:08:40 AM
Mitch Friedman needs to put his head where the sun don't shine and keep it there. Conservation NW, just exactly who the hell do they think they are ? Go do hippie crap and leave us alone. Hopefully ALL those type of antis will go on the Rez and have their rearends handed to them !!! These groups irritate me to no end. >:( >:(
Now that CNW has a board member on the Wildlife Commission, their "ideals" will be made into rules. I'm glad the Colvilles are taking control of their wildlife. I hope it spreads.
And as far as Indians guiding whites to shoot wolves, I'm pretty sure that a white man killing a wolf anywhere in WA would be in serious hot water.
I would pay to do that! :tup:
Post by: Northway on December 11, 2012, 08:30:45 AM
Ill let you guys know if I harvest one. We also have a spiritual sense when it come to the wolf but we are a subsistance tribe first and our peoples well being comes first. Found a huge track the other day about 5 miles from the north half border. Was a huge track too
Well said and I share the same belief. Providing for my family and people comes first, then the wolf.
And as for moving them to the South Cascades, never going to happen because I know way to many tribal members that would......never mind......back to the subject.....Our People determine what occurs on this reservation and if they were to attempt to move or reintroduce in our area you better belief our people will "make" our Council act immediately or risk getting removed from office immediately. I don't know to many Yakamas that support or care for wolves in our areas. I don't have anything personally against the wolf, its nature but, if it intereferes with my abilities to provide then sorry, bud, you got to go. The big difference between us and the Colvilles though in regards to hunting is, if there was a management plan put in motion (after fed de-listing) we have the jurisdiction to manage within all territories (Reservation, Ceded and all lands under jurisdiction of the Tribe) under which our Treaty Governs. I pray the feds de-list because I know where i'd go to find a wolf and i'm sure I won't have any trouble getting help to find one.
Good luck Buck and keep us posted. (Hopefully my family member over there got a tag because I want to go film)
Apologies for the temporary hijack, but I can't help myself.........
How do the Yakamas manage the horse population on the reservation? I head through there on occasion on my way to Goldendale and quite often see them grazing the slopes before you get into the trees on the way to Satus.
Post by: PlateauNDN on December 11, 2012, 08:36:36 AM
Ill let you guys know if I harvest one. We also have a spiritual sense when it come to the wolf but we are a subsistance tribe first and our peoples well being comes first. Found a huge track the other day about 5 miles from the north half border. Was a huge track too
Well said and I share the same belief. Providing for my family and people comes first, then the wolf.
And as for moving them to the South Cascades, never going to happen because I know way to many tribal members that would......never mind......back to the subject.....Our People determine what occurs on this reservation and if they were to attempt to move or reintroduce in our area you better belief our people will "make" our Council act immediately or risk getting removed from office immediately. I don't know to many Yakamas that support or care for wolves in our areas. I don't have anything personally against the wolf, its nature but, if it intereferes with my abilities to provide then sorry, bud, you got to go. The big difference between us and the Colvilles though in regards to hunting is, if there was a management plan put in motion (after fed de-listing) we have the jurisdiction to manage within all territories (Reservation, Ceded and all lands under jurisdiction of the Tribe) under which our Treaty Governs. I pray the feds de-list because I know where i'd go to find a wolf and i'm sure I won't have any trouble getting help to find one.
Good luck Buck and keep us posted. (Hopefully my family member over there got a tag because I want to go film)
Apologies for the temporary hijack, but I can't help myself.........
How do the Yakamas manage the horse population on the reservation? I head through there on occasion on my way to Goldendale and quite often see them grazing the slopes before you get into the trees on the way to Satus.
We currently aren't managing them. We've had plans in the making for the last 2 years and last year there was supposed to be plans in motion to build our own slaughterhouse but, haven't heard an update on that yet. The biggest issue with them is the Conservation Groups have pressed hard on the Feds to not allow us to just slaughter them so we're having to come up with a management plan to deal with them. Other wise knock them down, they're ruining feeding ground and becoming more aggressive towards other animals. If I had the extra cash I'd be up there rounding them up by the truck load selling them off, but I don't have the time or money to do so. :bash:
Post by: skywalker253 on December 11, 2012, 11:47:16 PM
Post by: xd2005 on December 12, 2012, 12:00:26 AM
How about organizing a state wide, hand in hand hunting drive right to the rez, pushing every wolf right to the hunters. :chuckle:
You'll need a hunting license for that. :chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle: :sry:
Post by: Bean Counter on December 12, 2012, 12:06:22 AM
How about organizing a state wide, hand in hand hunting drive right to the rez, pushing every wolf right to the hunters. :chuckle:
You'll need a hunting license for that. :chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle: :sry:
How about we just hang some raw meat on the re z boundary and pass the GPS coords onto Plateau & company? :tup:
Baiting prohibitions only apply to bear and cougar, right? ;)
Post by: boneaddict on December 12, 2012, 04:56:26 AM
My wife is an enrolled tribal member of Yakama Nation. My understanding, is I can hunt the rez as long as she is with me. I cannot hunt ceaded ground, but she can. Even thou I am not enrolled, but she is....Can I wolf hunt the Colville rez, if she is with me? or can I only hunt Yakima? If Yakima ever creates a wolf hunt. Let me know, cus I want to put a wolf in the DIRT.
i wouldn't think you could hunt the Colville unless you were part of that tribe, but thats just a guess I suppose. I mean can the Mucks come and hunt the Yakima for instance?
Post by: MtnMuley on December 12, 2012, 08:06:04 AM
My wife is an enrolled tribal member of Yakama Nation. My understanding, is I can hunt the rez as long as she is with me. I cannot hunt ceaded ground, but she can. Even thou I am not enrolled, but she is....Can I wolf hunt the Colville rez, if she is with me? or can I only hunt Yakima? If Yakima ever creates a wolf hunt. Let me know, cus I want to put a wolf in the DIRT.
i wouldn't think you could hunt the Colville unless you were part of that tribe, but thats just a guess I suppose. I mean can the Mucks come and hunt the Yakima for instance?
Nope, not going to work to hunt the Colville Rez.
Post by: PlateauNDN on December 12, 2012, 08:36:01 AM
My wife is an enrolled tribal member of Yakama Nation. My understanding, is I can hunt the rez as long as she is with me. I cannot hunt ceaded ground, but she can. Even thou I am not enrolled, but she is....Can I wolf hunt the Colville rez, if she is with me? or can I only hunt Yakima? If Yakima ever creates a wolf hunt. Let me know, cus I want to put a wolf in the DIRT. No you cannot hunt period. The program the Tribe had for non-member spouses was discontinued, though as a spouse you may enter the closed areas of the res with a permit. Unless the Colville Tribe opens up to the general public for hunting on their rez then no, you can't hunt there either. May want to inform your wife to pay attention now since our General Council is in session and they are reviewing and revising our Law & Order Codes.
i wouldn't think you could hunt the Colville unless you were part of that tribe, but thats just a guess I suppose. I mean can the Mucks come and hunt the Yakima for instance? A BIG HELL NO! I hope those da.. Mucks are ready for a fight, word I got from the top is they are taking their actions as an act of war and have put the word out for any and all documentation and to report ASAP any and all confrontations with them. The State is basically not going to intervene at this moment but are working together with our Tribal Leaders while we deal with the situation. I believe they've already caught one truck full of Mucks Poaching a bull up by Oak Creek last week and if anybody sees or hears something I'd appreciate a heads-up.
Nope, not going to work to hunt the Colville Rez.
Post by: Jburke on December 12, 2012, 08:44:01 AM
Post by: Jburke on December 12, 2012, 05:13:35 PM
Post by: Curly on December 12, 2012, 07:38:54 PM
Finally, its nice to hear about wolves being hunted in WA.
:yeah:
Post by: xxlx7 on December 12, 2012, 10:10:03 PM
Post by: boneaddict on December 13, 2012, 10:57:50 AM
Thanks-
The Management team :)
Post by: PolarBear on December 15, 2012, 05:26:34 PM
Post by: inchtowntracking on December 15, 2012, 08:29:17 PM
Post by: PolarBear on December 15, 2012, 08:56:06 PM
Post by: boneaddict on December 16, 2012, 07:51:16 AM
I saw a wolf on the Colville rez today on my way home from Republic. It had to have been close to a 3/4 mile away on a hillside by 13 Mile. I stopped to take a leak, saw something moving across the hillside, got out the binocs and sure enough. It was all by it's self. Almost solid black with a little white on the tail and face. Man. I with that I could have popped him but my bow just won't reach that far.Thats where I ran into them alot last year. The Sanpoil right in that country is where their central core was for the last couple years. Thats the batch that was feeding strays south into Hellgate and I think some even swam the river into Lincoln. I then started seeing more of them over the hill in Hall Creek and that country.
Post by: PolarBear on December 16, 2012, 08:17:23 AM
Post by: jess on December 16, 2012, 08:37:32 AM
Post by: boneaddict on December 16, 2012, 09:09:59 AM
Post by: boneaddict on December 16, 2012, 09:11:09 AM
Post by: jess on December 16, 2012, 09:20:39 AM
Post by: Jonathan_S on December 22, 2012, 09:34:20 PM
Post by: PolarBear on December 22, 2012, 10:40:24 PM
Post by: JimmyHoffa on December 22, 2012, 10:59:37 PM
Post by: Jonathan_S on December 23, 2012, 07:41:41 AM
With as many wolves in the area it is surprising that the moose population around Republic is growing as fast as it is.
I would be curious to know how many moose are being killed.