Region loses wildlife officers

The 10 easternmost counties of Washington are hurting for wildlife enforcement this month as the fall hunting seasons kick into high gear.

As of Oct. 6, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Department’s Spokane region has three vacant positions, leaving Whitman, Pend Oreille and Garfield Counties without a resident enforcement officer.

A state hiring freeze makes it more difficult but not impossible to fill the positions, said Madonna Luers, department spokeswoman in Spokane. “The biggest problem overall is finding qualified candidates,” she said.

Officer Travis Feldner, who came from the Idaho Fish and Game Department last winter and was assigned to Pend Oreille County was let go from the Washington agency at the end of his six-month probation period.

“We can’t talk about personnel matters, but I can say that people thought Travis was a good fit in Pend Oreille County,” Luers said. “Apparently Washington has some technical criteria that he didn’t qualify for. Idaho officers tend to have a mix of law enforcement and biology in their criteria. Washington officers must meet the same strict enforcement criteria as state troopers and city cops — it’s the whole nine yards.”

Mike Whorton, regional enforcement supervisor, said he did not know when new officers could be hired or brought in from other regions. He said officers from Stevens and Spokane counties are helping cover the counties affected by the vacancies.

Officer Bob Weaver, formerly stationed in Colfax, transferred to a position in Western Washington. Officer Jim Nelson formerly based in Pomeroy was promoted to a position based out of the Tri-Cities.

Rich Landers

NATIONAL PARKS

Biker’s window in Glacier Park

The alpine section of Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park closed last week to motor vehicles, giving bikers and hikers a window of opportunity.

Park officials closed the eight-mile section of the road between the Loop and Logan Pass on Monday.

After pre-winter maintenance is complete — possibly sometime this week, the road will be reopened for hiking and bicycling as weather and road conditions permit.

Staff and wire reports

WILDLIFE ENFORCEMENT

Elk poacher gets the slammer

A 34-year-old Kelso man convicted of poaching elk was sentenced recently to more than three years in prison.

Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge Stephen Warning rejected the claim from Kenneth James Farmer that he killed the animals to feed his family.

The judge also ordered Farmer to pay a $14,000 fine to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Department.

Farmer was arrested in February after a foul smell led police to find six elk antlers, with decaying flesh attached, in a storage unit.

Associated Press

SHOOTING

Upgrades made at Farragut range

The Idaho Fish and Game Department is building new earthen berms and backstops at the Farragut Shooting Range to bring the range into compliance with noise and safety requirements.

The work is in response to a 2007 court order and new noise standards adopted by the Idaho legislature in 2008, said Phil Cooper, agency spokesman in Coeur d’Alene.

Construction will depress the range floor by 4 to 8 feet into the ground and will place 12-foot high side berms down range from the firing line.

The work should be completed in the next week or two, Cooper said, while additional safety measures required for re-opening the range are planned for installation in 2009.

Rich Landers

WILDLIFE

Wasting disease impacts studied

Preliminary research into chronic wasting disease in Wyoming indicates the disease may not devastate elk populations even if it spreads to winter feedgrounds.

Researchers with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department are undertaking a long-term study of chronic wasting disease in an elk population.

Department officials warn the data is too preliminary for any definitive conclusions.

The feedgrounds are a hot topic for debate in Wyoming because ranchers and outfitters generally support the feedgrounds in order to keep elk away from cattle and help them survive the winter.

Conservationists contend the feed grounds should be phased out because they increase the risk of spreading disease.

Associated Press

WILDLIFE

Cougars stalking Oregon hunters

Stories of hunters being stalked by cougars in Northeastern Oregon have raised concerns that the big cats may be losing their fear of humans.

Last month, Sebastian Combs, a 28-year-old ranch hand from the Haines area, reported being stalked by a cougar along the North Powder River as he left a tree stand.

Days later, bow hunter Chad Davis of Hermiston killed a cougar with an arrow after the cat came within 15 yards of him, he said.

The state’s cougar population has doubled since 1994, the year hunting cougars with hounds was banned, according to the state’s fish and wildlife department.

Don Whittaker, a cougar specialist with the state’s fish and wildlife department, said Oregon now has about 6,000 cougars.

Associated Press