March 31, 2010 in Idaho

First wolf-hunting season a success, official says

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BOISE - Idaho closed the first regulated wolf-hunting season in the lower 48 states Wednesday, and state Fish and Game officials are calling it a success.

“I’d be severely disappointed if we don’t have a hunting season next year, because we played by the rules, we worked hard, it’s been a long time coming, and I think we demonstrated that we did a good job with state-managed hunting,” said Idaho Fish and Game Director Cal Groen. “We need a hunting season to manage the wolves just like our other big game animals.”

That decision is up to a federal court, which is weighing challenges to the removal of the gray wolf from the endangered species list - the move that permitted state wolf management including regulated hunts.

Thirteen conservation groups sued over the delisting of the wolf in Idaho and Montana, and while a federal judge in September cleared the two states to hold hunting seasons this year - with Idaho’s opening first - he strongly suggested the groups could win their overall case, which still is pending.

“The hunts are not our primary concern - it is the federal wolf management plan that we feel is the most significant threat to wolves in the future, because that allows the states to kill off most of their wolves in the future,” said Suzanne Asha Stone, Northern Rockies representative for Defenders of Wildlife, one of the 13 groups. “Even though Idaho and Montana started off conservatively, they are allowed to kill most of the wolves in the future.”

Idaho Fish and Game said the state had a minimum of 843 wolves at the close of 2009, in 94 packs, including 49 breeding pairs. But Stone said the federal plan could allow that to drop to just 150 wolves in the future.

During Idaho’s season, 185 wolves were taken compared to a limit of 220, though that could change as the season ran through sunset Wednesday and hunters have 24 hours to report their kills. Montana’s wolf season set a limit of 75 wolves. Idaho state sold 31,393 wolf tags, all but 684 to Idaho residents.

In 2009, wolves were responsible for the deaths of 385 livestock in Idaho, up from 333 the year before and including cattle, sheep and stock dogs. “We don’t want to take the wildness out of wolves,” Groen said. “They shouldn’t be around towns, they shouldn’t be creating livestock problems and social problems.”

Idaho’s wolf hunting season was divided into 12 zones with specific limits. But some, like the remote and rugged Lolo zone where wolf impacts on elk herds have been a big problem, proved tough hunting.

“In the back country, it’s rugged, they’re cunning, they’re smart,” Groen said, “We’ll be looking at other tools.” Those might include changing bag limits to allow a hunter to take a second wolf in a year; partnering with outfitters; trapping; adjusting zone boundaries; and possibly allowing the use of electronic wolf calls to give hunters an advantage.

Groen said the Lolo zone historically was one of North America’s premier elk hunting zones with a herd of 16,000 elk, but it’s dropped to just over 2,000. Many issues, including habitat, bears and mountain lions, were involved and are being addressed, he said. “Now we can finally manage wolves - they were unmanaged. They’re the primary reason for mortality now.”

Groen and other Fish and Game officials said the wolf hunt has been good for Idaho and good for wolves, in many cases dissipating hunter anger over wolf impacts on game herds. Idaho’s wolf population, which had been growing at 20 percent a year and is well beyond recovery target levels, has stabilized.

“When you pursue something fair chase, and something very challenging, a respect develops,” Groen said. “We’ve seen that with bears and lions. … There’s a hunting relationship there, very different, very challenging.”

He also noted that new legislation just passed this year will allow out-of-state deer and elk hunters to also take a wolf, which could help attract out-of-state hunters whose numbers have dropped since their fees were sharply increased a year ago. The idea that a hunter could come to Idaho on an elk hunt and also go home with a wolf means “we’re special, we’re unique,” Groen said.

Seven comments on this story so far. Add yours!

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  deltaelk on March 31 at 11:34 a.m.

  I am all for managing wolves. Groen says the wolf hunting is good for Idaho and the wolves. He could care less about that, its revenue for Fish and Game.

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  spokanecougar on March 31 at 3:56 p.m.

  I have a wolf dog, please don’t shot it hunters.

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  StopTheKilling on April 01 at 3:52 p.m.

  I am completely against this. Ranchers there practice bad animal husbandry, so, what did you think the predators would do? Keep out of there? Of course no.

  And the RMEF (Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation) reported that elk are flourishing in this zones, so, what is all the fuss about? Elk hunters see them as competition, and some ranchers are too lazy to get fences, sheep sheds or guard dogs.

  Just look at the Great Lakes Region, they have about 4000 wolves and live in co-existence with them, and Idaho and Montana can’t! Why? Ignorance and laziness, that is.

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  Kadah on April 17 at 10:23 a.m.

  The NRM DPS has been overrun by wolves, due to lawsuits brought by environmentalists to stop the management. These are apex predators. They have and are decimating ungulate herds in Idaho and Montana. They will do the same in Washington State where we already have three endangered ungulate species. In order to keep wolves at a manageable number 70% have to be killed every year!

  This is to say nothing of the diseases wolves carry and are spreading, to both humans and livestock, diseases that kill.

  When wolves come into your neighborhood, kill your dog, your horse, your lamb, your pets, do you think you are going to think they are so wonderful?

  There’s a reason wolves were exterminated. They are indiscriminate killers. We’ve already had one incident where a man was surrounded by wolves in Washington State. Had he not had a gun, he would undoubtedly have been killed. It was reported by the FWS but not the media. It happened in Pend Oreille county.

  This whole notion that wolves are “nice little doggies” that won’t hurt anyone is going to get someone killed, just like it killed Candice Berner in Alaska. Do you want it to be your child?

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  jason916 on January 06 at 8:04 p.m.

  you anti hunting folks are a joke. you all need to grow some brains.yall probably think bambi is a true story. If theres too many wolves you have to kill some. if let unchecked wolves have no predators and would wipe out all the deer and elk( if there population grows by 20% a year) which people go to idaho to hunt myself included which brings in millions in revenues.it helps the economy of that state. If they sold 31,393 wolf tags at probably $20 bucks a pop for residents and probably around $50-$60 for non-residents idaho made a hell of alot of dough(and only 185 wolves were killed, doesnt seem like nearly enough).wolves are sustainable even if you killed 75% of them every year .

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  jason916 on January 06 at 8:16 p.m.

  alot of the time wolves will kill just for the sport of killing. they have found elk and deer carcases all over idaho and eastern washington killed by wolves untouched or barely eaten.there more of a pest, thats why they were killed off back then.when wolves in a short amount of time being in idaho can desimate a herd of 16,000 elk down to 2,000 in one part of idaho speaks for itself.if you wanna protect wildlife, shoot a wolf.

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  jason916 on January 06 at 8:31 p.m.

  check out WASHINGTON WOLF INFO if you dont belive wolves have ever killed people .