Hunters Urged Not To Kill Wolves

Wolf watchers want Idaho’s big game hunters to take care in choosing their targets this fall to avoid shooting a wolf by accident.

Fifteen wolves, protected as endangered species, were released in Idaho in January. One has since been shot and three others headed for Montana.

The remaining wolves have scattered through Idaho’s backcountry, mostly the Frank Church-River of No Return or the adjacent Selway-Bitterroot wilderness.

Reports have filtered in through the summer and fall from travelers or hunters who have heard wolves or seen signs of their presence.

Mike Jimenez, the Nez Perce Indian Tribe biologist who helps keep track said a few travelers also have seen the animals.

The tribe and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service share the Idaho wolf recovery project.

Bad weather hampered efforts in recent weeks to keep track of the wolves by air, said Jiminez, who is stationed at Lapwai.

Three of the 10 wolves located in the most recent flight were found nearby in Montana. Of the remaining seven in Idaho, four were clustered in the Church Wilderness west of Riggins and McCall. Two more were along the IdahoMontana border near Lolo Pass.

Six of the wolves have paired and are roaming less than the wolves who have remained loners.

The federal and tribal biologists are trying to contact hunters heading into the back country to let them know wolves are in the area. Jiminez says the reaction from hunters has been mixed.

“Most people are cordial but some people don’t get real excited about it,” he said. Biologists hope hunters will help them track the wolves.

They’re asking hunters to report hearing or seeing wolves.