Lessons from the wolf

[Ithaca 37]

Here's a great article on the impact wolves are having in Yellowstone. We're seeing the same impact in many parts of Idaho.

"Bringing the top predator back to Yellowstone has triggered a cascade of unanticipated changes in the park's ecosystem................................"

Here's what hunters need to keep in mind:

".........After the wolves' reintroduction in 1995 and 1996, they began to increase their numbers fairly rapidly, and researchers began to see not only a drop in the population of elk but a change in elk behavior. The tall, elegant mahogany-colored animals spent less time in river bottoms and more time in places where they could keep an eye out for predatory wolves......"

Many hunters still haven't figured out they can't expect to find elk in the same areas they used to. These are the hunters who sit around the bar and say the all the elk have been eaten by the wolves.



http://sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID...67-10AA-84B183414B7F0000&pageNumber=1&catID=2

 

[shoots-straight]

We know that here in the Bitterroot Valley, one generation of cotton wood tree is missing because of the whitetails. Most area's where they live is private, and the richy rich are owning more and more land. They don't allow hunting on their land because of one lame reason or another. Only when educated do some open the properties to hunting.

BTW, you find wolves on the valley floor, so no such luck on controling the deer population using the wolf. Cars seem to be the best predator here.