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["Federal agents kill wolf pack north of McCall
Since June 1, nine wolves had killed 100 sheep"]
Pete Zimowsky
The Idaho Statesman | Edition Date: 07-23-2004
"Federal authorities killed an entire pack of nine wolves Tuesday after the wolves killed about 100 sheep this summer in an area less than 20 miles north of McCall.
Two other wolf packs are roaming the area and some of the pack members may be killed if they continue targeting livestock.
The area is prime wolf habitat and grazing land. About 16,000 sheep share public land with 23 wolves. Before Tuesday, 32 wolves roamed the area.
More than 100 sheep have been killed this year in the vicinity of Granite Lake, a recreation area. The killings are blamed mostly on the Cook pack. The area is recovering after forest fires years ago, and new grasses and shrubs tempt elk into the region and the elk tempt the wolves.
"This is the worst situation in the state by far," said Curt Mack, gray wolf recovery coordinator for the Nez Perce tribe. "It's good sheep country and wolf country."
The deaths of the sheep and wolves signify the collision between grazing and wolf reintroduction efforts in Idaho. The wolves in the Cook pack killed 90 sheep last summer in the same area. Ranchers are reimbursed for the sheep.
The Cook pack killing offers immediate relief to the livestock owners with animals in the area, but it is not a long-term solution, Mack said Thursday from his office in McCall. "Even if we take out all three wolf packs, other wolves will find the area. The frustration is that we are looking at a cycle of losing livestock and removing wolves."
Guard dogs, cracker shells, sirens, lights and live fire from shotguns did not deter the Cook pack.
The sheep killings started this year on June 1 and continued through Saturday. The sheep were killed on state land and national forest land.
About 70 were killed in one night on June 29, said Carter Nienmeyer, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, who authorized the elimination of the pack.
"We had to be very aggressive in dealing with it. We won't tolerate wolves that are confirmed to be chronically killing livestock."
On Tuesday, authorities with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services agency killed all nine members of the pack from a helicopter near Brush Creek and Pearl Lake. A 10-gauge shotgun loaded with 3 1/2-inch magnum shells with BBs or buckshot is used to killed wolves. No pups were spotted with the pack.
Federal agencies would not confirm the names of the ranchers involved.
Two other wolf packs, the Hazard and Partridge packs, roam the area from McCall to Riggins and the Salmon River and from the Little Salmon River east deep into the Salmon River Mountains. If they turn out to be chronic sheep killers, they will be removed, Nienmeyer said. "The other two packs haven't demonstrated the severe killing yet."
"If they are serious sheep killers, we will take out one or a few at a time. If they persist, it is possible to remove the entire pack."
The uncollared animals will go first, he said. Biologists use the collared wolves to track the packs.
The Idaho Conservation League, a group that works to protect Idaho's water and wildlife, said in a news release, "Although this is an unfortunate incident for all concerned, this action demonstrates that the wolf management program is working as intended."
The organization's statement said the fact that the rancher, Nez Perce Tribe and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had tried other options first and used lethal measures only as a last resort proves that the wolf management program is a success.
"The ranchers and their families were sleeping with the bands of sheep. They did all kinds of stuff to keep them (wolves) away," said Mark Collinge, state director of USDA Wildlife Services.
The Nez Perce tribe will continue to look for nonlethal methods of keeping wolves away from livestock. Guard dogs, more of a human presence around bands of sheep, electric night fences around bedded-down sheep, rubber bullets, and cracker shells shot from shotguns at wolves are some of the methods being used.
Defenders of Wildlife, a group dedicated to protecting native wild animals, will reimburse the livestock company for its lost sheep. Ranchers are paid full fall market value for sheep. Last summer, a livestock company was paid $8,000 for 72 sheep killed by wolves in the Riggins area, said Nina Fascione, vice president of field conservation programs for Defenders of Wildlife in Washington, D.C.
The Nez Perce Tribe has not recovered the carcasses of the dead wolves. If wolves are killed in winter, tribe members recover the pelts because pelts are in good condition. The tribe uses the pelts and skulls for educational presentations.
Pelts are not in good condition in the summer, Mack said, but he speculated that the skulls of the animals may be collected."
Since June 1, nine wolves had killed 100 sheep"]
Pete Zimowsky
The Idaho Statesman | Edition Date: 07-23-2004
"Federal authorities killed an entire pack of nine wolves Tuesday after the wolves killed about 100 sheep this summer in an area less than 20 miles north of McCall.
Two other wolf packs are roaming the area and some of the pack members may be killed if they continue targeting livestock.
The area is prime wolf habitat and grazing land. About 16,000 sheep share public land with 23 wolves. Before Tuesday, 32 wolves roamed the area.
More than 100 sheep have been killed this year in the vicinity of Granite Lake, a recreation area. The killings are blamed mostly on the Cook pack. The area is recovering after forest fires years ago, and new grasses and shrubs tempt elk into the region and the elk tempt the wolves.
"This is the worst situation in the state by far," said Curt Mack, gray wolf recovery coordinator for the Nez Perce tribe. "It's good sheep country and wolf country."
The deaths of the sheep and wolves signify the collision between grazing and wolf reintroduction efforts in Idaho. The wolves in the Cook pack killed 90 sheep last summer in the same area. Ranchers are reimbursed for the sheep.
The Cook pack killing offers immediate relief to the livestock owners with animals in the area, but it is not a long-term solution, Mack said Thursday from his office in McCall. "Even if we take out all three wolf packs, other wolves will find the area. The frustration is that we are looking at a cycle of losing livestock and removing wolves."
Guard dogs, cracker shells, sirens, lights and live fire from shotguns did not deter the Cook pack.
The sheep killings started this year on June 1 and continued through Saturday. The sheep were killed on state land and national forest land.
About 70 were killed in one night on June 29, said Carter Nienmeyer, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, who authorized the elimination of the pack.
"We had to be very aggressive in dealing with it. We won't tolerate wolves that are confirmed to be chronically killing livestock."
On Tuesday, authorities with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services agency killed all nine members of the pack from a helicopter near Brush Creek and Pearl Lake. A 10-gauge shotgun loaded with 3 1/2-inch magnum shells with BBs or buckshot is used to killed wolves. No pups were spotted with the pack.
Federal agencies would not confirm the names of the ranchers involved.
Two other wolf packs, the Hazard and Partridge packs, roam the area from McCall to Riggins and the Salmon River and from the Little Salmon River east deep into the Salmon River Mountains. If they turn out to be chronic sheep killers, they will be removed, Nienmeyer said. "The other two packs haven't demonstrated the severe killing yet."
"If they are serious sheep killers, we will take out one or a few at a time. If they persist, it is possible to remove the entire pack."
The uncollared animals will go first, he said. Biologists use the collared wolves to track the packs.
The Idaho Conservation League, a group that works to protect Idaho's water and wildlife, said in a news release, "Although this is an unfortunate incident for all concerned, this action demonstrates that the wolf management program is working as intended."
The organization's statement said the fact that the rancher, Nez Perce Tribe and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had tried other options first and used lethal measures only as a last resort proves that the wolf management program is a success.
"The ranchers and their families were sleeping with the bands of sheep. They did all kinds of stuff to keep them (wolves) away," said Mark Collinge, state director of USDA Wildlife Services.
The Nez Perce tribe will continue to look for nonlethal methods of keeping wolves away from livestock. Guard dogs, more of a human presence around bands of sheep, electric night fences around bedded-down sheep, rubber bullets, and cracker shells shot from shotguns at wolves are some of the methods being used.
Defenders of Wildlife, a group dedicated to protecting native wild animals, will reimburse the livestock company for its lost sheep. Ranchers are paid full fall market value for sheep. Last summer, a livestock company was paid $8,000 for 72 sheep killed by wolves in the Riggins area, said Nina Fascione, vice president of field conservation programs for Defenders of Wildlife in Washington, D.C.
The Nez Perce Tribe has not recovered the carcasses of the dead wolves. If wolves are killed in winter, tribe members recover the pelts because pelts are in good condition. The tribe uses the pelts and skulls for educational presentations.
Pelts are not in good condition in the summer, Mack said, but he speculated that the skulls of the animals may be collected."
