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Ranchers say Madison Valley wolves getting bold
By the Associated Press
CAMERON - Some ranchers say the wolves in the Madison Valley have grown increasingly brazen and are apparently unafraid of people.
State wildlife officials say such behavior is to be expected, given the federal protection the predators have had in the decade since being reintroduced in the Yellowstone National Park.
Jack Atcheson Jr. said he was spooked on a recent hunting trip, when three men and three mules got within 47 yards of a wolf that was staring right at them. The Butte hunting outfitter, who books international trips, said he had never seen wolves in Alaska, Asia or other places act so boldly around people.
“It was approaching us with the wind right in its face - we were standing around the animals, but he was focused on us,” Atcheson, 55, said. “He was not afraid at all.”
The wolf finally stopped when one of Atcheson's hunting partners chambered a rifle, while Atcheson snapped a photo. Even then, the wolf merely lay down and stared at the hunters before eventually walking away.
Sunny Smith, manager of the CB Ranch near the Madison Range, said the wolves are “just like domestic dogs.”
And with calving season just weeks away, that lack of fear has ranchers worried about the prospect of the wolves attacking livestock.
Barb Durham, a rancher whose herding dog was killed by wolves in 2004, said if ranchers had had more leeway to shoot wolves when they were hanging around ranches that year, federal officials might have needed to kill only a couple wolves instead of eliminating the whole pack.
Wolves have already wandered around their bulls this year, although none of them attacked, she said.
“They have no fear and that's been our contention all along,” Durham said. “We don't hate wolves; we just want them to be a natural, wild predator and to be afraid of humans.
“If you don't let us educate them, then there's always going to be conflicts.”
Wolves in Montana remain protected under the Endangered Species Act, but their recovery has led the federal government to turn management of the animals over to the state.
State officials said stories such as Atcheson's are a major concern.
“It's totally inappropriate for wolves to be that close,” said Carolyn Sime, wolf coordinator for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
But she added that it's not that surprising. Wolves in Alaska have been hunted, trapped and harassed for years. And if they spot a human, they immediately run away.
Montana wolves, however, have been protected under federal law for years. Most of them have never been shot at or harassed, and none of them have been hunted.
Sime said elk in the valley pastures are also attracting wolves to the area, and thus closer to homes and livestock.
“If you look at where wolves are setting up, it's not in the backcountry, it's in the valley bottoms and foothills where people live and raise livestock and where ungulates spend winter,” she said.
Sime reminds ranchers that with state oversight of the wolves, they have more flexibility to kill or harass wolves that are causing problems. It doesn't allow wolves to be killed on sight, but ranchers don't need a special permit to shoot a wolf that's about to attack livestock.
She said officials hope people take more aggressive action when a wolf is acting brazenly. In Atcheson's incident, he could have fired a rifle shot over the wolf's head to scare it.
“If wolves have uncomfortable experiences around people and livestock, that would be a good thing,” she said. “By harassing them now, we may prevent problems later.”
By the Associated Press
CAMERON - Some ranchers say the wolves in the Madison Valley have grown increasingly brazen and are apparently unafraid of people.
State wildlife officials say such behavior is to be expected, given the federal protection the predators have had in the decade since being reintroduced in the Yellowstone National Park.
Jack Atcheson Jr. said he was spooked on a recent hunting trip, when three men and three mules got within 47 yards of a wolf that was staring right at them. The Butte hunting outfitter, who books international trips, said he had never seen wolves in Alaska, Asia or other places act so boldly around people.
“It was approaching us with the wind right in its face - we were standing around the animals, but he was focused on us,” Atcheson, 55, said. “He was not afraid at all.”
The wolf finally stopped when one of Atcheson's hunting partners chambered a rifle, while Atcheson snapped a photo. Even then, the wolf merely lay down and stared at the hunters before eventually walking away.
Sunny Smith, manager of the CB Ranch near the Madison Range, said the wolves are “just like domestic dogs.”
And with calving season just weeks away, that lack of fear has ranchers worried about the prospect of the wolves attacking livestock.
Barb Durham, a rancher whose herding dog was killed by wolves in 2004, said if ranchers had had more leeway to shoot wolves when they were hanging around ranches that year, federal officials might have needed to kill only a couple wolves instead of eliminating the whole pack.
Wolves have already wandered around their bulls this year, although none of them attacked, she said.
“They have no fear and that's been our contention all along,” Durham said. “We don't hate wolves; we just want them to be a natural, wild predator and to be afraid of humans.
“If you don't let us educate them, then there's always going to be conflicts.”
Wolves in Montana remain protected under the Endangered Species Act, but their recovery has led the federal government to turn management of the animals over to the state.
State officials said stories such as Atcheson's are a major concern.
“It's totally inappropriate for wolves to be that close,” said Carolyn Sime, wolf coordinator for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
But she added that it's not that surprising. Wolves in Alaska have been hunted, trapped and harassed for years. And if they spot a human, they immediately run away.
Montana wolves, however, have been protected under federal law for years. Most of them have never been shot at or harassed, and none of them have been hunted.
Sime said elk in the valley pastures are also attracting wolves to the area, and thus closer to homes and livestock.
“If you look at where wolves are setting up, it's not in the backcountry, it's in the valley bottoms and foothills where people live and raise livestock and where ungulates spend winter,” she said.
Sime reminds ranchers that with state oversight of the wolves, they have more flexibility to kill or harass wolves that are causing problems. It doesn't allow wolves to be killed on sight, but ranchers don't need a special permit to shoot a wolf that's about to attack livestock.
She said officials hope people take more aggressive action when a wolf is acting brazenly. In Atcheson's incident, he could have fired a rifle shot over the wolf's head to scare it.
“If wolves have uncomfortable experiences around people and livestock, that would be a good thing,” she said. “By harassing them now, we may prevent problems later.”
