Study: Bears kill more elk than wolves

[Ithaca 37]

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - Grizzly and black bears killed a majority of elk calves in northern Yellowstone National Park for the second year in a row, preliminary study results show.
Researchers monitored 44 calves this spring and summer in the second year of a three-year study to determine what is killing calves in the park's northern range.

Some hunters, outfitters and politicians have blamed wolves for declining elk numbers. But park scientists maintain that a variety of factors, such as drought and other predators, are at play.

Of the 44 calves monitored this year, 31 died. Of those, 18 were killed by grizzly and black bears, four by coyotes, three by wolves and one by a golden eagle, researchers said............

http://www.heraldonline.com/24hour/healthscience/story/1789578p-9653180c.html

And the anti-wolf nuts are proved wrong again! If all those big talkers who say they're gonna shoot a wolf would go out and get a bear the elk herds would be better off.

 

[wyomingtim]

WOW, a golden eagle killed a calf. That would have been a sight to see.

But you see, the wolves are killing off smaller prey that the bears usually eat, forcing th ebears to go after elk calves. SO it is still the fault of the wolves

 

[A-con]

Don't wolves usually target adult elk ?
Why don't you post a study showing how many adult elk are killed by bears and/or wolves ? Could it be because it dosn't support your theory that all thoses wolves are dinning at Jack In The Box ?
I am in favor of a stable wolf population, but if you really don't think they eat lots of elk & deer, then what do they eat ?
This study is off point, and proves nothing.
Try again, Ithica

 

[Ithaca 37]

A-con, I just post articles as I find them. You're certainly welcome to post any you'd like to. Don't expect me to research for info you'd like to see, I'm not your mother. Do it yourself.

 

[1_pointer]

A-con- I'd say this article and the data from the year before show that wolves aren't having as big an effect on calf survival than bears. Which, has been a concern and is what many people thought the wolves would do.

 

[pa mt man]

I'm sure they collected the data correctly, but I wonder how they determine who killed the calf.After 4 hrs of nonmovement they figure its dead. How long before they check it out. Another 4 hrs or more. By that time the bears or wolverine could have chased the wolves off. The ranger who checked us outside Jackson this year told us that gun shots are like a dinner bell to bears. They could have figured out that wolves = dinner. Lazy bears!!!
Also, I know it was a calf study stopped in september, but bears don't eat a lot in winter.
What surprised me was the few that made it.

 

[Muledeer4me]

No matter what predator eats the most of any given big game ,they are all eating the same big game animals we as hunter's like to hunt.
Why place another predator into the mix placing more stress on big game population's?
That has been the question I hear people around Idaho talk about.

It's a given that all predator's take game animals, the anti's know that and Ithaca knows that.
I think he also know's the plan is to bring back large predator's to control big game population's so when the number's go down (from whatever large predator is taking out game you as a human could be hunting) it doesn't matter.
It about who is in line ,and we all know by now it's the human hunter that these animal rights wacko's want to take out of the equation.
When huntable game get's low ,it's the (human hunter)that is on the chopping block .
So it's all a question of how many large predators do we want to compete with??????
I say No More Large Predator's being shoved up our butt's by the anti-leaning greenie's.

Go look at the plan of these anti-hunting/green group's that want the large predators back,they also want large tracts of public lands OFF LIMIT's as in NO HUMAN's allowed.

 

[1_pointer]

MD- While I don't agree with area's off limits to humans, I do feel that we should have large predators in the system. Will it impact game herds? Sure, to some level, but I have yet to see any credible report that shows the introduction of a predator leading to the end of sport hunting. Sure some places have tag reductions, much of which may be related to the predators. But, many more tag reductions, IMO, are caused by humans than four-legged animals. If we have adequate amounts of GOOD quality habitat, there's room for predators and us to hunt. It's been happening on this continent for 15,000yrs. Besides, the regulation of the predators provides a variety of hunting opportunities. I firmly believe we will be hunting wolves and grizzly's again in the Lower 48, while at the same time still having thriving deer, elk, moose, etc populations.

So, can I, being that I'm not a "anti-leaning greenie", shove a large predator somewhere?

 

[Ten Bears]

We have known that bear eat a lot of elk calves for many years around here. Some of the best spring bear hunting around here is on the elk calving grounds. I know of (and have gone too) spring bear hunts over the elk calving areas, and NO BUZZ/EG/IT the ATVs nor hunters don't seem to bother the elk during calving, and we do kill qutie a few bears there.

I too am surprised that the study ended in the fall. Why wouldn't it cover the entire year? Oh yah, it might show that the rest of the calves were killed by other predators during the winter months whenthe bears were sleeping.

 

[1_pointer]

TB- When are calves not thought to be calves (ie dependent on mother)? Just a question as I don't know. But, I do know that many animals born in the spring are mature enough by fall that they can survive quite well without their mother. Most mammals that I'm aware of show a decreasing rate of mortality as age increases until old age, at which it increases.

*edited for wrong graph reference

 

[BHR]

All this study proves is that we need to delist the grizzly, and start hunting them. I'm not holding my breath for either a grizzly or a wolf season in the near future. Maybe when liberanus americanus goes extinct we can get on with it.

 

[Ten Bears]

1-P, I know that when our local wildlife managers fly calf counts, they do it in FEB - MAR,and they are counting "calves" per 100 cows ratios. They give the hunters the count results at the breakfast in APR. Therefore, I would say they are calves all the way up until they become "yearlings" which seems to be the next distinction made during the counts. When we checked animals in at the checkstation this fall they were counting elk as "calves, yearlings, or adults."

 

[1_pointer]

BHR- I agree and hope you're wrong.

 

[Ten Bears]

1-P, I just got off the phone with a guy I know with the f&g. He said that they do the flights in the spring inorder to assess calf survival from all possible causes, and that by waiting until early spring to do the flights they are able to gauge the winter and winter predation effects on calves into the counts.

 

[A-con]

And the anti-wolf nuts are proved wrong again!

The above statement led me to belive you thought this study somehow discredited the "wolves are eating all the elk" crowd.
Wolves hunt as a pack, and a pack of wolves would be wasting their time killing a calk, because it wouldn't make a decent meal for them.
Wolf packs, as I understand it, hunt larger game, like adult elk (and moose/buffalo) because a kill can provide food for the entire pack for several days or a week. So posting a study about wolf deperdatation on elk calfs is misleading.
You (Ithica) know this (probably better than anyone on this board)

 

[Ithaca 37]

A-con, Can you show us any studies that prove what you say, or is that just your theory? If what you say about wolves not wanting to waste time on a elk calf is true(I'm assuming a calf is any elk up to at least 9 months old. A 9 month old calf would be about the size of a deer.), then it would seem logical that they wouldn't kill a deer either, right?

In an earlier post you claimed wolves kill lots of deer. What's the difference between a 150 pound elk calf and a 150 pound deer?

 

[feclnogn]

is there a cliff notes version of this. there are just to many words in that article.

Thanks.

 

[BHR]

Pointer,

What part do you agree with? That liberanus americanus will become extinct?

Paul

 

[Muledeer4me]

"So, can I, being that I'm not a "anti-leaning greenie", shove a large predator somewhere?"


1Pointer,I have really never thought of you as a anti or a greenie.
But hey ,if your into shoving thing's I hear Richard Greer might be the man to help you with your fetish.

P.S. No picture's please

 

[1_pointer]

I'm not a hampster kinda guy.

PS- I hope you took that as light-hearted as it was intended.