Defenders of Wildlife Blog

More wolves, fewer livestock losses across the region – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published its annual wolf report this week with some interesting results. Livestock losses to wolves declined for the second straight year even as the Northern Rockies wolf population increased slightly (see charts for details on overall population and depredation totals). Clearly, any claims that more wolves need to be killed to address escalating conflicts with livestock are unfounded. Wolf management that is focused more on resolving legitimate conflicts instead of worrying about the overall number of wolves is likely to be more efficient and effective. As we’ve seen in recent years, increased wolf numbers do not necessarily mean increased conflicts. Defenders will continue to urge the states to prioritize nonlethal management strategies for reducing conflicts with wolves, and to exercise discretion before deciding to take more aggressive removal actions, to ensure a lasting future for a healthy, sustainable wolf population.

Wolves in Utah? – The Salt Lake Tribune reported this week that four large canines were spotted in eastern Utah County. Wildlife managers are still trying to confirm whether the animals were wild wolves, coyotes or wolf hybrids. But if they are wolves, this could be the first documented pack of wolves outside the far northeastern corner of the state. Protections for wolves in northeast Utah were removed in May along with the rest of the Northern Rockies (except Wyoming), but gray wolves remain protected everywhere else in the state. Sadly, state law mandates that Utah wildlife managers must ask the federal government to kill any wolves that arrive in the state. It’s up to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to decide whether to carry out the action.

Gov. Otter wants feds to pay for more wolf killing – Management of non-endangered species is largely a state responsibility, one the states aggressively defend. Increasingly, however, states are asking the federal government to manage their wildlife. Idaho already asked USDA Wildlife Services to kill wolves for them on the Clearwater National Forest in an attempt to boost elk numbers, which Wildlife Services did (despite nearly 90,000 comments from Defenders members and supporters asking them not to). Now Idaho Gov. Butch Otter is in Washington D.C., asking the federal government to kick in even more to fund elk and wolf management in Idaho and to compensate ranchers.

The federal government already contributes to livestock loss prevention and compensation through the Livestock Loss Demonstration Project, a federal program Defenders has been working to expand and improve with its primary sponsor, Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT). And Defenders has already spent more than $400,000 on our livestock compensation and wolf coexistence programs in Idaho. The federal government has an important role to play in helping states learn how to manage wolves and reduce conflicts. What is not appropriate is what Governor Otter appears to be asking for – taxpayer funding for managing elk herds by removing wolves.

See the full story in the Idaho Statesmen, including our wolf expert Suzanne Stone’s response about the real costs (and benefits!) of having wolves on the landscape.

“In some ways wolves are benefitting elk in that they’re the only predator that actually culls disease and other illnesses from those herds. Over time, wolves actually improve the overall health of elk populations. So the wolves should maybe be charging Idaho for their services.” – Suzanne Stone, Defenders Northern Rockies representative

Wyoming wolf plan approved – In case you missed it, Wyoming approved its misguided wolf plan this week. Read Defenders reaction in this blog post.

A fresh take on wolves from down under – Sometimes it helps to get an outside perspective on things, and that’s just what an Australian television network did with their documentary on the wolf controversy in the Northern Rockies. They visited Idaho and Montana last year to talk to people across the spectrum, from diehard wolf lovers to anti-wolf extremists and plenty more in between. Check it out below, and don’t miss Suzanne’s cameo at the 12:15 mark that begins a segment on the work we’re doing with ranchers to use nonlethal tools to reduce conflict between wolves and livestock. Throughout the video, members of Idaho’s Nez Perce tribe also offer tremendous insights into the cultural significance of having wolves back on the landscape.

OR7 back in Oregon – According to a press release from state wildlife managers, OR7 is an Oregon wolf once again. That is, until he decides to do some more border-jumping. After two months in Northern California, OR7 crossed back into his home state yesterday. The lone dispersing male wolf left his pack in September and crossed into the Golden State on Dec. 28. He remains protected under federal law while in western Oregon and California, and under state law if he returns all the way home to eastern Oregon.

Wolves in the Jackson suburbs – At least three wolves have garnered much attention in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which isn’t necessarily a good thing for the wolves. Local residents have been seeing wolves literally in their backyards on the outskirts of town for months now.

Here’s some footage from YouTube:

Even though the wolves haven’t caused any trouble yet, having them so close to people is risky. While wild wolves pose very little threat to humans, wolves that become habituated can become more dangerous to people and their pets. That’s why the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said this week that they will be taking action to lethally remove the animals before anything bad happens (see story in Jackson Hole News & Guide).

This sad incident is a good reminder that people living in wolf country must take an active role to keep wolves and other wildlife wild. Making sure that wild animals keep a healthy fear of us helps protect  animals from being harmed or killed. With wolves, simple hazing such as shouting, making loud noises or even throwing rocks can help make sure they don’t come around too often. It’s also important to remove any attractants like pet food or even garbage that might lure them in for a snack. Deer and elk should not be fed as they can attract predators as well. And of course, for those residents living adjacent to wild areas, keeping dogs and other pets on a leash and inside when you’re not with them is always a good practice.

“You just can’t let them lose that fear of people, because that’s what’s protecting them the most.” — Suzanne Stone, Northern Rockies representative

Defenders is working to help educate residents about basic safety around wildlife, including wolves. Living near wolves and other wildlife can indeed be thrilling, but it’s our responsibility to help keep these animals in the wild and out of trouble.

Wolves hunt two bull elk in Yellowstone. Photo courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service.

Elk propaganda in Oregon – Time and again we hear about how wolves are “decimating” elk in the Northern Rockies, despite the fact that there were an estimated 373,000 elk last year between Montana, Idaho and Wyoming and about 1,650 wolves. It appears this propaganda is now spreading to Oregon where there are fewer than 30 wolves and an estimated 125,000 elk (see story in The Oregonian).

There’s no denying that some herds in the region have declined from their historic highs in the days when hardly any predators remained on the landscape. But scapegoating wolves, or any native carnivores, is simply unjustified. The point our wolf expert Suzanne Stone was trying to make in the story, which the writer misinterpreted, was that habitat loss influences elk numbers far more than natural predation by native carnivores.  Elk and other ungulates like deer and moose evolved alongside wolves and other native carnivores for thousands of years. Historically, wolves have played a unique role in culling ungulate herds, removing the old, sick and weak. The presence of wolves also prevented ungulates from growing too numerous or spending too much time grazing in any one area. Wolves are filling this role once again in places like Yellowstone and can do so in Oregon if they’re given a chance.

Bad Idaho wolf bill abandoned – Idaho State Sen. Jeff Siddoway was brought to tears this week when he realized he wouldn’t see his radical anti-wolf bill become law (see story in the Idaho Statesman). A bill he had proposed would have expanded ranchers’ ability to kill wolves caught harassing their livestock by using live bait (like dogs and sheep), night vision scopes, motorized vehicles and even powered parachutes to gun down the offending wolves. Siddoway’s epiphany wasn’t that the methods were cruel and unusual, or that killing wolves was unnecessary. Instead, it was brought to his attention that taking such egregious measures might end up with wolves back on the federal endangered species list. I guess we should just be thankful that the bill is dead…for now.

A herder and his dog round up a flock of sheep in central Idaho's Wood River Valley.

Wood River Project heads to DC – We’re still a few months away from the summer proactive season when we help ranchers implement nonlethal deterrents that help wolves and livestock coexist. But our project partners in central Idaho are already gearing up. (see story in Idaho Mountain Express). Blaine County Commissioner Larry Schoen said his intention for calling the meeting was “to open lines of communication and new cooperative efforts.” Larry has served as a project member for the last three years and become a champion of wildlife coexistence measures that reduce livestock losses.  Suzanne Stone, our project coordinator, and other members of the Wood River Wolf Project team will also be meeting with Defenders staff and federal officials here in DC next week to help promote the project.

More delistings ahead? – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released a five-year status review of gray wolves this week that could strip federal protections for the species across most of the country. Currently, gray wolves are protected as an endangered species all across the lower 48, except for specific populations that have already been delisted (i.e., most of the Northern Rockies and western Great Lakes). That means if a wolf wanders into Colorado or California (which has already happened), it’s automatically protected under the Endangered Species Act. However, the status review indicates that the Service is now planning to remove protections everywhere that wolves don’t currently exist. Such a move could make it nearly impossible for wolves to ever recover in important parts of their historic range like the Southern Rockies, upper New England and other parts of the West.

The Service says it’s still evaluating the status of Mexican wolves in the Southwest and gray wolves in the Pacific Northwest and eastern United States. Those reviews are expected to be completed by the end of September. Our concern is that it appears the Service is getting ready to give up on wolf recovery and delist the species nationwide soon thereafter.

I relish the opportunity to get out and experience firsthand the places—and wildlife—that we at Defenders work so hard to protect. To spend a day exploring the habitat of panthers and bears, butterflies and salamanders, pines, palms and orchids, is truly a delight, and I know that not everyone is so lucky to have a job that combines their passion and their profession.

This month my work allowed me to join environmental photojournalist Carlton Ward Jr, bear biologist Joe Guthrie, filmmaker Elam Stoltzfuz, and refuge complex superintendent Kevin Godsea for a hike through the uplands and swamps of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. The 11 miles we trekked were just a small part of the 100-day, 1000-mile journey the men are taking through some of the state’s most wild places on what they call the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition.

The expedition is an effort to increase public awareness and generate support for establishing a Florida wildlife corridor that would protect and restore connected landscapes throughout the Florida Peninsula in order to create a viable link from the Everglades to Georgia. Such a corridor is critical for Florida wildlife like black bears and panthers, which need lots of room to roam. Unfortunately, that amount of land is no short order in an ever-developing Sunshine State, and the challenges involved are many. The good news is that many landowners are interested in maintaining their ranches in ways that also provide valuable wildlife habitat; the expedition hopes to increase awareness and support of ways to do so.

A migration corridor is critical for Florida's wide-ranging black bears.

The expedition began on January 17 in Everglades National Park, and will take the travelers north through the state of Florida, ending in Georgia, just across the Florida border, at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Defenders supports this bold adventure as it inspires citizens and visitors to join all of us who are working to save the state’s native wildlife and the network of habitat they and we depend upon. Check out my footage from my incredible day on the trail and learn more about how you can follow the crew along their journey!

Learn more:

Visit the expedition website to learn more and follow the crew throughout their journey.

In March, Laurie and the rest Defenders’ Florida staff will welcome the crew of the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition to the annual Florida Black Bear Festival in Umatilla. Stay tuned for details about the festival and the opportunity to hear from the trekkers themselves!

Sea otters don’t want roses or chocolates for Valentine’s Day.

Check out this video with our friend Philippe Cousteau to learn more about what you can do to help the threatened California sea otter.

If you live in California, the best way to show you care is to do your taxes early and donate to the California Sea Otter Fund, a vital lifeline supporting research and recovery programs for these furry marine mammals.

Californians must raise more than a quarter-million dollars this tax season for vital fund to reappear on tax forms again next year. Learn how you can contribute today at saveseaotters.org.

Just before the holidays, Defenders joined two local conservation groups in a lawsuit voicing concerns over exploratory drilling for a proposed silver mine on the Coronado National Forest in southern Arizona.

The Hardshell Project site threatens habitat for endangered Mexican spotted owls, lesser long-nosed bats, and could cut off key migration corridors for ocelots and jaguars. The Forest Service is allowing these companies to destroy our federal lands with little to no consideration of the impact on wildlife and the environment.

This sensitive region, says local biologist Ron Pulliam with the University of Georgia in the video, is “biologically, the richest and most diverse place in the United States.”

In this in-depth documentary, courtesy of the Patagonia Area Resource Alliance, the people of Patagonia, Ariz. give a firsthand account of how mining has already started to irreversibly alter life in this idyllic landscape.

Wolves, like this on in the Cascade Mountains, are receiving the ire of the Yakima County Farm Bureau even though only one livestock loss has been attributed to wolves in Washington in more than five years.

Tempers flare in Pacific Northwest – Though there are fewer than 30 wolves in Washington, and the state’s wolf management plan has only recently been approved, wolf opponents are already pushing for more aggressive control actions. Legislators are proposing a significant decrease in the fine for illegally killing wolves from $4,000 to $1,000 and relisting wolves as a “game” animal instead of endangered. The Yakima County Farm Bureau is opposing the state’s wolf plan outright. Some of their members want all wolves to be eliminated, even though there has only been one confirmed livestock loss to wolves since they returned to Washington more than five years ago.

At least some landowners are taking a more measured approach. Dan Studley, quoted in the Yakima Herald, says he’s not too concerned about wolves:

As the story points out, Defenders has already chipped in $15,000 in start-up funds to help Washington get a compensation program off the ground. We are also organizing another series of workshops to help local, state, federal and tribal wildlife managers enhance their skills in field investigations and nonlethal deterrents.

Montana county considers wolf bounty – This week, anti-wolf zealots in Jefferson County, Montana are pushing to reinstate a wolf bounty program that would pay people for killing wolves. Only three cattle were lost to wolves in Jefferson County in 2011 according to state compensation payment records, but rather than taking steps to learn to live with wolves, county commissioners are considering a bounty to encourage all wolves to be killed. But not all residents of Jefferson County are on board with the proposed bounty. One hunter, quoted in the local paper, said that the state should be given a chance to manage wolves responsibly before counties take more aggressive action. Another person suggested that cougars and coyotes are likely taking more elk calves and fawns than wolves are, and another said bounties often amount to legalized fraud. Read more in the Helena Independent Record.

Wood River overseas – This summer we were lucky enough to have Pete Haswell, a young biologist from the UK Wolf Conservation Trust, volunteering on the Wood River Wolf Project. He spent his days and nights with our field team tracking wolves and sheep through the central Idaho wilderness, and when he returned, he had some great stories to tell. One night he came within 60 feet of a wolf in the Phantom Hill pack and exchanged late night howls with other packs as well. More importantly, he got to learn first-hand about the nonlethal tools we use to deter wolf attacks, which he hopes to utilize in his work in Eastern Europe. Pete also created an interactive map to keep track of known wolf locations in relation to grazing bands of sheep. Read more about Pete’s adventures in Idaho in the latest issue of Wolf Print, the quarterly magazine of UKWCT (see pg. 14). Pete also wrote a blog post for Defenders during Wolf Awareness Week.

Video of OR7 in his Oregon days – While OR7 remains in northern California in the shadows of Mt. Lassen, his legend continues to spread. This week a video surfaced of the lone male wolf from his Oregon days. The goal of the group named “Oregon Wolf Education” that sponsored the video is “to educate people on how the recent invasion of the Canadian gray wolf is affecting our lives.” But the video also tells a different story of a lone wolf that repeatedly moved through cattle pastures without causing trouble, due at least in part to the effective use of a range rider. Decide for yourself whether the short video portrays OR7 as a serious threat or just another wild animal sharing the landscape:

OR-7 from Pahsimeroi Pictures on Vimeo.

And in case you missed it, OR7 has also made news in the New York Times and TIME magazine!

What does the data show? – Understanding wolf behavior and their interactions with both wild ungulates and livestock isn’t easy. Wolves share the landscape with other animals that target the same prey, so it takes some careful analysis to determine the impact of any one species on another. That’s why Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is leading an in-depth study of predator-prey interactions in the Bitterroot Valley, where elk herds have declined in recent years. There are two years remaining in the study, but so far state biologists are learning that cougars in the area may be having a bigger impact on elk populations than wolves (last year, cougars killed 13 tagged elk calves and wolves killed three). The results of the study should yield important information about the relative impact of wolves on elk. Read more in this feature story from the Missoula Independent.