Northern MN Deer Population

[PGE-Hound]

Why would a wolf population completely destroy their main source of food? Seems extremely unlikely to me! They don't it's a natural predator/prey balancing act that ebbs and flows like everything in nature.

^^^ Right ^^^ Its like the Fox and the Rabbit relationship. More rabbits and you'll have more fox. As the fox population grows you'll start to get less rabbits which overtime yields less fox. Then the rabbit population grows and everything starts over.

[Bear55]

btw, there was a reason they were almost erradicated and it wasnt sport. Its because they are destructive.

This is just a completely inacurate statement! If wolves were so destructive they would have whiped the deer out long before we ever got here. Lets at least be somewhat reasonable when pulling these wild accusations out of thin air.

[Mike Sertich]

The forests north of Hinckley weren't harvested as they are today. It was an entirely different forest up here in the 1800's. When the wood industry and the mining expanded north, the habitat was changed forever. With that change also came a change with animal habitat. The wolves were here with the moose elk and woodland caribou. The whitetail migrated here. They(wolf) had a built in foodsource. Now habitat is changing again as the human moves farther and farther into rural areas. Thus, more wolf sightings and wolf difficulties(?). I have heard people say"we never had the problem before and they don't in Canada". Canada is sparsely populated compared to Minnesota,especially Western Ontario, Manitoba and Sask. Wolves are predatory and will thrill kill. So do humans. funny how it is.

[Red Miller]

BD, Upon doing a little research, I stand corrected. You are right, they were probably relocated. They have been released in other states but not MN. It was just a theory however, here is an excerpt from a fact sheet that indicates they are spreading and becoming more tolerant of people. Here is the HSOforum:

http://www.wolf.org/wolves/learn/intermed/inter_population/mn.asp

Some wolves are surviving in areas with higher road densities (more than one mile of road per square mile of area) and human densities (more than ten people per square mile) than identified as critical to wolf survival in 1988-1989. Wolf packs have even colonized Camp Ripley in Morrison County. Dispersal continues to areas as distant as the west-central and south-eastern part of the state, the northern Minneapolis/St. Paul outer suburbs, as well as North and South Dakota. Thus, wolves seem to be adapting more to humans and, perhaps due to more education about wolves, humans are becoming more accepting of the wolf's presence. The most wolves that the MN DNR believes Minnesota can sustain without increased wolf-human conflicts is about 2000.

[Bear55]

^^^ Right ^^^ Its like the Fox and the Rabbit relationship. More rabbits and you'll have more fox. As the fox population grows you'll start to get less rabbits which overtime yields less fox. Then the rabbit population grows and everything starts over.

Thank you PGE Hound, that's what I would call some old fashion common sense. We could use some more of that around here.

[BobT]

Quote:

Wolves are predatory and will thrill kill.

I guess I can't deny or substantiate that however, in all my years spent in the woods I can honestly say that I have never encountered a partially eaten carcass of any animal including deer. I have however encountered deer that were shot and left lay on more than one occasion.

[Red Miller]

What I found interesting was they were bounty killing wolves up to 1974. Also, when the deer population crashed in the 90's, the wolves just stopped growing... didnt decrease.

[bogwalker]

Bog I'm kind of suprised you are this alarmed after having so much experience with wolves over the years. Most of the extremest posters are from the fringe areas and have never hunted with wolves before.

For the sake of our children and grandchildren answer me this, if these wolves have the capability to whipe out deer populations why hasn't it happened in northern Minnesota or Canada many years ago?

You have to realize that the deer population has grown over the past ten years, the wolf population is going to grow right along with them. If the deer population is on the decline you can bet the wolf population will soon follow. I am really not the least bit worried about it, I actually think its kind of funny all these people are panicing over wolves in their area, maybe their will understand what some of us in Northern MN have been hunting with forever.

Why do you accuse others with differing views of being alarmists? I am not alarmed. Have I advocated getting rid of wolves? I would not be so quick to write off locals who live in an area where the deer herds are being depleted. Try to learn the facts then you can debate intelligently instead of labeling others to put them down. That way we can all share knowledge and learn.

[bogwalker]

Originally Posted By: PGE-Hound

^^^ Right ^^^ Its like the Fox and the Rabbit relationship. More rabbits and you'll have more fox. As the fox population grows you'll start to get less rabbits which overtime yields less fox. Then the rabbit population grows and everything starts over.

Thank you PGE Hound, that's what I would call some old fashion common sense. We could use some more of that around here.

Deer multiplying like rabbits. I like the sound of that.

[delcecchi]

I used to hunt deer in Pine County, east of Askov back in the late 60's. There were no wolves but there weren't hardly any deer either. So you can have a low deer population without help from wolves. DNR and winter can do it all by themselves.

[bogwalker]

Hey, You guys want to know what timber wolves do to black bear? Naw.

[BRULEDRIFTER]

Hey, You guys want to know what timber wolves do to black bear? Naw.

Well, considering the bear population continues to increase, especially in Northern WI, where wolf populations are also higher then ever, I would assume..... not much???

I suppose a few cubs or sick adults get taken out, but being bears can climb trees for safety, I can't imagine wolves doing them a lot, if any damage.

I have heard, however, that the bears are doing a bit of damage to the deer populations... and there's also been quite a few people attacked and even killed by bears in recent years. So in light of this, where's the uproar and fear-mongering about the Big, Bad Bears? Why aren't those of you who scream for the wolf's head also screaming for the bear's head? They're much more of a threat to humans then wolves, and they aren't exactly leaving our precious deer alone... Let's kill all the bears too, eh?

[bogwalker]

A little high on the stress meter eh?

[picksbigwagon]

I am hunting public ground in northern MN for the first time. I’ve heard the predators are doing a number on the deer up there. Is that true? What is the greatest threat to the deer herd in Northern MN?

well, I think this topic has run it's course....MarkK76, I hope your question was answered....this has broken down to arguing and I am shutting it down.