wolves

[fishinjosh98]

i once heard a man was attackes by a pack of wolves he grabbed his .357 and killed them all the got a phone call and got fined $2000

[picksbigwagon]

I doubt this ever happened

[jeffreyd]

I doubt it also as the ESA says that while these animals are protected, there is some guidance for self defense. Now if one animal attacked and he took it upon himself to kill the rest of the pack for the sake of it then he may have gotten a fine, but would imagine he would also be doing some jail time and it would be a felony. A bit more info would be nice, but I am with picks on this one.

[reinhard1]

this would of never happened. total imagination. a pack of wolves right. how many were in the pack. must of been a six pac.

[croixflats]

[reinhard1]

ok, so i'm mr. lucidity. for those who dont know what the word lucidity means-clear minded and rational. in a pinch? this story sound rational to you? i am not a wolf expert but i have had my experiences with them. on a deer stand and on foot. it is rare that a wolf or pac would attack a human. one example is that i was fishing on wolf lake in st. louis co. it was 28 below and snowing. i saw what i thought was a group of deer enter the lake which later was determined to be a pac of wolves by my brothers police friends. we clapped our hands and yelled and they went away. say they attacked us and i was there with a 357 with 6 shots. i would kill them all and then call the dnr and be fined $2000 bucks. first of all i would have to be a great shot while all 6 wolves attacked me and my friends. this story is so rediculus no outdoorsman with any experience with wolves would believe this made up story. personaly i dont have little friends. good luck. for your benifit i am not on the political thread.

[croixflats]

I wasn't trying to be smart, I just got kick out of the six pack comment and the image of a wolf drinking beer entered my head.

I think you confused my signature with my post. My signature kind of explains how I went from a six pack to a wolf drinking beer.

For "in a pinch" you would have to seen the TV series "The Tick" to understand. Hillarious show based on an animated cartoon.

[reinhard1]

i appologize. i totaly missunderstood your whole post. i have had many experiences with wolves. in my younger years in the duluth area i practicly lived in the woods. the whole arrowhead area. i have known many people who told me of their experiences with wolves and nature. when i returned from the military i went back between work and the outdoors. then i settled down and got married to the most wonderfull woman in the world. she also loves the outdoors and now we share that love with our kids and grandkids. i'm leaving a lot out here but when i saw that post i knew it was not real and i guess i made a bigger deal out of it than it was. so i will leave it up to others to determine truth vs reality. so i'm sorry i missunderstood your post and my poor spelling. good luck.

[croixflats]

Thats ok, its how this internet thing goes sometimes.

It is very intresting hear about your experiences up there and nice to see a differant perspective than the big bad wolf view.

As for your spelling I have not noticed. Its what is said thats important.

[mrklean]

doubtful

[Ralph Wiggum]

Was it Bill Brasky?

[jeffreyd]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, August 3, 2010, Washington, D.C.

Contact: Ryan Benson [email protected]

1-801-870-5307 (private number)

[Note from admin: Please read forum policy before posting again. Thank you.]

BIG GAME FOREVER LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO REMOVE WOLVES FROM THE ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST

As a judge in Montana considers whether to permit Montana and Idaho to continue hunts to manage mushrooming wolf populations that have decimated big game herds, Defenders of Wildlife has sought to triple the number of wolves in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming and the Center for Biological Diversity has petitioned Interior Secretary Salazar and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to provide for expansion of wolf populations across the entire United States.

In response to these actions and the strong grassroots desire of sportsmen, outfitters, ranchers, and many others all across the US to insure that wolves are de-listed from the Endangered Species List and managed by all states where they are found, Big Game Forever, a political action arm of nationally-respected organization Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, has drafted legislation to remove wolves from the Endangered Species List. Big Game Forever is now working with a growing number of Congressmen and Senators to have the bill introduced early in 2011. The bill will allow needed wolf management measures to stop the decline of some of the West’s and upper Midwest’s most important herds of elk, moose and deer and help rebuild those herds.

“The decision to remove wolves, one of North America’s most abundant and successful predators, from the endangered species list by both the Bush and Obama administrations will not be respected by animal rights and a handful of environmental groups, even though excessive predation on big game has caused at least $100 million damage to the economies of states where wolves are found,” says Ryan Benson, National Director for Big Game Forever.

“Wolves are being exploited in an attempt to remove the rights of sportsmen to have access to and use of renewable wildlife resources. Notwithstanding the experimental nature of wolf reintroductions and repeated declarations that wolf populations have expanded far beyond recovery objectives, these groups continue to make millions of dollars suing the federal government on technicalities within the Endangered Species Act. It has become clear that there will be no end to the litigation despite the unprecedented damage to wildlife, surplus killing of livestock, and attacks on pets and guard dogs in the West and Upper Midwest. Ultimately those most affected by the ongoing litigation continue to be Sportsmen and wildlife, including the very wolves the anti-sporting groups proclaim to protect,” Benson says.

The federal government is currently spending $3.7 million dollars yearly to remove problem wolves that kill domestic livestock in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. This is money that should be used for wildlife conservation, including restoration of elk, moose, wild sheep and deer that have been decimated by rapidly-expanding wolf populations in many areas, Big Game Forever asserts.

The proposed legislation will provide assurances of agreed upon wolf population numbers in states where experimental reintroductions have reached sustainable populations spelled out in original enabling mandates. “State wildlife managers can either manage for abundance or scarcity,” explains Benson. “In the last 10 years, sportsmen have contributed $20 Billion in federal wildlife funding in an attempt to restore healthy big game populations and waterfowl populations. In addition to federal funding, State wildlife agencies, which are largely if not exclusively funded by sportsmen’s dollars, spend hundreds of millions annually in the West to restore and protect habitat, and manage wildlife populations.”

“Sportsmen have worked tirelessly and put their money where their mouth is in an effort to restore healthy wildlife herds to the West,” says Don Peay founder of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife . “Decades-long recovery efforts by states and sportsmen’s groups are being erased in herd after herd. We will not stand by and watch our efforts wasted by an anti-management agenda that has proved to be a failure for elk, moose and even the wolves they proclaim to protect.” Congressional intervention provides a mechanism to ensure that states can fulfill their mandate to manage all wildlife populations for the use of its citizens. Benson explains, “Wolves are here to stay. The same state agencies that successfully manage balanced numbers of mountain lions, bears and other large predators are well-positioned to maintain balanced numbers of gray wolves while protecting abundant prey populations.”

To document the groundswell of support for wolf de-listing, Big game Forever has launched an online petition at [Note from admin: Please read forum policy before posting again. Thank you.]

that has already drawn thousands of signers. Some of the early supporters of the petition include entertainer Jeff Foxworthy, former NBA all-star player Karl Malone, Hall of Fame baseball player Wade Boggs, President of Hoyt Archery Randy Walk, Randy and Coni Brooks of Barnes Bullets, and David Allen, CEO of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

ABOUT BIG GAME FOREVER.org

For the last 15 years, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife has endeavored to restore abundant wildlife populations in the West. SFW has worked tirelessly to reintroduce Bison, Big Horn Sheep, Elk and Mountain Goats to their original habitat while also putting millions of dollars on the ground across the West to restore almost 1,000,000 acres of habitat. Big Game Forever was created in 2010 to facilitate political action. Big Game Forever and Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife believe that protecting the western way of life can only be accomplished through the involvement of American Sportsmen in the political and legal process.

[mrklean]

let the enviromental people worry about the oil and let the fish and game people in each state worry about the wolves, we need that passed

[croixflats]

Quote:

“Wolves are being exploited in an attempt to remove the rights of sportsmen to have access to and use of renewable wildlife resources.

LOL. Sorry, after a statement like that the author lost my attention. Makes me almost want to defend the activist groups. Talk about a paranoia. Yep these groups want the wolf to run wild and kill all the sporting animals just to mess with the hunter.

These groups out there with there good intentions are no better than the ones they opposed. The only difference is they use the sportsman as a tool to get what they want.

How about putting forth actual studies that are not regurgitated from a special interest group with their own spin on it.

I maybe way off base here but that statement really p****d me off.

[Jackpine Rob]

While the language may sound inflammatory Croix, the basic concept is well-known and well-understood in resource management circles. The current cause celebre in many states is the lynx, and like the wolf has been utilized as a club and/or shield in all sorts of lawsuits.

Don't like a current forest management plan? Sue because wolves will be harmed.

Don't like a logging sale? Sue because it might impact lynx.

Don't like trapping? Sue the MN DNR to change the rules to "save" lynx.

Don't like the location of an ATV/Snowmobile trail? Well, you get the idea.

Everyone who follows such things understands that this is part of the current dynamic in resource management.

The author of the article is making a longer stretch - but one that is not altogether without some foundation. There is a fringe element of the enviro-whacks who advocate for something called "re-wilding". Check it out. Then think about the "re-wilding" in context with the recent calls to introduce wolves all over the map. Coincidence?

[croixflats]

I get what the point is and the battle cry over the activist on the other side. What comes down to its a battle cry and typical political talking points against a group in order to fire things up.

How about an article actually explaining why these law suites are successfully affecting the delisting of the wolf with out the the battle cry commentary, I would be realy interested in that. Pin point that reason and combat it from that angle rather than focusing on its us against them banter.

It almost sounds like a congressional race and we know what kind of info and credibility we get from that.

[BLACKJACK]

troll.

[Wallydog]

Tags for sale here!

181 whacked of a 220 quota last season.

WD

[mrklean]

we can only hope the tags will go for sale here

[Wallydog]

Well we are back to square one!

WD

[jeffreyd]

Rocky Mountain Wolves Back on Endangered Species List

Federal Judge Rules Against FWS and State Management

8/11/10

The Northern Rocky Mountain wolves are again listed as Endangered Species after a recent federal court ruling, thus stopping management plans that included hunting seasons in Idaho and Montana.

On August 5, Judge Donald W. Molloy of the Federal District Court for Montana ruled that the wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains are to be placed back on the list. The region includes all of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Unless the decision is reversed, it will prevent Idaho and Montana from moving forward with their planned hunts as reported earlier by the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA).

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) had previously removed the Northern Rocky Mountain wolves from Endangered Species Act (ESA) protection in Montana and Idaho, due to populations exceeding the recovery goals and federally approved state management plans being in place.

Idaho and Montana were considered to have adequate protections for the wolf population under their plans. However, the FWS did not find Wyoming’s management plan acceptable and decided to retain ESA protections for wolves in that state.

It was this “carve out” of Wyoming that opened the door for Judge Molloy’s ruling. After the final rule for delisting the Northern Rocky Mountain wolves came into effect, a coalition of animal rights groups sued the FWS, asserting that under the ESA either all wolves in a region are delisted or none can be. Judge Molloy agreed with the position taken by the antis.

State officials in Idaho and Montana have indicated that they will appeal Judge Molloy’s decision and will work with Wyoming to modify its management plan in a way that will allow FWS to also delist the wolves in that state as well.

Meanwhile, the USSA and a coalition of groups have joined the Departments of Natural Resources in Minnesota and Wisconsin in filing petitions with the FWS seeking the delisting of the Western Great Lakes wolves. That wolf population resides in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. There are no “carve outs” similar to the Wyoming situation envisioned for the Great Lakes region.

The groups joining the USSA include: Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, Dairyland Committee of Safari Club International Chapters of Wisconsin, National Wild Turkey Federation of Wisconsin, Whitetails of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Firearms Owners, Ranges, Clubs and Educators Inc.