Technology opens window on moose lives and deaths

[Musky Buck]

Boy am I happy the wolves have found my ground west of New York Mills, couldn't be happier. Nothing like seeing 40 deer come out of the swamp on a dead run in -40 wind chills at high noon, they love doing that, good exercise I guess, makes for tougher meat next fall and relocating to a new wintering ground they like that. No Quota wolves south of US HWY 10 already cmon enough federal trappers already etc. What a waste of your tax dollars, bought the shirt get the wolf out of farm country, sure the moose would beg to differ.

[Mo Gator]

Charliepete, you are right, I don't have specific study to show the increase in wolves in MN... But who does? I think it is ridiculous that the DNR thinks and publishes that there are only 2,200 wolves in this state. I think there are way more, maybe around 5,000 in the state. There are way more wolves in MN than there were 10-20 years ago. I think anyone who runs trail cams in the woods of northern MN would agree because they have the evidence to prove the increase in sightings like I do. My personal experience is isolated to a certain area of NE MN by Orr, but friends and family who hunt in other areas are experiencing the same thing.

I think it's obvious that wolves are the reason for the moose decline, but maybe I'm just too narrow minded to see the big picture...

[Bear55]

Mo Gator, where are you getting your figures for quoting a 'sharp rise' in the Wolf population? Is it just off of your own gut feel from the base of experience you have personally? I am more inclined to look at figures from trained biologists that are actually performing studies. The DNR has been running studies for quite some time and you can find a link to it on their HSOforum. They are quoting a population change from 1521 in 1989 to 2211 in 2013. That is not what I would call a 'sharp rise' especially when you consider they have expanded their home range in that time (it's not like there are a ton more wolves on a ground that only used to hold a few).

Personally lots of the areas I hunt and fish have always had wolves in large enough numbers for me to know they were there. I have been taking a Walleye fishing trip to the BWCA to the exact same area for the last 25 years over the same week in the spring. Hearing wolves howl at night is commonplace and so were moose sightings. It's been 10 years since I saw a moose

That is the problem, the DNR is really just guessing what the population is based on some population models they draw up. They don't know for sure how many deer or moose or wolves are out there and they have no clue how accurate their models really are.

I think they are doing the best they can but I suspect that most wildlife population fluctuate a lot more than the ever constant DNR population estimates.

[leech~~]

That is the problem, the DNR is really just guessing what the population is based on some population models they draw up. They don't know for sure how many deer or moose or wolves are out there and they have no clue how accurate their models really are.

I think they are doing the best they can but I suspect that most wildlife population fluctuate a lot more than the ever constant DNR population estimates.

I think they do a lot of their population models by doing winter fly overs and try and get a per mile count from there. I'm sure they can't hit ever grid mile of this state how ever.

[walleye18]

I think we all agree that the wolves are a dynamic to the wildlife here in MN. I for one am glad that they are here.

But....there comes a time when the data (this study) and the data (live stock producers losing animlas to the wolves) and the data (trail cams pictures throughout MN/deer population reductions) suggests that the wolf population is too high and wreaking havoc on wildlife in the state. Time to reduce the wolf population a little.

Am I saying the wolf is the culprit and quilty party to it all..No. But it is a BIG piece to the puzzle.