Colorado AG to Wildlife Commission: Create West Slope panel on wolf reintroduction

From The Daily Sentinel in Grand Junction, Colorado:

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser is urging the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to do a lot more than just include Western Slope residents in public hearings over reintroduction of the gray wolf.

Because that reintroduction is to happen on the Western Slope only, Weiser also wants the commission to create a special advisory panel made up solely of Western Slope elected officials to ensure people west of the Continental Divide have an appreciable say in what happens next.

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Washington state: New gray wolf pack formed in Okanogan County

From the Methow Valley News in Washington:

Washington’s wolf population grew by 22% in 2020, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) reported in its annual wolf count, released this month, marking 12 straight years of growth in the population.

The WDFW documented four new packs in 2020, including one in Okanogan County — the Navarre Pack, which was spotted in southwest Okanogan County south of territory occupied by the established Lookout Pack.

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Group asks US to cut funding to Idaho over wolf-killing bill

From the Associated Press and the Star Tribune in Minnesota:

BOISE, Idaho — A conservation group is asking the U.S. government to cut off millions of dollars to Idaho that is used to improve wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation opportunities because of legislation that could lead to 90% of the state’s wolves being killed.

The Center for Biological Diversity sent a letter Monday to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, saying states may be deemed ineligible to receive federal wildlife restoration money if states approve legislation contrary to that goal.

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Wyoming: Gray wolf population grows outside trophy-game area

From the Sublette Examiner in Pinedale, Wyoming:

SUBLETTE COUNTY – Gray wolves across Wyoming at the end of 2020 showed growth compared to the year before with higher estimates outside of the state’s trophy-game area.

The 2020 annual report “Wyoming Gray Wolf Monitoring and Management” was posted last week on the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s website.

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Critics say Idaho bill would kill 90% of wolves. Hunters, wildlife experts have other worries

From The Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington:

BOISE – “We need to talk about what’s happening in Idaho,” announces Wren Woodson, her face greenscreened over an image of a wolf in snow.

Woodson, who describes herself on TikTok as a Wisconsin-based “journalist & wildlife enthusiast,” has gone viral on the social media platform with a video posted earlier this week, captioned “Idaho’s Wolf Killing Bill.” In the short video, which has been watched more than 250,000 times, Woodson points to headlines from The New York Times and The Associated Press as she tells viewers that Idaho plans to kill 90% of its wolf population.

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Colorado: CU Boulder lecture to discuss gray wolf, coyote reintroduction

From the Daily Camera in Boulder, Colorado:

A University of Colorado Boulder professor will discuss the impacts of eradicating and reintroducing predators like coyotes and wolves from the American West as part of the upcoming CU on the Weekend lecture series.

Professor Joanna Lambert has long studied the ecological impact of removing predators from ecosystems, and she and other Coloradans will soon get a front row seat to see what happens when they are reintroduced — voters in November narrowly approved a ballot measure to reintroduce gray wolves to the state by 2024. Lambert was also involved as a science advisor on the ballot initiative to reintroduce wolves in Colorado.

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Oregon: Ranchers get grants for nonlethal methods to protect livestock from wolves

From The Bulletin in central Oregon:

LA GRANDE — Two ranching operations in Union County received more than $17,000 total for nonlethal means to protect their livestock from wolves.

The Union County Commission voted Thursday, Jan. 21, to award $9,584.04 to Krebs Livestock and $7,745.96 to Eric Harlow, according to a county staff report.

Krebs Livestock, a company in Morrow County that uses Union County to raise some of its sheep, will use the money to pay for secure night pens, four fox lights, Bluetooth speakers, spotlights, additional herders and the removal of dead livestock. Harlow, a Union County rancher, will use the funding to pay for two additional herders.

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Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission approves three-year wolf introduction plan

From The Herald Times in Colorado:

Last week’s Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission (Commission) virtual meeting included six hours of presentation, discussion, and comments on the process of wolf introduction. Many eyes and ears were fully focused on them. The voters of Colorado have spoken and forced introduction of wolves will occur in Colorado. The question is how, where, and when.

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Mange in Yellowstone wolves reveals insights into human scabies and conservation biology

From Princeton University:

Before wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park in the mid-1990s, they were vaccinated for common diseases and treated for any parasite infections they already carried. As a result, the first few generations of wolves were relatively disease-free, but over the years, various diseases have found their way into the population.

Sarcoptic mange, caused by the microscopic mite Sarcoptes scabiei, first crawled its way into the reintroduced Yellowstone wolves in 2007. Mange is characterized by itchy skin lesions and hair loss, but there is huge variation between individuals in terms of how sick wolves actually become — some experience mild mange symptoms and are able to clear the mites within a few months, while others experience massive hair loss, emaciation and secondary bacterial infections, and eventually die of the disease.

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Wisconsin DNR board refuses to set early wolf hunt

From the Daily Jefferson County Union:

MADISON — The state Department of Natural Resources policy board narrowly refused Republican legislators’ request Friday to implement a wolf hunt immediately, citing concerns that the department can’t move that fast and Wisconsin’s Native American tribes haven’t been consulted as per treaty rights.

The decision marks a setback for farmers who say they’ve been struggling with wolves preying on their livestock for years. Ryan Klussendorf, a Medford dairy farmer, told the board before it made its decision that wolves have been preying on his livestock for a decade and have started stalking children at bus stops. He said he’s tired of listening to people from urban settings like Madison and Milwaukee talk about wolves’ beauty and the harmony of nature while he’s living a “daily nightmare.”

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