Why Washington’s wolf count is under scrutiny

Fr0m Spokane Public Radio:

With a controversial vote planned next week on whether to loosen protections for wolves in Washington, wildlife advocates are raising alarm that officials could be relying on flawed wolf count figures from a tribe in the northeast corner of the state.

Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission members have been told by agency staff that wolves have made an impressive recovery — to the point that their “endangered” status is no longer required. The state’s latest population report recorded an increase of 44 wolves last year, the largest in state history.

 

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Animal welfare and conservation groups sue to put gray wolves on the Endangered Species List

From Wyoming Public Media:

Animal welfare and conservation groups are suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to get gray wolves back on the Endangered Species List. This comes as the Cowboy State is thinking about changing how it manages predatory animals.

Animal Wellness Action, the Center for a Humane Economy and Project Coyote are among the groups suing the federal government. They say states like Wyoming liberalized the legal killings of wolves, which is why they must be protected.

 

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Wolves’ return has had only small impact on deer populations in Washington state, study shows

From Phys.org:

Humans drove wolves to extinction in Washington state around the 1930s. Thanks to conservation efforts, by about 80 years later, wolves had returned—crossing first from the Canadian border into Washington around 2008 and later entering the state from Idaho. Since then, wolf numbers in Washington have been steadily growing, raising questions about what the return of this large predator species means for ecosystems and people alike.

 

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Groups sue to restore endangered species protection for US northern Rockies wolves

From AP News:

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Six conservation groups have filed a lawsuit challenging a recent federal government decision not to protect wolves in the northern U.S. Rocky Mountain region under the Endangered Species Act, arguing that states are exercising too much leeway to keep the predators’ numbers to a minimum.

The groups sued the U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the directors of those agencies July 2 in U.S. District Court in Missoula, Montana.

 

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EU Top Court Rules Against Austria Wolf Hunting

From Barron’s:

The European Union’s top court ruled Thursday that Austria had no right to hunt wolves, after activists contested killings of the protected species in the Alpine nation.

Several regions of Austria started to allow wolves to be killed last year after reporting that the animals were increasingly attacking livestock.

Environmental groups brought a case to court in Austria’s Tyrol province, arguing that hunting wolves violated an EU directive adopted in 1992 protecting the animals.

 

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Wolves’ return has had only small impact on deer populations in NE Washington, study shows

From Newswise:

Newswise — Humans drove wolves to extinction in Washington state around the 1930s. Thanks to conservation efforts, by about 80 years later, wolves had returned — crossing first from the Canadian border into Washington around 2008 and later entering the state from Idaho. Since then, wolf numbers in Washington have been steadily growing, raising questions about what the return of this large predator species means for ecosystems and people alike.

In northeast Washington, where wolves have recovered most successfully, researchers from the University of Washington and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife tracked one of their primary prey — white-tailed deer — in part to see what impact wolf packs are having on deer populations. The answer? So far, wolves aren’t having as much of an impact on deer as other factors.

 

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Northeast Oregon community becomes hot spot for wolf kills

From Capital Press:

Wallowa County has become a hot spot of wolf activity in Northeast Oregon, with two-thirds of the state’s 39 confirmed livestock kills this year by the apex predator as of July 8.

The area around Lostine, Oregon, population 250, has 19 of Wallowa County’s 26 kills. Wolves are probably the cause of four additional livestock deaths near the small town, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

 

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How do wolves know if they are fighting or playing? New study reveals the answer lies in their facial expressions

From The Times of India:

Humans might have the most complex system of communicating, but other animals also have ways of giving cues. A new study in Animal Behaviour says that that wolves have subtle ways of speaking, through subtle facial clues that signal their intentions. The Non-verbal communication even helps maintain cohesion within the pack.

 

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Can wolf haters and wolf lovers talk without howling?

From MPR News:

For more than three decades, Peggy Callahan has talked to the public about wolves as founder and executive director of the Wildlife Science Center in Stacy, which has 81 captive wolves that are used for research and educational programs.

Over the years, Callahan has also learned to speak to the wolves. On a warm day earlier this summer, she cupped her hands around her mouth and unleashed a wolf-like howl, prompting a chorus of howls echoing in return.

 

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Hunters, wolf experts speak out on confirmed depredations on western edge of county

From Antigo Daily Journal:

ANTIGO — On April 1, Gus Ullman was collecting sap for maple syrup on his hunting land north of the Ackley Wildlife Area. His wife was following behind in a truck and maybe 100 yards away, out of sight but still in earshot, Ullman could hear their one-and-a-half year old springer spaniel, Rosco, happily bounding through the woods.

The next moment, Ullman realized Rosco was barking. Then he heard him yelp. Guessing he might have just run into a porcupine, he started calling him. He had been training Rosco to bird hunt for months, and so when he didn’t return, Ullman knew something was wrong, and went back to the vehicle to grab a pistol.

 

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