Wolfseeker News 4/21/07 Date: Sat, 21 Apr 2007 23:28:24 -0500 (CDT) ------ Forwarded Message From: patmorris123 Reply-To: Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2007 02:01:57 -0000 To: Subject: [WolfseekerNews] Wolfseeker News 4/21/07 * Sundles sentenced for seeking to poison wolves (Reuters) * Wolf hearing stirs passionate debate (WY) * Feds respond to wolf lawsuit (MI) * Conservation Officer: Wolf Chased Cars (CA: MN) _________________________________________ Man sentenced for seeking to poison wolves Fri Apr 20, 2007 1:32AM BST By Laura Zuckerman SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - An outspoken critic of the U.S. government's push to restore wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains was sentenced on Thursday in U.S. District Court to six days in jail and banned from public lands for two years for trying to poison the protected species. Former Salmon, Idaho, resident Tim Sundles, 49, had pleaded guilty in November to planting tainted meatballs in the Salmon-Challis National Forest in central Idaho in 2004 with the aim of killing western gray wolves. The pesticide-laced meatballs instead killed a coyote, a fox and magpies and sickened pet dogs, according to court records. Sundles, a custom ammunition maker who moved to Montana last year, had publicly railed against the 1995 release of wolves into Idaho and Yellowstone National Park to re-establish an animal hunted and poisoned to near extinction. Sundles was considered a hero by wolf foes in Idaho, where the animal has provoked fierce debate. Many in the state say wolves pose a threat to livestock. In 2001, Sundles killed a wolf he said had attacked him and his wife while they were camping in the Idaho wilderness. "Wolves are the worst wildlife disaster in the history of managed wildlife. You have to kill the living daylights out of them," Sundles told Reuters during an interview in November. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in January proposed removing western gray wolves from the federal threatened and endangered species list because of their strong comeback in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. In the mid-1990s the U.S. government released 66 of the animals into the region's remote mountains. They now number approximately 1,300, according to estimates by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials. http://uk.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUKN1917138220070420? src=042007_1021_DOUBLEFEATURE_other_news _______________________________________________________ Wolf hearing stirs passionate debate By RUFFIN PREVOST Billings Gazette Saturday, April 21, 2007 CODY -- As the federal government finalizes plans to remove most of the region's wolves from the endangered species list, the final public hearing on the proposal featured passionate opinions on all sides of the issue. Approximately 600 people attended the hearing at the Cody Auditorium, with about 250 on hand earlier for a presentation and question-and-answer session led by Ed Bangs, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. While previous discussions about delisting wolves in Wyoming have focused largely on conflicts with ranchers, many of those from Cody who spoke were sportsmen who said elk populations were suffering from excessive wolf predation. Others, including many representing conservation groups, said elk are at or above target numbers for most areas in the state, and wolves serve a vital role in moving elk herds out of sensitive habitat areas like river bottoms. Hearing officer Lesley Travers, a consultant from Casper hired to manage the event, struggled at times to control the crowd. Many applauded comments favoring Wyoming's wolfe management plan, and jeered those who said wolves had little effect on elk herds. "I'm warning you, I will close the hearing," Travers said after one round of applause, a threat she repeated several times during the evening. "You'll have to forgive us," state Rep. Colin Simpson of Cody said with a wry smile. "The greatest theater we've had lately is these meetings on federal issues, so please give us one more chance." "We want the feds and pro-wolf groups to understand that these wolves are not making love to our big game herds, they're eating them," said Bob Carter of Cody. "Our moose are almost gone, our elk herds are being shredded," said Dick Bryan, vice chairman of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife. "The wolf has no predator except man. It's up to man to control this animal now." "This morning, we go out to check our calves and they have wolves in them," said Karla Gitlitz, owner of the 91 Ranch in Meeteetse. "We call the Wildlife Services people, and they tell us they're busy today." "I don't know any rancher that says it's OK to lose even one calf. We fight for our calves. We have them in our bathrooms when they're froze down, we doctor them when they're sick," Gitlitz said. Franz Camenzind, with the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, said that "if wolves are delisted, the Wyoming and Idaho management plans will lead to the unjustifiable slaughter of hundreds of wolves. "We have more to fear from loss of habitat to energy development than we do to predators," Camenzind said. Lisa Upson of Bozeman said a connected ecosystem between Yellowstone Park, Idaho and Canada was necessary to sustain any recovered wolf population. "In 2006, more cattle were stolen and poisoned than were killed by wolves," Upson said. "Wilderness without wolves is a half-baked cake," said Liz Howell, a founder of the Wyoming Wilderness Association. "Seeing and hearing wolves in the wild is an authentic experience that must be defended. Wolves should be managed as trophy game animals throughout the state," she said. Many expressed frustration over federal plans not only for wolves, but for managing several aspects of the great outdoors around Cody, including grizzly bears and access to Yellowstone National Park. "It's not the wolf, it's the bureaucrats," said Terry Tonn of Thermopolis. "They are people in command through government fiat who are telling us how we should run our lives." "I wish I'd had a crowd like this 10 years ago when we were trying to stop the wolf," said Jack Turnell, manager of the Pitchfork Ranch in Meeteetse. "Who saved the wildlife in Wyoming? The landowner did. Now you're telling us we're not smart enough to manage it? We can't do it with bureaucratic blundering, judges and politicians," he said. The Cody session was the seventh and last in a series of such hearings, and was held at the request of Rep. Barbara Cubin, R-Wyo., who said residents in the region should be heard on the issue. "I appreciate you being here and the chance to speak," said Joe Tilden of Cody. "The majority of the local meetings have been as far away from the wolf as possible," he said, referring to previous hearings in Cheyenne, Wyo.; Salt Lake City; Helena; Boise, Idaho; Pendleton, Ore.; and Spokane, Wash. Written comments are due May 9 and may be mailed to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wolf Delisting, 585 Shepard Way, Helena, MT 59601. http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/04/21/news/top_story /6916f5b9fdd51815872572c30012cc5e.txt _________________________________________ Feds respond to wolf lawsuit LANSING (AP) The federal government is satisfied that state agencies will protect gray wolves in the Great Lakes region from returning to the point of extinction, an official said Tuesday in response to a lawsuit. Three environmentalist groups sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service over its decision in March to remove wolves in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin from the endangered species list, turning management responsibilities over to the states and Indian tribes. Georgia Parham, a spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the agency had not reviewed the suit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. But she said the service had acted only after studying state management plans to ensure they would keep wolf numbers at sustainable levels. The federal agency is required to monitor the states' management for at least five years and can return the wolf to the federal endangered list ``if it ever came to the point where there was a question about their future viability,'' Parham said. The lawsuit was filed by The Humane Society of the United States, Help Our Wolves Live, and the Animal Protection Institute. Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of litigation for the Humane Society, said the state plans were inadequate and could lead to hunting, trapping and significant reductions in wolf numbers. ``Under state management, the species declined almost to extinction,'' he said. The wolf was placed on the federal endangered list in 1974. Minnesota now has 3,020 wolves. Nearly 1,000 more live in Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula. The U.P.'s latest census turned up more than 430 wolves. http://www.miningjournal.net/stories/articles.asp?articleID=13952 _____________________________________________ Conservation Officer: Wolf Chased Cars Associated Press Associated Press April 19, 2007 When conservation officer Steve Peterson got a call that a timber wolf was chasing vehicles on a country road near Brimson, he thought it was prank or a misidentified German shepherd. But then he saw it firsthand. 'I couldn't believe it. It was like a dog chasing cars,' Peterson said. 'It looked like a big, healthy male wolf. No mange.' Responding to the call last Friday, Peterson saw the animal hide in the ditch as a pickup approached and then come bounding out to chase it. The wolf did the same when Peterson drove to that spot, where he stopped his vehicle. 'He hung around for a minute or 90 seconds and then walked off. I haven't heard any more reports since then,' Peterson said. 'I don't know if it was protecting some food or what. I've never seen anything like it. I've seen turkeys and ducks and geese chase after people's cars, but never a wolf before.' Roughly 3,000 wolves live in northern Minnesota. Usually, wolves stay away from people and vehicles. http://www.secretdogconspiracy.com/1/Wolf%20Hybrid_.php?gclid=CPGwy- ee1YsCFQR1ZQodf24yag ______________________________________________