WHITNEY ROYSTER Star-Tribune environmental reporter | Posted: Saturday, July 3, 2004 12:00 am
JACKSON - A federal wolf manager told a standing-room-only crowd Thursday that this is a difficult time for people who enjoy wolves because the animal is moving from recovery mode to management.
Mike Jimenez, Wyoming wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said management - meaning, largely, the killing of wolves - is the next step in successful reintroduction.
"It's a hard thing to go from wolf recovery to wolf management because some people don't want to think about harvesting," Jimenez told a crowd of more than 100 at the AMK Ranch in Grand Teton National Park. "We're out of habitat outside the park that doesn't have conflicts."
Jimenez spoke as part of the AMK Ranch's summer series presenting natural resource speakers. Liz Bradley and Jon Trapp, post-graduate researchers, also spoke.
Jimenez's talk addressed the political side of wolf reintroduction, while Bradley and Trapp outlined research projects they had completed.
Jimenez said the tide for Wyoming is good or bad, depending on perspective.
"If you like wolves, the good news is, we have wolves," he said. "If you don't like wolves, the bad news is, we have wolves."
The crowd was mostly tourists, so Jimenez tailored his talk to what Wyoming people generally know, that there are about 250 wolves in the state, and they are looking to be delisted from the Endangered Species Act once Wyoming has a state management plan.
Martha Pittard of Jackson said she came to the talk because she loves hearing about wolves.
"It's interesting, their behavior," she said. "I've been fortunate enough to see five wolves, two up close. I'm fascinated with how they treat each other."
Jimenez answered questions, some of which surrounded wolves' relationship to elk.
He said wolf predation on elk is "situational," and in some places it occurs more than others.
Wolf impact on elk calves is "of real concern," Jimenez said. He said successful state management plans will balance the number of wolves with elk numbers, to ensure both species' viability.
In her research, Bradley studied wolf and livestock conflicts and found, in part, that wolves kill livestock in areas of elk populations.
She also said wolf packs that kill cattle have a high probability of killing again. Of packs where some wolves were removed after killing livestock, 68 percent of packs killed again. Those repeat attacks usually occurred about 250 days after the removal.
Bradley said this information is important because it may show that partial pack removal can get ranchers through grazing seasons.
Her research was conducted primarily in Montana and Idaho, because Wyoming's cattle herds are typically on open range.
She also said wolves kill more livestock if dens are in the vicinity of cows and sheep. Plugging dens in those areas is one way to reduce conflicts, Bradley said.
Trapp said dens are typically in places of dense cover, and are often close to water.