Conservation news snapshot October 2002

USA - Missoula
A taxidermist is facing a prison sentence of up to a year and a heavy fine as well for killing two wolves. Wayne Rose pleaded guilty in Missoula federal court to charges that he illegally shot two wolves - an endangered species - in December 2001 in a place called Big Hole Valley. He is due for sentencing in mid September. According to federal court documents, one of the wolves was found by a federal wolf biologist, on Feb. 7 in a pasture about five miles north of U.S. Highway 43 on the Upper North Fork Road in the Big Hole. The wolf was located by the radio collar it was still wearing. The body of the second wolf was recovered on March 10'th by search dogs and game wardens. Rose admitted shooting both animals but claimed that he thought they were coyotes. The gun he used to kill them was found by law enforcement officers buried in a septic tank at Rose's home.

USA - Arizona
Another whole new wolf pack has been released in Arizona. Nine Mexican gray wolves have been transported to Arizona's Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest from a New Mexico wildlife refuge. The pack was placed in a soft mesh release pen about 15 miles southwest of Alpine in eastern Arizona. The 'Bluestem' Pack, as it has been named, includes an alpha pair, a 2-year-old male and female and five pups. The name 'Bluestem' comes from the native bluestem grasses found in the area. The wolves are part of a federal reintroduction program that started in 1998 on the Arizona-New Mexico border. Since that time, 11 packs consisting of about 65 wolves have been released in the area although a few have since died from a variety of causes - roadkill, illegal shooting - and some have been relocated after attacking livestock. The Mexican grey wolf is one of the most endangered of all the sub-species and on 30'th July, four died when a bush fire in Southern California reached the Californian Wolf Center - where 31 of the animals are kept for breeding. Volunteers and firefighters were praised by the staff at the centre for their valiant efforts while risking their lives to save the remaining animals.

USA - Yellowstone
As of mid June the situation is looking good. Almost all of the packs in the park have had litters of cubs and the population is stable overall. The Druid Peak pack has had two litters totalling 8 cubs in two separate dens. The alpha pair are known to be the parents of the larger of the two litters but the parents of the smaller one have not been determined. A number of new packs have been formed or stabilised from previous groupings, some by animals dispersing from the existing ones. Among these are the Agate Creek pack, formed by a dispersing Nez Perce male and a female from an unnamed group. There is also a group with 6 cubs which will probably be called the Geode Creek Pack.

Since the re-introduction of wolves to the park the balance of flora and fauna has slowly shifted toward stable, sustainable populations of the plants and creatures that should be there. although elk numbers are still thought to be much too high. Norman Bishop, greater Yellowstone representative, claims that wolf recovery in the park has been a great investment in biodiversity, and has assisted the survival of other endangered and threatened species. He sees wolves as a "keystone species", initiating a series of food-web cascades which reduce coyote numbers and open up new feeding opportunities which improve the balance of populations of red foxes, ravens, eagles and some of the rarer scavengers. The net result of a properly balanced animal population is a decrease in pressure on various plants and trees such as aspen and willow.

Sweden
In late June a wolf managed to kill 5 calves inside a fenced paddock and officials of the government organisation Naturvårdsverket ( Nature management ) took the unusual step of authorising a hunt for it. The hunting permission was subsequently extended to October although it is thought that in Sweden it may only be legal to shoot the animal at all whilst it is actually in the process of attacking livestock. We have heard no more about this.

Scotland
The last wild wolf in Britain was shot in 1762, reputedly at a place called Pait nam Madadh (Wolf's Hill) in Scotland. In June, millionaire landowner Paul van Vlissingen who owns a 32,000 hectare estate at Letterewe, called for both wolves and lynx to be re-introduced there to help control the increasing red deer population. Red deer cause major damage both to existing forestry and new plantations and stalking and culling on their own have proved ineffectual in controlling their numbers. Mr. Vlissingen proposes dividing Scotland into a number of administrative zones in which various combinations of wolves, deer and management techniques for both could possibly succeed in re-establishing wolves in the wild. The study which Mr. Vlissingen commissioned has been made available to MSPs, Scottish Natural Heritage, the Deer Commission for Scotland and several deer management groups.

Norway
At the end of June, permission was granted to kill two of Norways remaining 13 wolves in Øyer and Ringebu municipalies just south of the municipality in northern Gudbrandsdalen. Farmers claimed that it was "possible" that the two wolves had killed 12 lambs. The farmers have for some time been in dialogue with the authorities in an attempt to find ways reduce sheep losses but every official proposal except extermination of the wolves has fallen upon deaf ears. Norway's sheep farmers have made it plain that they will accept nothing less than the total eradication of all wolves, bears, lynx and wolverines from the country and the government seems to be unwilling or unable to oppose their demands.

An article in BBC wildlife magazine published in summer was highly critical of Norway's management of their wolf population and it was hoped that such direct criticism from a nation which the Norwegians regard as good friends might help to improve the situation. It has to be said though that other than the removal of County Officials' rights to authorise wolf hunts, little improvement seems to be in sight. Rather, the killing of Norway's pitiful remnant of a wolf population has continued remorselessly.

During the summer in Akershus, three radio-collared Alpha male wolves 'disappeared' - presumed illegally killed by a hunter with a radio tracking rig. Two of these were from the "Moss" and "Kongsvinger/Aarjang" packs which inhabit the regions of Follo, Nes and Aurskog/Hoeland. At the end of August another spate of killings erupted with a wolf being shot on the Swedish border by a pig farmer and another two being shot in Hedmark. One of these escaped, wounded and police in the area have brought in trackers to help locate it.

A Swedish researcher, Petter Wabakken has stated to Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) that Norway's actions are angering officials in Sweden and damaging the co-ordination of large carnivore conservation between the two countries. Sweden has taken its commitment to the Bern convention seriously and is allowing its wolf population to grow up to three times the original projections in order to compensate for the continuing decimation of the Norwegian wolves. Wabakken said that the indiscriminate killing of alpha wolves in Norway cases the break-up of packs and an increase in livestock depredation as lone-wolves attempt to feed on prey that does not require a whole pack to hunt.