Conservation news snapshot Aug 2005

FRANCE:A lone wolf has been accused by farmers of killing 4 heifers and a calf during a single week.  This allegedly took place in the vicinity of Valdaine some 40km  north of Grenoble.  No proof has been provided that a wolf is responsible but farmers and hunters say 'all the signs point to a wolf attack'.  Permission was given to tranquilise the wolf but, when it could not be found, the authorities gave permission for it to be killed.  Conservation groups are now threatening to take France to the European court if the wolf is shot as the killing of wolves is illegal under the Berne Convention of 1979 and also an EU directive of 1992.

Wolves reappeared in France in 1992 as a result of natural migration from Italy and French farmers claim that wolves (officially numbered at 55 in France) killed 2,808 sheep in a year.  This equates to around 51 sheep per wolf.

French MPs representing farming communities are pressurising their government to allow wolves to be shot but the government is also under pressure from environmentalists and is also partially hamstrung by Eu legislation. The environmental lobby is being supported by the actress Brigitte Bardot who has called on the French government to ban wolf kills and to encourage the use of guard dogs.

ALASKA: A radio collared wolf, leader of the Toklat pack in Denali National Park was killed, legally, by a hunter because it had strayed beyond the park boundary. 

276 wolves have been shot by aerial gunners in various parts of the state during the hunting season.  The hunt objective had been 570 animals and this has led to acqusations that the state authorities are inflating the number of wolves within Alaska.

 

IDAHO: Motorists rounded a bend near Banner Summit and came across a wolf standing in the middle of the road and, beyond it, a man with a rifle.  The rifleman proceeded to shoot the wolf even though the car was in his line of sight.  Local police are investigating.

MID WEST: Research has demonstrated that wolf populations are increasing in Mitchigan, Wisconson and Minnesota.  There are now estimated to be 3800 wolves in the area with just over 3000 being in Minnesota where they live in 485 packs.  The population increase appears to be a result of an abundance of the wolves main prey - deer.  Unfortunately the wolves may be a victim of their own success as the federal government is now seeking  to reduce protection levels. 
 

MISSOURI: The Wild Canid Survival and Research Centre near St Louis has successfully artifically inseminated Mexican wolves resulting in 8 healthy cubs. This is believed to be the first time this process has been used on endangered wolves and is part of a programme aimed at restoring the Mexican wolf to the wild.
 

YELLOWSTONE: There are indications that wolves may have reached the limit of capacity in the park - 10 years after their reintroduction.  There are 16 packs within the park and there have been 17 interactions between packs during the course of one year.  One of these interactions resulted in the alpha male of the Geode pack being torn to pieces by wolves of another pack.  Park authorities are keeping a close eye on the situation but are delighted with the success of the reintroduction programme.

TURKEY: Television film cameramen shot footage of a wild wolf which had been caught by 11 men in Malazgirt and was then tortured and given to dogs who finally killed the unfortunate animal.   4 of the offenders were taken to court and fined 163 euros.  Environmental activists are angry at what they regard as a derisory punishment.