Wolf Removal Proposed in Clearwater Region

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission, in a unanimous vote, has approved a department proposal to remove up to 75 percent of the wolves in a portion of the Clearwater Region. The Commission met in Boise January 11-13, voting on the wolf issue on the last day of the meeting. Elk numbers in the Lolo elk management zone have been declining and are below management goals. Idaho Fish and Game biologists maintain that a significant part of the cause is wolf predation. "We're doing everything we can to exercise the authority we have under 10(j)," Commission Chairman Cameron Wheeler said. "We're pursuing this as quickly as we can." The 10(j) rule of the Endangered Species Act, revised in February 2005, allows the state to kill wolves if officials can show that wolves are having an unacceptable impact on wild ungulates. Planning this proposal began after the rule was changed about a year ago. Fish and Game biologists want to ask federal officials for permission to reduce wolf numbers in the Lolo zone, where they say wolves are having an unacceptable effect on cow elk survival. Overall, the growing wolf population has had little effect on the total statewide elk population, Fish and Game Director Steve Huffaker said recently. But in some areas elk are not doing well as a result of a combination of degraded habitat and natural mortality, including wolf predation. In the Lolo zone, elk numbers have been declining over the past decade and now are well below management goals. Fish and Game has adjusted hunting seasons, bag limits and tag costs to encourage hunters to reduce the numbers of black bears and mountain lions. The department also has restricted elk hunting, and land managers have launched efforts to improve habitat. But all that has not been enough, biologists say. The elk herd has continued to decline. "The elk population will continue to decline at the current level of cow elk survival and calf recruitment," Wildlife Bureau Chief Jim Unsworth said in a presentation to Fish and Game commissioners. Wolf predation is having a significant effect on female elk survival - especially adult females of reproductive age. And adult female mortality is the key factor that affects overall population trends, he said. Fish and Game biologists want to reduce the number of wolves in the Lolo elk zone by 75 percent. That means up to 43 wolves would be removed, using the current mid-point wolf population estimate of 58. There is an estimated minimum of 47 to 69 wolves in that area. Scientific research shows that to reduce the wolf population in an area requires a 40- to 75-percent mortality. Biologists then want to maintain the wolf population at 15 to 23 wolves for five years. During that time, they will monitor elk and wolf populations. After five years, the results of wolf removal on elk population trends would be assessed. The reduction in wolf numbers in the Lolo zone would not affect overall wolf recovery efforts, Unsworth said. But it may help increase elk numbers. About 140 adult female elk in the Lolo Zone have been radio-collared since 2002. Nearly one third of the animals that died, were killed by wolves, Unsworth said. Of 25 adult females killed by predators, eight were killed by wolves - two of them in 2004 and six in 2005. Those numbers closely match the predictions of a computer model for the entire elk population in the Lolo Zone. Wolves are not a significant predator of newborn elk calves. The causes of death of older calves are largely unknown. Biologists recently captured and radio-collared 50 six-month-old elk calves to study the cause of mortality. Wolves typically hunt older calves, six months or older. But many steps remain before the proposal is approved. The proposal still must be peer-reviewed and released for public comment before it is submitted for approval by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Fish and Game officials expect to have results of the peer reviews by Monday, January 16. They will incorporate any comments in the proposal before releasing it for public review and comment by the end of January. Fish and Game will allow two to three weeks for public comment, and expect to submit the proposal to the Fish and Wildlife Service about the end of February or the beginning of March. The Fish and Wildlife Service will make a final decision, but how long that will take is uncertain. The executive summary is available at the Idaho Fish and Game website http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/wildlife/wolves/elk_impacts_exec_sum.p…