Dietland Müller-Schwarze has studied beaver behavior for over 30 years and currently is Emeritus Professor of Environmental Biology at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, NY...............Today, he gives us all a primer on how Beavers go about defending their territories from others of their kind................"Beavers mark their territories by creating "mud mounds" and then squirting them with castoreum from glands near the base of their tales".............."Castoreum contains many different kinds of compounds: alkaloids, phenolics, terpenes, alcohols, and acids among them"............. "The beaver appropriates the ingredients from the plants it eats"............"Compounds from a number of trees in the beaver’s diet end up in their castoreum".............. "Benzyl alcohol occurs in aspens and poplars, benzoic acid in black cherry and scots pine, and catechol in common cottonwood"................ "In summer, beavers eat aquatic plants such as pondweed and pond lilies – the alkaloids that these plants use to deter insects also end up in the beaver’s mix"...................."So there rages a chemical arms race in the woods"................. "Trees bolster their defenses against herbivores, especially during the dormant season"............ "Beavers and other animals defeat these defenses by breaking down, detoxing, sequestering, and recycling potentially harmful compounds"

beaver
	Arms Race in the Woods: How Beavers Recycle Tree Defenses | The Outside Story | May 26th 2014 Source: northernwoodlands.org
Arms Race in the Woods: How Beavers Recycle Tree Defenses by Dietland Müller-Schwarze May 26th 2014 Outside Story 0 Comments Illustration by Adelaide Tyrol Around a beaver pond, we sometimes catch a whiff of beaver  odor. People  have described it to me as smoky, woody, or like tobacco. It may  waft over  from the lodge, or it might emanate from scent mounds – little piles of mud  by the water’s edge. Beavers make scent mounds by dredging up mud from  the bottom of a pond, then carrying it up on land in their front paws while walking upright. The beaver drops the mud, then squats over  the mound and applies castoreum from glands near the base of the tail. The smell means: keep away! In some neighborhoods, this territorial advertisement works remarkably well. I’ve been involved in  studies where human-made scent mounds effectively deterred free-ranging  beavers from  settling in unoccupied beaver habitat. When a beaver detects a foreign castor smell in its territory, it implies  brazen behavior that has to be dealt with. The residents invariably  eliminate the strange scent mark. They paw it apart and  scent mark over it. If they come across the perpetrator, they’ll attack viciously. Researchers have found that beavers can identify family  members  by their castor smell; they can also distinguish between  neighbors  and complete strangers. Castoreum contains many different kinds of compounds:  alkaloids,  phenolics, terpenes, alcohols, and acids among them. The beaver  appropriates the ingredients from the plants it eats; ironically, the plants use the compounds to say: keep away! Plants synthesize a bewildering variety of secondary  compounds that differ from the basic classes of proteins, fats, and  carbohydrates.  Some, like alkaloids, taste bitter, while tannins are  astringent. When they work, the compounds defend the plants  against mammal  and insect herbivores, as well as fungi and other  microorganisms. These secondary compounds interfere with digestion and inhibit  reproduction. Some are outright toxic and even deadly. Compounds from a number of trees in the beaver’s diet end  up in their castoreum. Benzyl alcohol occurs in aspens and  poplars, benzoic acid in black cherry and scots pine, and catechol in common cottonwood. In summer, beavers eat aquatic plants such as pondweed and pond lilies – the  alkaloids that these plants use to deter insects also end up in the beaver’s mix. Beavers cope with plant chemicals in different ways. They  have in their saliva a protein that binds tannins and renders them harmless. They deal with other compounds by breaking  them down into their component parts: when they ingest salicin – a bitter chemical in willow and poplar bark – the salicin molecule gets broken down into sugar and, eventually, salicylic  acid. (Beavers are not the only animals that have this trick – leaf beetles also ingest salicin when munching on willow leaves.  They use the glucose as a nutrient and the salicylic acid for defense against predators, such as ants.) Even humans appropriate beaver castor, though we use it to  say: come here! Castor sacs are a secondary product of the  fur trade and are sold to perfumers who use the castor to give perfumes an “animal note.” In fact, the chemical investigation of castoreum was driven by the perfume industry. We’re also not above recycling plant compounds for our own  purposes. Salicylic acid is the active principle of aspirin. Over two thousand years ago, physicians in ancient Greece prescribed willow bark to fight fevers and inflammation. Native Americans used willow bark against headaches,  and today we still treat pain of the lower back and osteoarthritis with willow bark preparations. And so there rages a chemical arms race in the woods. Trees bolster their defenses against herbivores, especially during the dormant season. Beavers and other animals defeat these defenses by breaking down, detoxing, sequestering, and recycling potentially harmful compounds.  Plotting their next move, trees will crank up their defenses.  Two- and three-year old aspen saplings are rich in  bitter-tasting salicin-like glycosides. Beavers avoid these and feed on larger, less bitter trees, allowing the  young trees to prevail. The race goes on and no one ever  wins. Each measure provokes a countermeasure. Dietland Müller-Schwarze has studied beaver  behavior for over 30 years and currently is  Emeritus Professor of Environmental Biology  at SUNY College of Environmental Science  and Forestry in Syracuse, NY.

In the Preface for “Coyote Stories,” by Mourning Dove, the author writes, “The Animal People were here first — before there were any real people. Coyote was the most important because, after he was put to work by the Spirit Chief, he did more than any of the others to make the world a good place in which to live …............ There were many times when he amused himself by getting into mischief and stirring up trouble …............ Coyote was a great one to play tricks, sometimes he is spoken of as 'Trick Person.'”..................And while Coyotes can stir up some "mischief", we human animals can encourage them to fulfill their ecological role as rodent eaters and keep them out of our yards by not being sloppy with our garbage disposal habits, monitoring our pets outdoor activities and through simultaneous hazing

http://www.today-magazine.com/people-events/coyote-spring/

A Coyote Spring

Posted by: Megan Pasche in People & Events 3 days ago 0 105 Views

As the seasons change, it’s of vital importance to keep residents up to date on wildlife behaviour. The more background we have, the better able we are to protect wildlife, their habitat and keep our families safe and in the know.

Choosing a mate, hunting, locating a den site and establishing a territory are just some of the activities that keep coyotes on the move during the spring months. Because of their natural course of activities, reports of coyote sightings increase during specific times of the year, including spring and fall. There are precautions can be taken that minimize conflict with wildlife and still celebrate their presence in our landscapes.

Coyotes are highly sociable and curious, and they are diligent and devoted parents. A coyote parent will consider a domestic dog a threat to their young pups if a family dog is allowed to chase, harass or disturb a coyote or den area. Respect coyote dens and never interfere with parents and their pups. A lone pup usually has a parent close by.

Keeping the community safe and wildlife protected is a collective undertaking and many partners are involved. Residents have a responsibility as well. By taking responsibility for our own safety by following pet leash by-laws and not providing food attractants to coyotes, we are able to keep our community members and surrounding wildlife safe. Most of the time, a coyote will run away if a human is in the vicinity.

Coyote Questions
Why are there coyotes in urban areas? 
The Eastern Coyote is an extremely intelligent, family oriented and highly adaptive species. Since the 17th century, the landscape of Ontario has vastly changed, pushing out the natural species – bears, wolves, cougars and so on – and making a vacuum in the ecosystem. Coyotes are easily able to navigate urban landscapes and have filled the hole created in the ecosystem. There are plenty of natural food sources provided in urban settings such as rodents and rabbits.

Can we relocate them, or keep them out? 
Though we see the city as separate from nature, it has a thriving ecosystem that includes not only ravines and parks but streets, backyards, industrial parks and construction sites. Relocating (or killing) coyotes is not recommended, difficult to accomplish and only a band-aid solution. Trapping a coyote and euthanizing it does not address the inherent issues in a community that create conflict such as feeding, improper garbage disposal and dogs off leash. Removing a coyote opens up the landscape for another coyote or two to move in filling nature’s vacancy. Much like birds, squirrels, raccoons and other animals, they have found a permanent home in urban areas. Coyotes are beneficial to the eco-system as well; they are Mother Nature’s cleanup crew and help keep populations of rodents under control. Relocation is a problem as well since wherever the coyote is relocated will already have established coyotes in the area, and territoriality can make survival very unlikely. Attempting to remove one coyote from an area can also separate a family unit, which can lead to a lack of critical education for young pups (as both male and female coyotes raise their pups together) and sadly even starvation.

How can I minimize attractants? 
There are several common things around homes that will often attract coyotes and other wildlife. To minimize these attractants, it is recommended that residents keep garbage, recycling and compost indoors until 6 am, keep meat and egg products separate from composting until it is set out, pick up and appropriately discard fallen fruit and berries, do not leave pet bowls outside, close off any access to the underside of decks or sheds, clean grills, leave no food outdoors and ensure cats are kept indoors. Dogs should be kept leashed and supervised, especially at night. Overflowing bird feeders attract prey species and potentially invite coyotes to visit too. Clean up underneath the bird feeder and avoid throwing seeds on the ground. Consider putting away your feeder and naturalizing the property with indigenous flora that will encourage wildlife. Predatory birds such as owls, hawks and eagles are also attracted to prey that frequent bird feeders which puts free roaming cats and small dogs at risk of predation by these species.

What is hazing? 
Hazing is a method of negative association – when a coyote (or other animal) is in an area we don’t want it hanging around in, like a backyard, scaring it away will make it less likely to return. By consistently doing this, they will be more likely to avoid that spot in the future. Hazing can include making loud noises (yelling, not screaming), waving arms, popping open an umbrella, shaking car keys, throwing objects near, but not at, the animal and chasing. It is also commonly referred to as ‘aversion conditioning’, or ‘escape conditioning’. Hazing is only effective in the long-term if it is coupled with food removal and the other cornerstone components of the Coyote Watch Canada coexistence plan (investigation, education, prevention and enforcement). Coyotes should only be hazed if they are inappropriately encroaching on property or showing a lack of fear toward people.

Tips For The Great Outdoors
Backyard and on the Trail
•Never feed coyotes. We need to keep them wild and wary of people.
•Celebrate with children about local wildlife.
•Teach children how to respect wildlife from afar.
•Education is empowerment, removes the fear-based misinformation.
•Wildlife proof your home.
•Clean around BBQ.
•Never leave pets unattended even in enclosed areas.
•Birdfeeders attract prey species like rats and mice that are prey food for predatory animals.

Trail 
Again, feeding wildlife puts them and you at risk.
• Seasonal changes influence coyote and wildlife behaviour in general.
• Canids are naturally curious and intelligent animals. Young coyotes are especially eager to learn about their new world.
• Carry out all left over food/garbage from the landscape.
• Remove dog excrement.
• Never approach wildlife, den sites or young.
• Keep domestic dogs leashed at all times.
• Carry a shake can, umbrella or whistle in coyote territory.

Encounters with a coyote or fox 
• Stop on the trail, pick up small children and pets.
• Never turn your back to, or run from, a domestic dog or coyote.
• Stand still, then assertively shout and wave your arms above the head, stomping feet and slowly back away.
• Share your experience and inform the proper authorities if you see someone feeding or harming wildlife.

For more information please visit www.coyotewatchcanada.com. The Coyote Hotline is also available by calling 1-905-931-2610

The Barents Sea population of a few thousand polar bears is one of the biggest in the world.........However, the Norwegian Polar Institute study(admittedly a small sample of only 29 bears) on the bears reproduction reports that only 10% of female bears birthed cubs in 2014............This, on the heels of a series of warm years resulting in poor sea ice reducing the habitat for the bears to hunt seals..........What cannot be disputed is that Winter ice cover in the Arctic fell to its fifth lowest extent on record in 2014. This continues a long-term trend of decline which is occurring more rapidly than scientists expected and the ice cap could vanish in summer within decades.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/may/28/polar-bear-cubs-arctic-climate-change

Fewer polar bear cubs are

 being born in the Arctic 

islands, survey finds

Rapid reduction of sea ice level due to climate change hitting population as hunting ground recedes

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• Damian Carrington in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard
• theguardian.com, Wednesday 28 May 2014 08.02 EDT

A polar bear nurses her two cubs. Global warming is reducing the sea ice level that female polar cubs need to hunt for food. Photograph: Frank Lukasseckfrank Lukasseck/Getty Images

The proportion of polar bear
females around the Arctic islands
 of Svalbard who gave birth to cubs
 crashed to just 10% in 2014, according
to a small scientific survey of the animals.
It follows a series of warm years and poor
 sea ice.

The Barents Sea population of a few
thousand polar bears is one of the
biggest in the world. But global warming
 is rapidly reducing the extent of sea ice
on which the bears hunt seals, their main
food.

The annual survey undertaken by Jon
 Aars and his colleagues at the
Norwegian Polar Institute was conducted
in April, just after cubs and mothers leave
 their dens. They discovered that just three
 of the 29 adult females they tracked and
examined had a cub born that year.

"This is a lower number than we would have
 expected," he told the Guardian. "Typically
 one third or more of the adult females have
cubs from that year." But even this higher
 level is in long-term decline: annual records
dating back two decades show that about half
 of adult females in Svalbard had cubs in the
mid-1990s.

"Maybe this [year's low number] was because
 we have had mild years recently with worse
 ice conditions or maybe it was just a bad
year," said
 Aars, who says it is too early to conclude
the population is collapsing. "It is alarming
 but it is
 quite a small sample, so we have to be
careful.
 But if this is something that repeats itself in
coming years then it will be a concern."

Like a number of polar populations in remote
 regions, scientists do not have enough data
to say whether Barents Sea polar bear
numbers are rising or falling. Aars is confident
 that numbers bounced back after mass killing
of polar bears by hunters was outlawed on
 Svalbard in 1973, and lie somewhere
between 1900 and 3600.

"They were nearly hunted to extinction,"
 he said. "But we are pretty sure there are
 more bears now than in 1973, probably
about twice as many."

As to the future, he said: "With worse and
 worse sea ice conditions we think there
 will come a point when the population will
suffer, but we don't know when that point is."

Winter ice cover in the Arctic fell to its fifth
 lowest extent on record in 2014. This
continues a long-term trend of decline
 which is occurring more rapidly than
scientists expected and the ice cap
could vanish in summer within decades.

NY Dept. of Conservation Commissioner Joe Martens has historically been a strong environmental advocate............Yet in my opinion, he comes up short with his recent decision to allow increased Black Bear hunting in the Empire State starting this year-----"After careful consideration of thousands of public comments, the strategies outlined in the Black Bear Management Plan seek to achieve and maintain bear population levels that are acceptable to the public while providing sustainable opportunity for New York's big game hunters"............Joe, what about increasing education of the public on how to co-exist with bruins,,,,,,,,,,,,How about mandating bear proof garbage cans.-------Why is what hunters want the reason for killing more bears.............Why are you allowing unknowing residents to dictate policy prior to "co-existence education taking place,,,,,,,,,,,Why does your 10-year plan makes note of the need for DEC to assess the possibility of disregarding "fair chase" and potentially allowing the use of dogs, bait and live-capture cable restraints for taking bears."?????????????

Check out this story on poughkeepsiejournal.com: http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/sports/recreational
/2014/05/28/state-adopts-plan-manage-black-bear-population/9700895/

Our friend Rachel Tilseth up in Wisconsin sat in on the Wisconsin Wolf Advisory Meeting, and comments for us on the narrow minded and unscientific Wolf kill quota that her state has determined for this years hunt

From: Rachel Tilseth [mailto:wolvesdouglasco@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 3:47 AM
To: Meril, Rick
Subject: First Hand Account of Wisc Wolf Advisory Mg

Hi Rick

Here is my view on the Wisconsin Wolf Advisory Meeting where they set wolf kill quotas for the up coming wolf hunt. I was there.

CLICK ON LINK BELOW FOR COMMENTARY

http://thepoliticalenvironment.blogspot.com/2014/05/1st-hand-account-of-how-dnrs-advisory.html

The meeting was dominated by those two hunting interest groups.

Please share

Thank you

Rachel

Carnivore biologist and our good friend Cristina Eisenberg(new book just published-THE CARNIVORE WAY) sharing her blog post on the recent events surrounding the Oregon Wolf(OR7) that had previously wandered into California and most recently has pair bonded up with a female wolf in the southern Cascade Mountains,,,,,,,,,,,,first time in a century that this part of Oregon might see a Wolf family take root

-----Original Message-----
From: Eisenberg, Cristina [mailto:Cristina.Eisenberg@oregonstate.edu]
Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 9:25 AM
To: Meril, Rick
Subject: New IP blog post about OR7 the wolf!


Hi Rick,

Here is the link to my new Island Press blog post about OR7, the dispersing wolf. Please share with your readers! Thanks so much for getting the word out about him and other carnivores who have big lessons for us. I have also attached a Word doc file of the post.

http://ipfieldnotes.org/journey-lessons-from-a-peripatetic-wolf/

Cristina

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Journey: Lessons from a Peripatetic Wolf

MAY 28, 2014   CRISTINA EISENBERG   NO COMMENTS

Remote camera image of wolf OR7, nicknamed Journey, in southwest Oregon, May 2014.Photo courtesy of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Deep in her Oregon Blue Mountain den, the Imnaha pack’s alpha female whelped pups in April 2009. One pup, a gray male wolf (Canis lupus), would eventually grow up to become a hero. Nearly two years later, he stepped into a non-lethal trap set by the Oregon Division of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW). Biologists immobilized him with drugs, carefully fastened a GPS collar around his neck, and gave him a name: OR7. He awoke dazed and confused, quickly recovered from the drugs, and rejoined his pack. The collar proceeded to record and transmit OR7’s location several times daily, enabling ODFW to track his movements.

Animals use a process called dispersal to leave their natal range, find a mate, and claim their own territory. In September 2011, like many young wolves, OR7 left his birth pack. He began to cover a remarkable amount of Oregon territory, moving toward the Southern Cascade Mountains. ODFW posted images of his walkabout, which showed up on their maps as a thick, black zigzagging line. Popularly dubbed Journey, this wolf drew enormous public attention as he wandered around the state in search of a mate. Often he looped and doubled back on his trail, but each week he trended farther south. Just before Christmas 2011, he reached Crater Lake in southwest Oregon.

After Christmas a public question arose: how far south would this vagabond wolf go? Some wondered whether he was looking for love in all the wrong places. Right before New Year’s Eve, the public got their answer to the first question. Journey entered California, becoming the first wolf confirmed in the state since 1924. For the next fifteen months he stayed in Northern California and out of trouble. He preyed on mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and left livestock alone, but failed to find a mate.

In mid-March 2013 Journey returned to southwest Oregon, where he remained until nearly the end of that year. Then in December and January, he made several jaunts back to California, as if trying to decide which state to claim as home. In response to Journey’s activity, the state of California collaborated with stakeholders and conservation groups to consider putting the wolf on the state endangered species list and create a wolf management plan.

By late spring 2014, Journey had travelled thousands of miles since leaving his birth pack. He’d traversed highways, mountain ranges, and deserts. Amazingly, in the process he’d managed to avoid starvation and being shot accidentally or deliberately by humans.

Remote camera image of OR7′s possible mate, southwest Oregon, May 2014. Photo courtesy Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

In April 2014 Journey’s collar fixes converged in Oregon’s Southern Cascades. And in early May, US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) remote cameras recorded several images of a black female wolf in the same location as Journey. The tight cluster of points from Journey’s collar led USFWS to conclude that he may have mated with her and denned, making them the first breeding pair in southern Oregon since humans had driven wolves to extinction there in the early 1900s.

Journey’s story has become a conservation legend that makes us wonder how many other such dispersals there have been, and what sort of outcomes they have had. Not all dispersals have happy endings. Like wolves, wolverines (Gulo gulo), cougars (Puma concolor), jaguars (Panthera onca), lynx (Lynx canadensis), and grizzy bears (Ursus arctos) often disperse. In doing so, many meet death by being road-killed or by being mistaken for another species and shot. So how can we create more positive outcomes for them? Monitoring carnivore populations with GPS collars can help identify important migration corridors and keep them open. Proactively posting disperser locations, albeit with a time lag to prevent people from finding them, can build public acceptance. Conservation-oriented management plans can help keep animals such as Journey alive. His travels provide us with a powerful lesson and an opportunity to get things right for him and other dispersing carnivores.

About Cristina Eisenberg

Dr. Cristina Eisenberg is a conservation biologist at Oregon State University, a Smithsonian Research Associate, and a Boone and Crockett Fellow who studies how wolves affect forest ecosystems throughout the West. She is the author of The Wolf's Tooth and the new book The Carnivore Way.

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A critical habitat requirement for Wolverines is sustained deep snow cover that persists well into late Winter and early Spring..........The pregnant Wolverine female digs her den into the snow and her kits come into the world snug and protected from the elements..............Many Idaho weather models predict that there could be as much as a 40% reduction in snowfall 50 years from now and an 80% "dryout"by the year 2100.............With such a contraction of snowfall predicted, Idaho Wildlife, the Round River Conservation Studies and other wildlife Agencies are making recommendations that will optimize safe travel corridors and reduce trapping of our strongest "pound for pound" carnivore.

https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/may/24/report-shrinking-snowy-areas-may-not-be-enough/&ct=ga&cd=CAEYAioTNjg1MzE0NDA2Mjk3NTEyMTA2NTIaYjg4MTYyM2YwYWMxMzkxNDpjb206ZW46VVM&usg=AFQjCNEPENWLIxkCC7Mq_mRBNN1ObMQ2vA

Report: Shrinking snowy areas may not be enough for both wolverines, outdoorsmen

Becky Kramer The Spokesman-Review

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Tags:climate changeIdaho Department of Fish and GameIdaho State Snowmobile AssociationRound River Conservation Serviceswolverines

Informational chat

Idaho Fish and Game will host an online chat from 1-3 p.m. June 3 to answer questions about the draft wolverine conservation plan or wolverines in general. For more information, or to view the draft plan, visitfishandgame.idaho.gov/ wolverine-conservation-plan

Idaho’s backcountry skiers, snowmobilers and wolverine population could be competing for territory on the same shrinking snowfields in years to come, research compiled by the state suggests.

Some climate models project that Idaho will lose 40 percent of its spring snow by 2060 and about 80 percent by the century’s end. Given wolverines’ dependence on cold, snowy habitat, and a growing demand for winter recreation, conflicts could develop, according to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game’s draft wolverine conservation plan.

Wolverines are adapted to harsh mountain environments, with frost-free hair and a metabolic rate that can’t tolerate temperatures above 70 degrees, said Beth Waterbury, team leader for the draft plan. The species is thinly distributed across North America’s arctic, boreal and alpine forests. The fierce-looking critters resemble small bears, but they’re actually members of the weasel family, along with otter and mink.

Between 250 and 300 wolverines are believed to inhabit the Rocky Mountains of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, and Washington’s North Cascade Range. Wolverine numbers have rebounded since the early 1900s, but they remain candidates for federal endangered species listing. In Idaho, wolverines from Canada and large wilderness areas have helped sustain the state’s wolverine population, according to the draft plan.

But climate change is expected to alter the landscape wolverines need for survival. Of particular interest to researchers are the secluded, high-elevation sites where female wolverines den in late February, Waterbury said. They pick sites where the snow lingers until mid-May.

“People are still kind of speculating on what’s driving that,” she said. Among the theories: The isolation may protect wolverine kits from predators, and the snow provides insulation from frigid temperatures.

A smaller snowpack is likely to drive wolverines and backcountry recreationists to the same sites, so it’s imperative to know how wolverines react to winter recreational use, the state’s draft plan said.

Some of that field research has begun in central Idaho through studies conducted by the U.S. Forest Service and Round River Conservation Studies with various partners, including the state of Idaho and the Idaho State Snowmobile Association. But more work is needed to understand how recreation influences wolverine distribution and reproductive success, the draft plan said.

Given the small numbers of wolverines, it will take at least several more years of data collection before researchers have enough data to draw conclusions, Waterbury said.

The draft plan supports continuation of that work, along with cooperative efforts among Western states to identify the travel corridors that far-flung wolverine populations need to maintain genetic diversity.

Public comments will be accepted through June 9 on the draft plan, which also recommends:

• Working to reduce the number of wolverines accidentally taken through trapping and increasing hunters’ ability to identify wolverines, which are sometimes mistaken for badgers.

• Providing safe highway crossing sites for wolverines and other wildlife.

After "leaning in and knocking down and killing Wolves like they are "pins in a bowling alley", the Wisconsin Wildlife Wolf Advisory Board is calling for a 38% reduction in Wolf kills this year...............This Group is without legal power so the state Dept. of Natural Resources is not legally required to follow their recommendation which would reduce the kill quota from 251(2013) TO 156 this year......................The kill of 257 wolves by hunters and trappers in 2013 reduced the wolf population by 19%, according to the DNR................. Wisconsin had an estimated minimum population of 638 to 667 wolves at the end of the winter 2013-'14. ....If DNR goes with the 156 quota, it is estimated that another 5 to 20% reduction of Wolves will occur..........So, what this all means is that the roughly 845 wolves that existed in Wisconsin prior to federal delisting have been reduced by 200 wolves, with another 130 possible reduction planned for 2014------520 wolves to be alive come Christmas?----------Why is 300 plus wolf reduction necessary when farmers always had the ability to protect their livestock from wolves that sought to take their property?

http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=viewThis&etMailToID=301744121

Wisconsin Wolf advisory committee recommends lower wolf harvest quota for 2014

By Paul A. Smith of the Journal Sentinel

May 19, 2014

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The state's Wolf Advisory Committee recommended a harvest quota of 156 wolves for the 2014-'15 Wisconsin hunting and trapping season, down from a kill goal of 251 in 2013.

This year's quota would still designed to reduce the wolf population but at a slower rate than 2013, said Dave MacFarland, Department of Natural Resources large carnivore specialist.

The committee met Monday in Wausau to review harvest models and develop a recommendation.

The committee is advisory; DNR executives will consider its recommendation as the agency forwards a quota request to the Natural Resources Board. In 2013 the DNR did not change the committee's recommendation.

Since the state assumed management of the species in 2012, the DNR has been working to reduce the wolf population toward a late winter, minimum count of 350 wolves.

The kill of 257 wolves by hunters and trappers in 2013 reduced the wolf population by 19%, according to the DNR. Wisconsin had an estimated minimum population of 638 to 667 wolves at the end of the winter 2013-'14. 

The wolf population typically doubles in spring after pups are born then declines to various causes to an annual low in late winter. Population estimates are conducted in winter when the population is near its low and when the animals are easiest to track and count.

The Wolf Advisory Committee consists of DNR biologists and wildlife managers, several federal agency representatives, a representative of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, and several stakeholder groups, including the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, Wisconsin Trappers Association, Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, Wisconsin Conservation Congress, Wisconsin Cattlemen's Association and the Timber Wolf Alliance.

The members entered written ballots of their preferred wolf harvest quota. The submissions ranged from 0 to 300, with a mean of 156. Eleven members preferred a quota of less than 150 wolves, nine wanted a quota higher than 160.

Based on two models of the impact of human-caused mortality on wolf populations, a kill of 156 wolves this fall in Wisconsin would result in a population reduction ranging from 5 to 20%, MacFarland said.

The models also factor in mortality from car collisions and depredation control efforts. Non-hunting and trapping mortality to wolves is estimated at 14% annually, said Jen Stenglein, DNR wildlife researcher.

The committee recommended the proposed quota of 156 animals be split among the state's six wolf management zones as: 33 wolves in Zone 1, 16 in 2, 41 in 3, 9 in 4, 21 in 5 and 36 in 6.

"Some of you are disappointed the quota isn't higher, others are unhappy it isn't lower," MacFarland said. "But this is in keeping with our goal of putting downward pressure on the wolf population in a responsible way."

The committee also voted to issue the same ratio of permits (10 times the quota) used in the previous two wolf hunting and trapping seasons. If the harvest quota is 156, the state would issue 1,560 kill permits.

MacFarland said he would present the committee's recommendations to DNR executives this week. The agency will then produce its recommendation to the Natural Resources Board.

The Natural Resource Board is expected to vote on the 2014-'15 wolf quota at its June 25 meeting in Milwaukee.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wisconsin's gray wolf population grew in 2012

Weekly News article published: June 19, 2012 by the Central Office
PARK FALLS, Wis. -- Wisconsin's gray wolf population at the close of the 2011-2012 winter was estimated to be 815-880, a roughly 4 percent increase over the 2010-2011 end-of-winter estimate