Wildlife Services kills a pack of 7 wolves in SW Montana

Wildlife Services kills a pack of 7 wolves in SW Montana

1-28-2004

This news was reported by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the media several days ago. Here is my take on the elimination of a little-known, but entire wolf pack, which was belatedly named "The Fox Creek Pack." Six of the 7 members were shot near the hamlet of Polaris.
The Fox Creek Pack seems to have originated in 2002 or 3, but its existence was not quickly recognized.
Wolves have not fared well in SW Montana, once you get west of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. This is big country, and as of yet not many subdivisions. There is a lot of ranching in the valleys between the Great Basin-like mountain ranges.
Summertime wildlife numbers are high, but the standard story is that the elk and deer migrate out in the winter, leaving wolf packs with pretty much moose and cattle as their source of food.
According to USFWS the "pack . . . killed 5 cattle in 4 separate depredations starting Dec 5, 2003 and likely wounded 5 others (one confirmed) starting in mid-November." Given the lack of wild prey, other than moose, a decision was made to kill the pack.
In the past most other single wolves and wolf packs in SW Montana have been killed by the government under similar circumstances. Thus, wolves have not recolonized SW Montana, although they keep trying. A black wolf has been reported recently in the Lima Peaks area near the Idaho border. I do recall from the 1980s, most of wolf sightings in Idaho and Montana (except NW Montana) were in this area where wolves now seem to get repeatedly killed back to nearly zero.
What needs to be determined is whether their prey really migrate out of SW Montana. If so, where do they go? Can anything be done to keep wolves and cattle apart? Will ranchers in this part of Montana be given a free pass from wolf recovery?
I should also note that this country and its livestock is barrier of migration of grizzly bears from the Greater Yellowstone to central Idaho, which could be eventually reinhabited by hundreds of grizzly bears if they could just get there.
On the positive side, Joe Fontaine, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Montana wolf project leader was quoted, "“If we’d known earlier about these wolves, maybe we could have prevented some of the problems that occurred there,” he said. “Being able to get a collar on one is a big help ... Once we get a collar on one, then we have an idea of where they’re at and it’s a lot easier to manage them in the long run.”

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