The owner of the Diamond G Ranch, Steven Gordon, on whose property the Washakie Wolf pack spends part of its time, has filed a complaint asking Judge Downes to rescind his stay of his order that all the wolves reintroduced to Yellowstone and central Idaho and their offspring must be removed. Mr. Gordon is reportedly represented by the firm, Patton, Boggs, and Blow, a major political consulting firm headquartered in Washington D.C. and with many branch offices.
In a Dec. 12, 1997 ruling U.S. District Judge William Downes of Casper ordered the reintroduced wolves and their offspring removed, but he stayed (blocked) his own order so that the 10th Circuit Court of the United States could first consider the predictable appeals of his decision.
In his complaint Gordon maintains he cannot wait for the appeals to run because he has lost too many cattle to the Washakie Pack and he is reluctant to let his children outside the house after dusk or to have guests on the property.
It is confirmed the pack killed two of his cattle in 1997, and probably four others, and possibly three of his herding dogs just recently. Defenders of Wildlife reports it has compensated him for these losses and probable losses.
According to an Associated Press story, Gordon's complaint alleges that the Fish and Wildlife Service has declined to remove any of the wolves despite being told of the killings.
In fact, the alpha male of the pack, no. 15M, was shot last winter for attacking cattle on the ranch. Since then, the Fish and Wildlife Service has not verified any additional livestock losses, although three dogs were killed by a wolf, possibly from the Washakie Pack. My story on the removal of number 15. In addition Ed Bangs is hiring two full time biologists to monitor and study wolves in Wyoming whose territories are outside the Park. Curently this is the Washakie Pack, Thorofare Pack, and the Sunlight pair.
According to the Associated Press, the complaint states "There have been naturally occurring gray wolves in the area of the Diamond G. The native wolves and the Ranch have coexisted over the years without serious conflict."
I did report shortly after the dispatch of number 15 that new wolves, not of the Washakie Pack, were reported to have appeared on the ranch. This was also reported in the Dubois, Wyoming newspaper. I have not heard that anyone has independently verified the existence of any wolves additional to the Washakie Pack in the area.
The wolf pair 15M and 26F, formed after number 15 was released from the Nez Perce pen in September 1996. Number 26 was waiting nearby. The pair migrated far to the southeast and wintered in the East Fork of the Wind River. In the late winter they migrated westward and denned in the DuNoir Valley near the Diamond G. They had five pups in April 1997.
The 48,000 acre Diamond G is one of several ranches in the area. Mr. Gordon reportedly does not allow any public access through his ranch onto the Shoshone National Forest which adjoins it. As a result the upper DuNoir Valley and the wildlife present is little known except to those who pack in from Brooks Lake over Bonneville pass.
The National Wildlife Federal has released the following statement on the lawsuit.
For Immediate Release
June 4, 1998
For more information contact
Tom Lustig (303) 786-8001, ext. 18, or
Phil Kavits (703) 790-4096,PRESS STATEMENT
CLAIMS OF PROBLEM WOLVES WARRANT EXAMINATION
Reintroduction Program Provides Means For Assuring Safety of People and LivestockThe following statement was issued by National Wildlife Federation (NWF) Counsel Tom Lustig in reaction to a Dubois, Wyoming Rancher’s lawsuit claiming that reintroduced wolves have preyed on livestock and pets and pose a serious threat to his family.
The suit asks Federal District Court Judge William Downes to immediately impose the terms of his December, 1997 ruling that the Yellowstone and Central Idaho wolf reintroduction program technically violates the terms of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Judge Downes ordered the removal of reintroduced wolves and their offspring, but stayed his order pending appeal.
"Any claim that some reintroduced wolves pose a unusually serious threat to people and livestock needs to be checked out, but people shouldn’t jump to conclusions on the basis of one claim.
"The reintroduction program was designed to ensure that people and livestock can co-exist with wolves. If the claims are real, the program’s flexible management provisions will let wildlife officials deal effectively with any legitimate threat.
"It’s unfortunate that the suit takes aim at the nation’s biggest wildlife reintroduction success. The reintroduction success story was written through a common-sense effort that balances the needs of people and wildlife. Whatever its basis, this suit threatens to destroy the success and disrupt that balance.
"The National Wildlife Federation will continue the fight to keep the wolves in Yellowstone and Central Idaho where they belong. We will not stand by and watch while America repeats its mistake of exterminating wolves in the first place."
The National Wildlife Federation helped to shape the spectacularly-successful flexible reintroduction program that has grey wolf populations rebounding.
NWF is appealing Judge Downes’ December removal order and contends that the reintroduction program and its flexible management approach are fully in keeping with the terms of the ESA.
The Nation’s largest member supported conservation education and advocacy group, the National Wildlife Federation has united people everywhere to protect wildlife, wild places and the resources we all share since 1936.
Email addresses for members of Congress, the media and other officials.
Return To Maughan Wolf Report Page
Copyright ©1998 Ralph Maughan
Not to be reprinted, archived, redistributed, etc., without permission.
Ralph Maughan PO Box 8264, Pocatello, ID 83209