Defenders' Volunteers keep Whitehawk Pack wolves and sheep apart so far.
Aug.6, 2001
Hi folks, I have been up in Montana looking for wolves for about a week. In the meantime, Carter Niemeyer, head of the USFWS wolf operations in Idaho sent out the following about the success so far of the volunteers recruited helping Defenders of Wildlife, the Nez Perce tribe, etc. keep the Whitehawk Pack and Brailsford's sheep apart in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.
A cooperative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Nez
Perce Tribe, Defenders of Wildlife, Wildlife Services and the U.S. Forest
Service to provide a volunteer effort to protect domestic sheep and a wild
wolf pack near Stanley, Idaho, has already paid dividends.For the past two week, under the supervision of the Nez Perce Tribe and the
Defenders of Wildlife, volunteers from Idaho and other states have
assembled near Stanley, Idaho, to provide their time and assistance to keep
the White Hawk wolf pack and domestic sheep from interacting as predators
and prey. Volunteers are camping near the sheep, staying awake most of
night and monitoring wolf activity with receivers that pick up signals from
a radio collar on one of the wolves. Wildlife Services has provided
Radio-acitivated Guards (RAG boxes) and instructions for operation to the
volunteers. The Nez Perce Tribe has a representative that is providing her
expertise and leadership to "beef up" the defenses. The volunteers have a
"director" from the private sector that provides organization to the group.
The sheep are protected by herders that look out for their daily care and
camp with the sheep at night.This is an early account of what happened in the early morning hours of
August 5, 2001.The Nez Perce representative positioned herself closer to the wolf pack and
between the wolves and the sheep. In this way she can detect any early
activity by the wolves. About 2:00 am this morning the radio signal from
the collared wolf became stronger. Subsequent howling by the entire pack
indicated they were moving in on the sheep. The Nez Perce representative
summoned the sheep herders and instructed them to fire their guns into the
air. Volunteers distributed around the sheep began to sing and yell and
make known that humans were near the sheep. Simultaneously, the RAG box
began to fire when activated by the wolf's radio collar. All indications
were that the entire wolf pack, including pups, were nearby from the
howling.From the description of the scene, a quiet, moon-lit night turned into
chaos for a brief time, but the outcome was welcomed. The wolves
immediately retreated from the area, the radio signal diminishing. No
sheep were harmed, no wolves depredated and a lot of dedicated people got
little sleep. In some peoples minds this probably all sounds very
artificial and that the wolves fate will inevitably be sealed by their
persistence in preying on domestic livestock. I think there is still a
message here.Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I think this situation demonstrates
cooperation between the New West and the Old West. The owner of the sheep
has put some trust in the volunteers (mostly urban folks) and given them
the latitude to help protect his sheep. The volunteers support wolf
recovery and are giving of their time and energy for a worthwhile cause.
Agency people are working with environmentalists to seek some solutions to
the wolf/livestock conflict. Maybe the solution is labor intensive, but
let's try something new. How will the wolf pack react to this treatment in
the coming days and nights? Will they persist? Maybe. I'm excited that
the system got tested. Let's see what we can learn.I didn't give names in this update, but everyone's dedication is
appreciated and their efforts recorded. I am cautious in making any
predictions about the long-term outcome of this human/livestock/predator
engagement, but optimistic that we are breaking some new ground and trying
some different solutions to resolve conflict. Engaging in cooperation is
better than engaging in conflict!Carter Niemeyer
Wolf Recovery Coordinator
Snake River Basin OfficeWith all respect to Carter and the volunteers, many of whom are friends, and who are making a tremendous effort, I think the long run solution is to get rid of the livestock that comes into conflict with wildlife on these reserved public lands. Fortunately, the Western Watersheds Project and the Idaho Conservation League have filed a lawsuit with the intent of making elk, deer, moose, salmon, and yes, wolves, priority over livestock in the SNRA, as they (and I) believe the law that created the SNRA in 1972 intended. . . Ralph Maughan
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