Wolf Numbers/Control

[houndsmen]

Just looking for opinions on this from people that spend alot of time in the bush.

[Ryry4]

Take a look at the elk numbers on the Ya Ha Tinda and that should answer your question about wolf numbers.

[Squeeker]

All accross the foothills and down into the ranchlands, stock and game are being wiped out at an alarming rate. There needs to be some around, but not this many! I'm heading out this weekend to hammer a few hopefully.

[huntin]

I have shot 4 since Easter and I know there are at least 7 left in that pack I would love to wipe it out

[slough shark]

of course it is somewhat regional but there is a significant portion of the province that would benefit from a wolf cull. Would be nice to see some changes to encourage more wolves being taken, (open up trapping up to anyone anywhere with a trappers license, too many traplines where there is no trapping happening) bounties province wide that would at least pay the gas money.

[yamaha 1]

Peace River area is one of them that needs a cull. I lived and hunted here for almost 25 years. I never seen wolves in the farming areas, yes the outer edges, but not the farming areas. In the last few years I'm seeing wolves every were, I seen one by the air port not even a mile from town. The MD's need bounties put out, not lots of $$ but a few bucks just to get the hunters out. I'm not saying wipe them out, we need wolves, we need to just control them before all our wild life is gone.

[Sooner]

I'm all for thinning out the packs across this province. Bounties would be a good way to offset the fuel costs. My son is 13 and just started hunting, I think him and I are going to start spendiing some saturdays in our hunting area next year trying to knock down a few from the pack that runs around there. Heres a question. If a pack is say 8 to 12 strong, thats a good killing machine. How many would have to be taken out to actually hurt the pack. I would suspect 6 or less left in a pack and it gets tough to eat for them or am I just wishing.

[C Taylor]

In Camrose the # are about right. At Viking the # are ok but I will shoot if I can. Bonnyville they need knocked back a bitand where I like to moose & elk hunt they need a cull.

[Rocky7]

Originally Posted by Ryry4

Take a look at the elk numbers on the Ya Ha Tinda and that should answer your question about wolf numbers.

Didn't they round up a large number from there a few years ago and send them south?

Not that there aren't way too many wolves - there definitely are - but I think removing a large number from one area can make an impact, too?

[pikeslayer22]

Originally Posted by C Taylor

In Camrose the # are about right. At Viking the # are ok but I will shoot if I can. Bonnyville they need knocked back a bitand where I like to moose & elk hunt they need a cull.

Wolves in Camrose and Viking area?

[Coniferous]

Wolves everywhere - they have gone up 70% in the last 3 years, I would have to say the most Wolves in any place in the world, or one of..

[Smoke]

The 5.8% that are in the first category are either anti-hunters or have never travelled through the foothills and mountains of west central Alberta.

Sheep, elk, deer and moose numbers will continue to plummet if this is not soon addressed. And to the point where hunting could and will be in severe jeopardy.

Our bureaucracy will keep us arguing amongst ourselves over draws, outfitters against residents, petty regulations for us all while the real problem continues to dwindle the numbers. The deer numbers in the area that I am familiar with are just not there as they were and yet the predators are. Outside of some decent herds of elk near ranch land the elk in the west are devastated, don't see many moose either but without those big deer numbers to feed all these wolves and cougars the Bighorns to the west and livestock are going to be getting hit hard and soon.

The reality remains, we can talk about solutions to sheep hunting as much as we want, there is still going to be less numbers next season no matter how many permits we take away from ourselves. If we don't wake up and deal with the real problem pretty soon, we better all start golfing. And yes, I do believe that is what many would like to see.

[Ryry4]

Originally Posted by Rocky7

Didn't they round up a large number from there a few years ago and send them south?

Not that there aren't way too many wolves - there definitely are - but I think removing a large number from one area can make an impact, too?

I've never heard that, could be. I was up there last week and more than one person said the wolves were doing serious damage.

Anyone know for sure if they rounded some up?

[houndsmen]

Originally Posted by Smoke

The 5.8% that are in the first category are either anti-hunters or have never travelled through the foothills and mountains of west central Alberta.

Sheep, elk, deer and moose numbers will continue to plummet if this is not soon addressed. And to the point where hunting could and will be in severe jeopardy.

Our bureaucracy will keep us arguing amongst ourselves over draws, outfitters against residents, petty regulations for us all while the real problem continues to dwindle the numbers. The deer numbers in the area that I am familiar with are just not there as they were and yet the predators are. Outside of some decent herds of elk near ranch land the elk in the west are devastated, don't see many moose either but without those big deer numbers to feed all these wolves and cougars the Bighorns to the west and livestock are going to be getting hit hard and soon.

The reality remains, we can talk about solutions to sheep hunting as much as we want, there is still going to be less numbers next season no matter how many permits we take away from ourselves. If we don't wake up and deal with the real problem pretty soon, we better all start golfing. And yes, I do believe that is what many would like to see.

^^^^MARK THESE WORDS BOYS!!!!!^^^^^

Great post Smoke!!!

[slough shark]

Originally Posted by Rocky7

Didn't they round up a large number from there a few years ago and send them south?

Not that there aren't way too many wolves - there definitely are - but I think removing a large number from one area can make an impact, too?

It has been years since they shipped some around the province, I believe 12-15 years ago was the most recent transplant projects. It has been so bad out there and the herd population dropping that they stopped the cow elk hunt out there I believe 7-8 years ago or thereabouts. When I called the wildlife biologist for the area for an explanation of why the season was shut down he told me calf recruitment was perhaps 10% the wolves and cougars were getting the rest. At the time I thought he was a little off his rocker as I was still seeing elk but since then I have seen the results of all this wolf predation, It is now possible to go out to the meadows in the yaha tinda and not see elk, 10-12 years ago I thought that was almost impossible as they seemed numerous and everywhere but now much less so...

[walking buffalo]

Originally Posted by Ryry4

I've never heard that, could be. I was up there last week and more than one person said the wolves were doing serious damage.

Anyone know for sure if they rounded some up?

Some elk were translocated to Suffield back when Ya Ha had a high (4000+) population.

Wolves have nocked the elk down by over 90% since the translocation.


Have a look. The paper shows some detailed wolf info.

http://www.carnivoreconservation.org...e_2006_phd.pdf

[huntin]

Originally Posted by Smoke

The 5.8% that are in the first category are either anti-hunters or have never travelled through the foothills and mountains of west central Alberta..

Amen

[Traps]

Originally Posted by Smoke

The 5.8% that are in the first category are either anti-hunters or have never travelled through the foothills and mountains of west central Alberta.

Sheep, elk, deer and moose numbers will continue to plummet if this is not soon addressed. And to the point where hunting could and will be in severe jeopardy.

I've hunted almost every side of this province. Saw wolves around the farm for the first time last year. People can shoot wolves for all I care, I am no anti hunter but I am one of the 5.8%. Animal numbers will not continue to plummet to the point where they are extinct. Mother nature is taking its course. Populations of ungulates and predators rise and fall. Give it time, don't overreact, populations will come back when wolves have nothing to eat. Besides they eat to survive, whereas you run to the grocery store.

[walking buffalo]

Originally Posted by Traps

I've hunted almost every side of this province. Saw wolves around the farm for the first time last year. People can shoot wolves for all I care, I am no anti hunter but I am one of the 5.8%. Animal numbers will not continue to plummet to the point where they are extinct. Mother nature is taking its course. Populations of ungulates and predators rise and fall. Give it time, don't overreact, populations will come back when wolves have nothing to eat. Besides they eat to survive, whereas you run to the grocery store.

Great idea. Lets all give up hunting for the sake of the wolves.

Who cares if there are no ungulates left for people to eat over the next 100 years.

That's nature.



Wait, I'm part of nature too. I damn well want my share too. My natural instincts say to reduce the competition. Not eliminate it, but to reduce it.

That's Nature!

[greywolf]

It's pretty obvious to me that the mangement of the Alberta Wolf population needs to be regulated by the general public. A cull of any sort by SRD just won't happen. Speaking with some of the biologist you get the feeling that they (SRD in general) themselves don't believe there is a need. Sure some will say their hands are tied, there is too much public pressure from the anti's, etc, but there are those that believe there is not a problem....

They should quietly knock a few down when conducting there aerial winter surveys in non populated areas. If it were only that easy!!!!

[greywolf]

We keep hearing that we need to let nature balance itself out. Man has disrupted the balance of nature so much in the last half century or so that maybe we need to help put the balance back in check. IMO.

[st99]

Originally Posted by greywolf

We keep hearing that we need to let nature balance itself out. Man has disrupted the balance of nature so much in the last half century or so that maybe we need to help put the balance back in check. IMO.

actually the basic and fondamental are that we are part of nature and it is natural for human to trap and hunt wolves

coyote kill fox, wolves kill coyote, fox, lynx and bear, big bear kill small bear, grizzly kill black bear.... AND WE KILL ALL OF THEM

[Smoke]

Originally Posted by Traps

I've hunted almost every side of this province. Saw wolves around the farm for the first time last year. People can shoot wolves for all I care, I am no anti hunter but I am one of the 5.8%. Animal numbers will not continue to plummet to the point where they are extinct. Mother nature is taking its course. Populations of ungulates and predators rise and fall. Give it time, don't overreact, populations will come back when wolves have nothing to eat. Besides they eat to survive, whereas you run to the grocery store.

How can you in good conscious even buy a license and compete. If I had made this statement ten years ago your point of not overreacting may have some meaning. This loss of ungulates did not just begin this year. Since about 95 I have witnessed the decline of the elk herds in the west country from several thousands down to several hundred.

I certainly did not suggest anything will become extinct and there are certainly a few things we have no control of [thank God] but we have been given management over many things we can control. Our wild meat is what many have grown up on and is proven to be the healthiest meat source.

When that sneaky old fox is raiding the hen house do you just say 'ok have at her, when you eat all my chickens, i'll just go to the store. When a bad pair of coyotes start eating your calves do you just say have at her, if you get them all your pretty good, i'll just go to the store.

Hey, I don't want to get in a fight with anyone but this issue needs some reality.

Traps, trust me, I am the furthest from overreactive, but under your scenario our hunting opportunities will come to an end and we will get to go golfing.

[kaleh01]

I agree with most that wolves are definately a target of opportunity, and yes I do hunt them specifically also.

I say keep hunting and trapping wolves, but we need to take a serious look at the resource industries that are cutting more and more access into our west country. These miles of roads and acres of cutblocks allow wolves, and men, to be more efficient hunters of ungulates. I hate seeing elk numbers so low, so lets get some of these access roads reclaimed to help our ungluates out.

Write your MP's, make your voices heard with the resource companies personally, but keep slingin lead I say.

[IHUNT]

The wolf population around the fort mcmurray area is crazy!!! 4 Years ago my hunting partners and i used to hunt this one are 50 km south of fort mac wich is our trapline. Went out 9 times that year and seen 37 moose in that small area with the bigest group at 11 moose all together. But we also noticed a larg pack of wolves that had moved in. There was 14 wolves in this pack. After that year i have never seen a moose back there since! We trap there every year shooting and trapping wolves but there still there. Once in a while we will see moose tracks and right behind them wolf tracks. Wish i had more time to shoot and trap more of them.

[open sights]

A buddy of mine works on chinchaga forestr road on the oil pipeline there, he said he can count the number deer on 1 hand that he has seen in the last 6 months, and that the wolf pack there is 13 strong right now( this was in october when i ran into him on a moose/deer/ bear hunt up there

[dale7637]

Originally Posted by open sights

A buddy of mine works on chinchaga forestr road on the oil pipeline there, he said he can count the number deer on 1 hand that he has seen in the last 6 months, and that the wolf pack there is 13 strong right now( this was in october when i ran into him on a moose/deer/ bear hunt up there

He is right on the mark. The wolves have done a good job of cleaning up ungulates in that area. I have spent a fair bit of time in there, and the wolves are thick.
I think that a concentrated trapping effort is in order here to deal with the problem at hand. Hunting wolves is another tool, however in the bush areas, i do not feel that it is very effective.

A full blown cull would work here as well, but we all know it will never happen. ASRD wouldnt want the heat and negative publicity that could come with that.

[Sneeze]

Originally Posted by Traps

Populations of ungulates and predators rise and fall. Give it time, don't overreact, populations will come back when wolves have nothing to eat. Besides they eat to survive, whereas you run to the grocery store.

What your saying is true except your forgetting that human's have a role in the ecosystem as well.

[Traps]

Smoke, shooting wolves is legal so shoot wolves and save an ungulate, I won't stop you. My main two issues is the over reaction associated with wolves being the main contributor to a lack of ungulates and the personal attack of being the 5.8%.

There are untouched areas of land where ungulates and wolves coexist. Kaleh hit it on the head, roads, cutlines, cutblocks contribute to wolves success. I've seen miles of cutline with wolf tracks, two feet off the line a rabbit wouldn't go, let alone a wolf.

Sneeze - humans play an extremely large role in the ecosystem - that is the problem. Wolves aren't the problem, people are the problem.

[winger7mm]

Originally Posted by Traps

Smoke, shooting wolves is legal so shoot wolves and save an ungulate, I won't stop you. My main two issues is the over reaction associated with wolves being the main contributor to a lack of ungulates and the personal attack of being the 5.8%.

There are untouched areas of land where ungulates and wolves coexist. Kaleh hit it on the head, roads, cutlines, cutblocks contribute to wolves success. I've seen miles of cutline with wolf tracks, two feet off the line a rabbit wouldn't go, let alone a wolf.

Sneeze - humans play an extremely large role in the ecosystem - that is the problem. Wolves aren't the problem, people are the problem.

Sure people are the problem, but even though the roads and pipelines make for easy travel for wolves, it makes for easy travel for the rest of them deer, bear,elk, moose, rabbits and the like. Easy travel comes at a cost, look at people and highways, how many fatal accidents happen on highways everyday compared to how many fatalities happen while driving on oilfield and logging roads. Me I am after wolves if I see em Ill be shooting em, doesnt matter what part of the province im in. I want the furs for my walls and the skulls for the shelves. I look at wolves as a trophy species, Im not after them cause they eat my deer and elk, I am after them due to my personal hunting preferences. Now back to these roads and lines for one last remark, do you get out and see how green they get during spring and summer, the provide AWESOME feeding locations for said ungulates and bears, not much lucious green grass growing in a dense swampy spruce forest, but look at the lines going down, full of nice green grasses. Its a two sided coin, take the good with the bad and the bad with the good. Dont be afraid to put a wolf rug on the wall, your not afraid to put a deer on the wall. Wolves are one of the top predators in alberta and to be able to put the squeeze on one of these magnificant beasts is a feat in its own. IMO a cull is not needed, just when you and me are out hunting and see a wolf or a pack, sure you may be after elk or moose but shoot a wolf. the elk and moose and deer dont go to far after the shot, wait an hour and you are back where you started. There are enough hunters in alberta to help keep the wolf poulation in check, and besides a wolf rug or even just getting it tanned is not that pricey just like the saying save a tree wipe your @$$ with a beaver, safe a deer put a wolf rug on the wall