Wolves

[DeerCamp]

I live in lower Michigan and they arent a problem around here but Ill get back to that in a min. I also hunt in Iron River and thats only 10 mins from WI. Ive noticed while hunting there the last few years I have seen more wolves. I had one come running right  by me while in a ground blind.( Scared the crap right outta me). Then this year while walking down a trail I noticed two big black ones come out of a swamp 50 yards infront of me. I didnt like that at well either.  I really think that they are starting to become a problem up there, however there isnt much we can do about that. I hear that they can kill up to 7 deer a year.. and thats just ONE WOLVE!
 
Now about the wolves down here. This is a story I heard at our hunting camp in Iron River.  The dnr says that there are no wolves down here. However this last year a guy talked to the dnr and said he knows they are down here.The dnr said the guy is mistaking coyotes for wolves. After talking to the dnr some more they allowed him to trap for "coyotes" here and said that he can keep whatever he catches. A week later he came in with a wolve. The dnr wanted to take the wolve and press charges however the guy had written permession to take whatever he cought down here. Since then there has been several sightings there of wolves. This guy lives in the mackinaw area. 

[Legnip]

The DNR won't let you shoot coyotes in norther WI during gun season. They don't want the wolves to be shot. I'll be curious as to how big the packs will get. They had a whole thing about wolf packs on the Discovery channel. They had one pack that got up to 22 wolves, but then the pack crashed in numbers after the pups killed the parents (Alphas) to become the Alpha pair.
 
I can't remember which magazine it came from, but there was an article a couple years back about a guy that was killed by a wolf pack in Canada. It was the first recorded death in over a hundred years or so.

[schlupis]

I thought recently there was another death in alaska i think not sure.. have heard they are killing dogs in northern wis...I know a few years back during gun season reports show something like 9 wolves were killed by hunters I think this trend will continue because most hunters are not happy with the return of wolves... I guess if it killed my family dog I would probably kill that wolf too because it apparantly has no fear of people.....

[schlupis]

I hunt in northern wis and there are plenty of wolves up there I very much dislike the fact that wolves are coming back in WI. I dont see the reason for reintroducing them other than maybe the dnr wanting to help with bringing deer numbers down. That in my opinion is all they are good for, what other reason is there for bringing them back.
 
I read a article in field and stream where Idaho is having a decline in elk numbers due to their wolf population. Even documented encounters of wolves killing a bull and not returning to feed on the dead elk basically just killed the bull to kill it. Have talked to people who have had the family dog killed by wolves. Sorry I see a wolf coming after my dog bang one less wolf.
 
I dont like them coming back and now I also think there have been some cases of wolves killing people now I dont think in wi (Yet). I think if the wolf packs continue to grow they are going to hurt our deer herd very much you couple the wolves with the increase in bears in WI and things wont turn out good for the herd.
 
I would be all for them opening up a season for us on the wolves I would be first in line to get that tag. But if its anything like getting a bear tag a resident will have to wait 8 years.

[Gafrage]

I hunt wolves, they're delicious!  In all seriousness though, I think they reintroduced wolves in WI for reasons other than trying to control the deer herd.  If they wanted to do that, they would release wolves around central WI, as well as in the CWD zones.  I'm with you Schlupis, if a wolf attempts to attack my dog, my sidearm will be unloaded.  I don't have a problem with people wanting to see them in the wild...good luck seeing them anyway, unless you're hunting.  Although they are getting to the point where people are hitting them on highways.  I think that lots of people have the same feelings about wolves that most hunters do.  I have to carry a .357 with me at all times when grouse hunting now, for my own personal protection, as well as my dog's.  I think that the people who were for re-introducing wolves to WI, didn't think long term, and were rather selfish.  Now we're having more of a problem than many people anticipated.  Granted wolves don't do as much as people think on the deer population, although there is no way to prove they do or don't.  I blame everything on Global Warming...wait, is there such a thing as that anyway?  Or is the sun expanding and just getting closer to earth?  That's another ball of wax that most people look at, but don't really touch.


Don't forget about the bobcats, they do a number on the fawns as well.

[Goose]

Yes, black bears take allot more fawns than people think as well. Like I stated earlier I don't hunt were there are wolves yet. I do not like the reintroduction of them though. Like Gafrage said it was a neat thought but the long term was left out of the thought process.  

[wack]

 This is a subject that I've studied extensively and can only come up with one solution to what's going to be a big problem. As of Sept. 29, 2008 the wolves have been put BACK ON the endangered species list. The goal for Wisconsin was 350 wolves with habitat that could sustain approximately  500 wolves. As of Sept. 29, 2008 Wisconsin's wolf population is estimated at over 550 wolves. In the area's that wolves are present, deer density numbers are dropping quickly. Every wolf kills an average of 18 deer per year. With 07 being a hard winter, wolves moving further south, DNR and CWD reducing the deer herd in the south, Wisconsin's deer population is dwindling fast. Sharing our north woods with wolves means deer hunting will never be the same as it's been. Nor should it be. When wolves roamed norther Wisconsin 200 years ago, they didn't feed on just deer. They had Caribou, buffalo, elk, moose, deer, antelope, and a large variety of critters big and small. We reintroduce wolves, the most dominant predator in the world, into a petting zoo with deer being the top big game animal in an overpopulated condition. It just won't work.
To have wolves we must also have elk, buffalo and as many other of the missing critters as we can get back.
Without debating why the wolves are here or how they got here, the fact is they are here. Take a look for yourself here.
http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/er/mammals/wolf/wolf_map.htm

The only good thing we can get out of wolves is pressure to put elk back in Wisconsin. Clam Lake herd is a complete success. 25 elk are now 150 elk. 25 Elk was an experiment, we now need more elk to make the genetic pool strong and give them a chance to survive. If we don't, the wolves will kill off the deer, bears won't have deer to eat, and we'll lose everything. We strengthen the elk, add buffalo, save the deer, save the bears, we do a lot more than just save the wolves. If we got to have wolves, we got to have big game animals to feed them or we're going to loose the 2 big game animals we have left. I've waited 5 years for the chance at a bear tag, I wonder what hunting opportunities we'll have left to pass on to our grandchildren.
We are close to getting more elk but efforts of the DNR, and Rockey Mountain Elk Society were successfully blocked by the Department of Agriculture's ban on transporting elk. They had elk coming from Elk Island Canada, but couldn't transport them into Wisconsin. Can't even move any of the Clam Lake elk. Studies are all done, Clam Lake and Black River Falls were all cleared to get elk, there are very few deer left in these areas because of wolves. No deer means no CWD means perfect time to get the elk in and get started on Buffalo too. To leave the wolves, deer and bear to settle things for themselves can only lead to disaster for Wisconsin hunters. We can't get rid of the wolves so we'd better get some big game animals to feed them. It's time we make the tree huggers work for us.
 

[Goose]

Excellent post and some very good points! Thanks for your input.

[jbake035]

My wish is that the statewide pack size be trimmed by 80% in five years. Unfortunately, that will never happen with the uber-liberals that reside in our capital city. There is no place in my ecosystem for these mangy, vultures who are barely removed from the rodent family! I do a considerable amount of my hunting on the public lands of Jackson and Clark county and I'm tired of seeing wolf tracks outnumber deer tracks 2:1. Just a week and a half ago I put two bad shots into a nice 3.5 year old and decided to wait until morn' to find him. On our wait out to my stand that next morning, a huntin' buddy and I stumbled across a pack of at least 10 right on the logging road with nothing but a couple of 3" blade gutting knives in my backpack. Fortunately, they scattered like the rats they are and nothing else came of it. Needless to say, my 1st trip when I got home to Appleton was to Gander Mountain to pick out which sidearm made me look the most like John Wayne!

It is painfully evident that the taxpaying people who live on these lands share a different opinion on this subject than the chiba-puffing hippies who seem to have their noses up the sizeable @$$ of the DNR. I've been to a couple corners of this great state and had opportunities to discuss this lightning rod topic with the people who actually deserve a say.....the landowners. Inevitably, I have yet to encounter someone who is any less passionate than I about the unwanted existence of the wolf. Many of them told stories of the standoffs they witnessed wolves having with their family pets or, in one case, their 4-YEAR OLD DAUGHTER!

Short of doing anything illegal, we must take all of the political steps necessary as active sportsmen/sportswomen to further our cause. Speak on this subject and encourage conversation whenever you can. Make your opinions known to the EMPLOYEES (see DNR) of our state who make these decisions on our dime. For some reason, those people/treehuggers who don't hunt or gainfully contribute to the revenue generation of the WI DNR seem to have greater pull than you and I.

[DeerCamp]

I hunt in Iron River MI, about 10 mins from WI. I have seen a lot of them in our area.. The deer numbers seem to drop a bit every year as well.. The locals seem to think that there are far to many of them..