I’m sure everyone has heard the “story’ about the hunters in Northwestern Montana, that were “so scared” of a wolf pack they ended up shooting one of its members. In self-defense of course, they say, cause the big, bad wolves were scaring them.
I don’t buy their account of what happened. I think what might have happened is wolves could have been feeding on the carcass when the “hunters” came back the next day to retrieve the meat. They may have shot at the wolves to scare them off the carcass, killing one in the process. Or it could have been something more sinister, like they shot the wolf on purpose and are trying to cover it up. Nobody knows, it’s their word against the wolf and wolves are voiceless!!
If there is any truth to the story it’s that they left an elk carcass on the ground, in the woods, overnight, WHERE PREDATORS LIVE!! Of course they never could imagine a grizzly, mountain lion, coyote or wolf might want to feed on that carcass. Oh no? Have they ever heard of this:
“you need to respect that you are in wild regions and that you must clean up after yourself. You must “Leave No Trace”.
There may have been wolves in the area or even on the carcass but I don’t believe for one second their wild west account of what happened. I think this is CYA big time and sensationalism. It’s a chance to demonize wolves further. There’s already a website set up for people to report their “wolf encounters”. The anti-wolf crowd has jumped on this story big time, it’s their new “cause célèbre ” to demonize wolves. It’s not going to work!!
Anyone who lives in Northwest Montana knows you can run up against a predator at any time. A grizzly or any predator could be just around the corner when you’re hiking or hunting in these mountains. Isn’t that just common sense? Heck you’re not allowed to leave a gum wrapper in the woods let alone a carcass. Basic hunting and hiking 101?
This is a crock and I hope the USFWS investigator gets to the bottom of it. If these “hunters” killed the wolf illegally they should lose their hunting licenses for life and face all penalties.
“Killing an animal protected under the federal ESA is punishable by a fine of up to $100,000, one year in jail, or both.” But there’s one exception….self defense. Hmmmmm, interesting isn’t it?
If you kill an elk, and leave it on the ground overnight, expect there will be predators in the area when you return. A six-year-old could tell you that!
“Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please”……Mark Twain
=======
Wolf incident reported in Northwest Montana
Posted: Nov 4, 2010 12:18 PM by Mark Thorsell (KAJ Media Center)
http://www.kpax.com/news/wolf-incident-reported-in-northwest-montana/
Boulder White Clouds Council
Exposing The Big Game
Footloose Montana
Friends of the Clearwater
Lockwood Animal Rescue Center
Louise du Toit
LUPUSLAETUS
Mercy For Animals
Northern Idaho Wolf Alliance (NIWA)
Predator Friendly®- Because Wildlife Matters
Project Coyote
Project: Wolf
The Nature Conservancy
The Ravensong Group
WildEarth Guardians
Wisconsin Wildlife Ethic-Vote Our Wildlife
Wolf And Wildlife Studies: Jay Mallonee (Independent Wolf Biologist)
Wolf Song of Alaska
Wolves in english ! Les loups en anglais !
WWP's Gray Wolf Page
Yellowstone To Yukon Conservation Initiative
Howling For Justice 
The ‘its coming right for us’ line, I call B.S. on their story!
I agree. Sounds like poaching with a pathetic excuse. Adds convinient fuel for wolf hatred, wonder what spin Wolf Crossing or Lobo Watch is going to put on this!
“Proof: Hunters attacked by wolves in Montana! We need Wolf Management NOW (before children are eaten alive at bus stops on their way to school)!”
Scared? Scared doesn’t get rid of the fact they shot a protected species that was doing absolutely nothing to them. If we are to believe their story: what a couple of cowardly morons. Why are such people allowed to own firearms? Them peeing their pants over a few wolves speaks volumes about why they own rifles and hunt in the first place. Either way they should not get away without being slapped with a fine and if they are guilty of poaching, take away their guns and hunting rights PERMANENTLY and give them some time to think, maybe even work a bit harder on improving their low self esteems… behind prison bars for several months.
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John you said it even better. I believe it’s a crock and the more attention these guys get the more wolves will suffer. Their story doesn’t add up for me whatsoever.
N.
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If its a crock, let’s hope the law does what we Aussies do and jumps on it!
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LOL John (-:
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John I think there were two motivations behind this “story”. One is CYA, they are facing some serious fines and possible jail and the other is to sensationalize it to promote an anti-wolf agenda.
N.
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I think it was the sinister suggestion made in your article that these “so called” hunters really were participating in. Hunters just dont seem to be too much on the smart and /or respect all life spectrum. In fact most act that they are superior to be able to do as they please when it comes to the wilderness. This kind of ignorance just burns me up! Stupid is what stupid does…shooting the wolf just to see if they could, was what their singular brain wave was telling them what to do at the time…
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I’m tending to agree with you Judith. Their story sounds ridiculous and babyish. A mountain out of a mole hill.
I was born in the dark but it wasn’t last night.
N.
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you said because the wolf is dead it can’t defend itself. do you think if it was still alive it would be able to tell you what really happened out there?
just curious. T.
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Just stating the obvious Terry. I suspect if it was still alive it would be long gone from that area. Blame the wolf, they suffer silently. Those hunters can make up anything they want, it’s them against the wolves and the wolves aren’t talking.
N.
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N. they say there are always 3 sides to the story, each side tells their story and then there’s the truth. i don’t think it’s wise to rush to conclusions if one wasn’t there to witness the event.
i realize the wolves aren’t talking, do they ever?
T.
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Well Terry you may be right about three sides to the story, unfortunately only one side is being told, since the wolves are voiceless. I think rushing to judgement started the minute this tale was told, the anti-wolf crowd is out in force rallying around this like bees to honey. There’s already a website set up to record “wolf encounters”. Anyone that’s spent anytime in the woods around wolves know they are the least likely predator to fear, especially if someone is shooting at them. They have a tendency to run in the other direction.
I’ve had wolf encounters and grizzly encounters. I love grizzlies but I’d run into a wolf pack any day of the week before I’d want to tangle with a grizz. Wolves are notoriously elusive, they don’t like humans and don’t want anything to do with us, unless someone is dumb enough to leave an ungulate carcass out in the woods for all predators to feed on.
If a hunter is going to kill an elk they should have the means to carry it out the same day, minimizing any chance encounters with predators.
I read they carried out the elk’s head on the same day, they had no problem doing that. I also read the wolf was shot in the rump or back. Not sure if that’s correct or not but animals shot in the back or rump are usually running in the other direction.
N.
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http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/hunting_and_predators_does_it_work/C564/L564/
This guy George Wuerthner writes some amazing articles. He unlike most hunters understands that wolves are needed in the ecosystem.
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George is the best jon. He was a guest speaker at Rewilding Montana at the Roxy last week.
N.
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Question for you all, we all know hunters are allowed to kill wild predatory animals, but what happens to a wild animal that kills a hunter in self-defense? Is the wild animal put down if it kills a person that is trying to kill it? I see these pictures of hunters smiling while sitting down right next to the bears and mt. lions they just killed and it makes me sick and disgusted. You’d have to be an idiot to believe that these cowards with their guns respect and care about wildlife when they are killing it for sport. These animals do not need to die in the first place. I cannot tell you how many articles I read about mountain kittens being left to survivine on their own because coward hunters shot their mother dead. Makes me sick.
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survive
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It’s enough to make you weep every day jon. Wolves lives are so hard as it is and then they have to put up with this nonsense.
N.
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And the thing that disgusts most about it all besides the animals being killed when they don’t have to is the ones who are doing the killing are the ones that claim how much they love and respect and do for wildlife. I mean how absurd and crazy is that you think you love and have respect for wildlife when you are making a choice to kill a wild animal for sport? I don’t care what any hunter says, you don’t love or care about wildlife if you are killing it. Hunting deer or elk for food is one thing, but a good deal of hunters are out there killing animals when they don’t need to be killed in the first place.
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Jon …I think Paul Watson’s quote says it all…”You can’t love nature with a gun”.
N.
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I am sure of, knowing the arrogant attitude of most trophy hunters,that if such event happened they’d immediately send the animal to be shot.
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This “story” has not made sense from day one. Unfortunately, I think it is sinister in the extreme. I think it is very likely that this was a set up just to justify the anti-wolf hysteria that has been ramping up ever since Molloy’s ruling in August. These are trophy hunters plain and simple as far as I am concerned. ITA with Nabeki, why else would they have taken the head out and left the carcass? If they are so “scared” for their lives, may I suggest skeet shooting? That way an innocent animal doesn’t have to give his life and they still get to play with guns to “prove their manhood”. I’ll tell you why: they enjoy killing animals.
My father was one of 11 children and grew up on a farm in South Georgia. He was never a hunter, but his youngest brother used to hunt quail and deer (which I didn’t like even at a young age). I remember when my cousin, who was only about ten years old at the time, complaining that he “didn’t feel like helping to clean the birds” to which my uncle responded: “you always do two things if you hunt: you dress the meat the day of the kill, and you only kill what you are going to eat”.
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It also seems so strange to me why they can go look for a grizzly or a mountain lion and shoot it, and now they are complaining of being scared of wolves that thought it was they’re lucky day?
You’re father’s uncle words are very wise, indeed.
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Thanks so much SCWG for repeating your Uncle’s advise. That’s why I don’t think these two cared one thing about “their meat”. They made sure they carried the head with the rack on it the same day though.
N.
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Didn’t they take a week to report it? These hunters keep ragging that they support nature by buying their tags,etc.and yet,when it comes to dealing with with wild animals that inhabit in this area,some seem be so careless and casual in dealing with carcasses and lose foresight.A bear can smell better than dogs and can smell a kill miles away.If they couldn’t hang the elk from where it was, they sould have not shot it at all.Leaving it there you are taking your chances.The hunters want to find some reason to get rid of the wolves entirely and we have to fight back..
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Hi Rita, some hunters will say that not all hunters hate wolves and want them gone, but I find those who like wolves and want wolves to be the minority of hunters and they probably don’t like to speak their true feelings in fear of being ridiculed by fellow hunters. I like some on here keep tracking of news on wolves and I like to read all comments made by those who post on wolf articles and I can tell you that 99% of the comments that I see made by hunters, proves to me that most of them don’t like wolves and could careless if they were exterminated. Don’t be fooled by those who say hunters like wolves because they don’t. Chuck Feney, Toby Bridges, hunters look up to these vile human beings and support them and their views. Not all hunters, but a very good majority of them. Every now and then you will see ignorant comments by hunters like our grandfathers wiped them out for a reason. They are very ignorant people. You will always have people like this, but I believe that more people today than before support the wolf and don’t buy into the anti wolf propaganda. Wolves are not doing anything wrong besides eating elk and deer, that is what nature intended them to do.
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I don’t know if anyone heard about the bear attack on a woman in Washington. I posted it on Ralph’s blog, but anyways, here is what happened. A woman was walking with her dog, the dog was unleashed and saw a bear and ran after it. Some feel that the woman’s dog was harassing wildlife, but the dog ran after the bear unleashed and the woman went over to get her unleashed dog and the bear must have feel threatened and attacked and bit the woman. The woman survived, but now they are trying to find the bear responsible and like most of the time, they are going to kill the bear, but there is a backlash from the public not wanting the bear to be killed. Now what will happen is any bear that gets trapped will be killed. This is how fish and game agencies do their business. They trap any animal they find even if they have no clue if it was the responsible animal for the attack and just kill it most of the time. This has happened with other wild animal attacks and than they claim they will come out with the dna results in a few weeks to see if that bear they caught was the bear that attacked the person. So many wild animals have been killed that were innocent if you will. There is nothing that says just because a wild animal may attack a person in self-defense, that it is automatically going to do it again. This woman was careless and will cost some bear its life because of her irresponsibility letting her dog run loose unleashed.
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Jon,I agree whole heartedly.People want to let their pets lose or unattended.I have coyotes here in Indiana and I know what I can and can not do.My dog is leashed and under supervision.Animals die for people’s careless actions and foolfish decisions,sad to say,the so called offending animal is put down.
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I just wrote to Ed Bangs to ask him to please investigate this fully, that is has never made sense from the start. That I am sick to the teeth of our wildlife being slaughtered for sport. I also asked him to live up to the quote on his own website:
“Nothing is more priceless and more worthy of
preservation than the rich array of animal life with
which our country has been blessed. It is a manyfaceted treasure, of value to scholars, scientists, and nature lovers alike, and it forms a vital part of the heritage we all share as Americans.”
PRESIDENT RICHARD NIXON—STATEMENT UPON SIGNING THE
ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT, DECEMBER 28, 1973
What hypocrites!
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Hi SCWG,
Thanks for reminding us of Richard Nixon’s words when he signed one of the most important pieces of environmental legislation ever written. Certainly wolves would never have made any kind of a comeback without it in the West.
Thank you also for writing to Ed Bangs, we should all do the same, not stopping with Bangs but the head of USFWS. I’m so tired of wolves getting the short end of the stick. Their “story” doesn’t hold any water with me.
N.
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What I truly believe happened was that these 2 guys are wolf haters (I believe one of the hunters called wolves bastards and the other one called them killers) and they used the self defense lie. Meaning they saw wolves and shot at them just because they were wolves and because they were eating “their” elk and than try to cover it up by saying that the wolves were attacking them or threatening them and that’s why they shot them. Perfect excuse, but most can see their true intentions. I know some hunters are going to say, well it’s typical for hunters to leave the game meat to come back for it the next day, but if you think about it, it makes no sense. Why leave the game meat there unattended and exposed only to be found and eaten by predators? It would have made much more sense to just take it then and there and this is what fish and game departments recommend, getting the meat out of there as fast as possible. Elk certainly weigh a few hundreds pounds, but that is no excuse to be a lazy hunter. Fish and game agencies even recommend getting the meat out of there as soon as possible. Leaving the meat there to return the next day is a stupid move and a recipe for disaster. Wild animals will defend the kills that they find.
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A few years back Idaho resident and outfitter (also notorious wolf hater), Tim Sundels, used the same excuse. He still got found out and was charged with poaching. It really is a pathetic excuse, especially when it comes to animals like grey wolves.
How can they claim it was in self defence when the wolves did not attack them?
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Correction: Tim Sundles is merely a merchant of death. Owns a high power ammunition manufacturing company called Buffalo Bore, how he stayed in business after illegally killing the Twin Peaks alpha male is a profound mystery.
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John D, killing a wolf over them parts makes you a hero to some, mainly the anti wolf crowd. There is something terribly wrong with those people who have such an extreme hatred for an animal who is only trying to survive. They could care about what goes on. They are just wild animals trying to survive and some hate them because they eat elK. I mean what do those anti wolf nuts want wolves to eat? Humans can adapt with it comes to their food choices, wolves cannot as they are strictly carnivores. The greed and selfishiness of the white hunter is amazing. He feels that wildlife is only out there for him and him only and da the rest of the people who don’t hunt and want to view wildlife and would rather have wildlife alive rather than dead.
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I hope USFWS throws the book at them. But in this political wolf hating climate not sure what will happen John.
N.
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Jon,
All non-consumptive users hear is “leave no trace”, “pack it in, pack it out”. Yet they cut hunters a break and allow them to leave huge carcasses in the woods overnight for predators? No self respecting predator would pass up a free meal laying in the forest. This is bs. I agree with your theory that these “hunters” came upon the carcass and wolves may have been around. They shot at them and hit and killed one of them, the rest is CYA. If the wolves were actually howling and barking it was probably for their lost pack member. The whole situation makes me sick. A wolf is dead because they left meat out in the woods overnight. Great hunting practices. Another theory, there is absolutely no truth to what they said at all except they killed a wolf. Who knows, this could have been trumped up to for publiciity to demonize wolves? They are taking full advantage of the situation. The anti-wolf crowd is as excited about this as if they won the lottery. Well it won’t work, because I don’t think non-wolf hating public believes a word of it.
N.
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Just as it says on the top of this site,the quoate from Paul Watson”You can’t love nature with a gun.” Holds so true.
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Very true Rita. Do you have a big coyote problem over there in Indiana? Isn’t there a very small wolf population over there? I remember hearing that a wolf was shot over there or run over or something like that.
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Jon,We do have coyotes.I do not know the exact number but it wasn’t to long ago that a coyote snatched a small dog in Indianpolis,about an hour drive from were I live.There is a coyote refuge place that had gone on the evening news to remind us how to take care of our pets,such as do not walk pets in the dusk,for that is generally when predators start to hunt,bring pets in at night,and get high fences.(Sorry,I can’t remember the exact height. I keep my dog in the house),and we put homes where coyotes used to live on. They do suggest to bring in bird feeders at night,for they bring night visitors.Late last spring, with the late snow, the deer were having a hard time finding food and they were at my bird feeder. In fact,they were eating my neighbers evergreen shrubs or least trying to.Who is to say that coyotes are not out by the edge of the woods, We, I hate to admit it have out jerks ,and I do mean jerks,that trap coyotes and sell them for bait/penning for dogs to chase and kill.If it isn’t one thing, it’s another that you have to fight for.As for the shot wolf,they only said it being a wolf-hybred,and it might have been someones pet. I never heard anything more about it .I will try to find out more,if I can dig it up.I would like to see wolves in Indiana,but they are going to have to fight every bit of the way,with everyone so trigger happy to shoot them.I can only imagine wolves being able to migrate from Wisconsin to Indiana.There is wolf habitat and resue here and it is call’Wolf Creek Habit and Resue in Brooksville Indiana.
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http://outdoornews.com/wisconsin/news/article_6f6b48fe-e2b5-11df-b8b4-001cc4c002e0.html
Thoughts anyone? I find this disgusting. You would think parents would teach their kids to respect wildlife, not shoot it dead. The little kid is smiling with the dead bear whose life he took and he think’s this is a happy and funny moment. How sickening.
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The parents themselves were taught to kill for sport from a young age. Thus, they are now desensitising their young to keep the vicious cycle moving. The kid enjoys it because daddy/mummy/their friends show affection and they are rewarded with praise when they do it. Most children are discouraged from this behaviour or simply outgrow it with the natural acquisition of knowledge and compassion as they mature.
In the times of Genghis Khan, the killing of animals for sport was a way of desensitising children so they could kill people when they reached adulthood.
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You can learn about how each state views it’s wildlife by the hunting regs. My state doesn’t allow bear baiting, and I don’t think killing a bear of any size at a bait station is “Hunting”. This lazy form of hunting is teaching young people that it is OK to take the easy way to a trophy, like the new hillbilly endorsed by Hank Parker C mere deer attractant product. As far as the two hunters and the bogus excuse of being in fear for their lives I hope the investigation shows the wolf being shot in the rear to nail these cowards. It shows the sense of entitlement that these idiots think that they can leave A FRESH KILL AND EXPECT IT TO BE THEIRS THE NEXT DAY WITHOUT ANY PREDATORS EATING ANY.
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I actually couldn’t bring myself to watch it yet Jon. But I’ll try.
N.
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We have just received word from relatives in Montana that a group of wolf haters are intending to openly defy the judge’s ruling giving protection to the wolves. They are about to put traps all along ridges and known wolf trails.
Incidently, the claim that the wolves have caused the decline in the elk has been proven to be clearly false. In the Bitterroot Valley the hunters claimed the highest amount of elk taken in 5 years.
A huge herd of mountain sheep recently died of pneumonia. That might have been averted had the wolves been allowed to cull out the sick ones.
What can we do to stop this unrelenting attack on the wolves. Our relatives that take riding parties up into the mountains say that they almost never see or hear wolves…and, yet the horrible and unfounded stories persist, and the idiots and the uninformed believe them.
These people are defying a federal judge’s ruling…why isn’t that punishable with jail time, severe fines, and even the removal of their precious guns?
Surely, there must be a way to put a stop to this open defiance of a Federal Judge’s ruling. Even some of the people in office in Idaho and Montana are encouraging people to ignore the ruling and worse…to continue the carnage.
Are we just going to talk about this or does someone out there have some good ideas?
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“We have just received word from relatives in Montana that a group of wolf haters are intending to openly defy the judge’s ruling giving protection to the wolves. They are about to put traps all along ridges and known wolf trails.”
Has this been reported to the relevant authorities?
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@ Carl and Janice Butler.
Nabeki has my email just ask her for it and we can chat.
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Disgusting! This has to be reported! Something you can also do is not let others in the community believe such (pardon me) crap by giving hand out papers with info about all these wolf hunts and misinformation. I hope something has been done.
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Hi Carl and Janice,
As others have said I think you and your relatives should report this immediately to USFWS. What these cretins are planning on doing is a crime and needs to be reported. I’m sure you can do this anonymously, to protect yourselves.
I’m all for being more pro-active. That’s why I started Wolf Warriors, so people would get out from behind their computers and speak out for wolves in real time. It’s happening but we have to build a power base, this is a new grass roots movement and pro-wolf people are scared to speak out for fear of revenge from the other side. There are many scary people in the ant-wolf movement. Right now the other side holds all the cards. The governors and legislatures (both federal and state) in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming are pretty much anti-wolf. I can’t think of one name that would stand for wolves. We are fighting a one sided battle but I’m still optimistic. I always think of what Margaret Mead said:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”..MM
N.
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Will someone please expalin to me why hunters believe that wolves wiped out the elk in certain areas? Why can’t they accept that elk changed their behavior because of wolves and simply moved elsewhere to seek cover from wolves?Why is this so hard to believe for hunters? They wanna make wolves out to be the bad guy. use a scapegoat for the reason why I am an unsuccessful hunter in trying to get my game. Even Carter Niemeyer, a hunter and trapper btw said that wolves are no excuse to not get your animal.
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Because it doesn’t benefit them to accept the facts and adapt their hunting skills. They want to take the easy way, instead of being real, responsible and respectful hunters that at least accept facts and try to give back to Nature what they took from Her.
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Jon, Call it tunnel vision.They see and beleive only one thing;wolves gone and everything else is fair game.
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Ah! This is typical. Of course, the good-hearted hunters using a big, bad predator as an excuse to slip out of a problem. I wish they get a nice big fine or loose their hunting licenses.
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What infuriates me and I believe to be unjust and unfair is why hunters have total control over wildlife policy. Please dont present the lame argument that hunters are responsible for the return of wildlife in America. I have been purchasing ammo and firearms since I was 16. I am now 50. I dont hunt so the tax that I paid to Pittman Robertson Act was paid and applied. Hunter participants numbers are declining. While wildlife watcher numbers are increasing. 13 million hunters in the US verse 72 million and counting wildlife watchers. However the wildlife watchers have little influence in wildlife matters.
Montana had a early opening season for kids to hunt big game. This is a tactic to increase the interest of hunting in children. MTFWP can see the hand writing on the wall.
Its just a matter of time before the hunters loose their grip on wildlife.
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On November 11, 2010 at 9:17 pm Carl and Janice Butler said:
We have just received word from relatives in Montana that a group of wolf haters are intending to openly defy the judge’s ruling giving protection to the wolves. They are about to put traps all along ridges and known wolf trails.
Carl and Janice…..have your relatives call US Fish and Wildlife Service, Law Enforcement Division at….303-236-7540 to report this.
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[…] What a Crock! (howlingforjustice.wordpress.com) […]
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Carl and Janice…..have your relatives call US Fish and Wildlife Service, Law Enforcement Division at….303-236-7540 to report this.
Please let us know what action the USFWS intends to take.
Thanks
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http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/politics/5110-wolf-attack-qwithout-our-horses-and-guns-we-would-be-deadq
For those who haven’t had a chance to read the actual accounts go to the website above. (and NO!!! I don’t frequent this site – came up when I googled the accounts) These guys spent two days getting their stories strait and still had conflicting accounts on the route, the location, the way the meat was left, previous tracks, etc. Why is there no account from Benedict of the first day? Why did it take officials til Monday to investigate? (long after the scene was compromised)
A CROCK OF —- IS RIGHT!! Hope officials have the brians to see that!!
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And they actually expect people to believe their story?
There have been far better thought out excuses before this. The wolves didn’t attack them so it was not self-defence, it is poaching. Throw the book at these two idiots.
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Clap, clap John. My thoughts exactly!!
N.
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Hunters will believe their story simply because they are fellow hunters. Hunters stick up for one another even if they are lying. What I believe happened is that these 2 wolf haters saw the opportunity to kill some wolves and took it. They spoke up about it because they probably thought there is a small chance of getting caught and didn’t want to take that. One of the hunters called wolves killers and the other one called them bastards and whined about losing his elk meat to wolves. If wolves are killers than what the hell are hunters? Notice all of the things hunters accuse wolves of like being killers and killing for sport, hunters DO THE SAME EXACT THING? Wolves don’t kill for sport, human hunters do. Human hunters have KILLED MANY MORE ANIMALS THAN WOLVES. Hypocrities they are.
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Thanks so much Nancy for the link. All great questions. Let’s see what kind of investigation USFWS conducts. We are all watching.
N.
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As in brains!
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Idaho officials keep on crying wolf in order to protect the private interests of the powerful hunting outfitters and cattle industry as if wild game belonged exclusively to them.
Idaho officials’ petition to kill wolves with the goal of boosting elk population (for hunting) lacks credibility.
The assertion that elk population would rebound if not for wolves is nothing but crying wolf. Other determining factors like poaching and selective hunting are never emphasized.
The S-R Field Reports headline for Oct. 10 reported: “Anti-wolf activist cited for poaching.”
“Survival of the fittest” is still the rule. The fittest of a species survive to reproduce and pass along their traits to succeeding generations.
Selective hunting – picking out bigger individuals with the best horns or antlers – works the reverse of Darwin’s famous theory.
Trophy bulls, equipped to win mates or fend off attackers, i.e., wolves, become the evolutionary losers, and that consequently impacts the whole well-being of the herds.
Targeting wolves as the main cause of diminishing elk or deer population is a very risky management tool. It is highly likely to result in the END of a species.
Cecilia Nolthenius
Coeur d’Alene
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/nov/14/from-wolf-to-scapegoat/
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Jon….Excellent letter by Cecilia. For some reason hunters never blame themselves for prey declines but there have been studies that show they contribute greatly. I mean you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that when 100,000 hunter were roaming Montana in 2009, looking for “something to shoot”, that they are going to make a big dent in the the ungulate population, and predators as well. The whole fish and game system sucks.
N.
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I notice that too Nabeki. What about the elk that have been killed by the hunters? They don’t seem to say anything about the elk hunters kill, only wolves. I guess they don’t count those elk killed by hunters. The biggest mistake to wildlife is letting hunters “manage” or “control” it for their needs. You know how it goes Nabeki, hunters never get the blame. It’s always place the blame on the predators. Ignore other causes of death like weather, disease, poaching, etc and just place all of the blame for low game numbers on predators like wolves. I see more and more hunters becoming anti-predator. Hunters even think the grizzly bear in Wy are doing great and that couldn’t be further from the truth. There are 600 grizzlies in WY and hunters want to hunt and kill them. One of the slowest producing wild animals and they want to have a hunting season on them because they think 600 is too many for a slow producing animal.
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Voters reject proposition to make hunting, fishing constitutional rights
http://www.wmicentral.com/news/latest_news/article_85309372-e857-11df-b991-001cc4c002e0.html
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Does anyone know that some hunters are trying to put the people responsible for wolf reintroduction in jail? Yes, there are hunters who think people like Ed Bangs, dow, Doug Smith, etc should be in jail for supposedly “illegally introducing” non native wolves. What a load of crock. These nuts can’t stand that wolves are back where they should be. BTW, Carter Niemeyer has a new book coming out this month called wolfer. It’s about wolves. carterniemeyer.com
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Jon, the anti-wolf crowd never fails to amaze with their plots and schemes. This is seriously disturbing. The thing is, Ed Bangs is no hero to wolves any more. He has changed dramatically from the person that gave that interview to NOVA ONLINE in 2000, in my opinion.
Looking forward to Carter’s book.
N.
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Cretinous fools.
This is horrible, people don’t give a monkey’s about what they kill do they?
Zarago.
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