Taken from today's paper, found on the paper's site, IdahoStatesman.com:

Quote:

LANDER, Wyo. — Wyoming hunters and ranchers killed at least three gray wolves within the first three days of the animals’ removal from the federal endangered species list, local and state wildlife officials said. Wyoming, Montana and Idaho took over management of wolves within their borders on Friday as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ended protection of the animals under the Endangered Species Act. Two wolves, a male and a female, were killed Friday near an elk feedground in the Pinedale area in Sublette County, said Eric Keszler, spokesman for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. Scott Talbott, the Game and Fish official overseeing Wyoming’s new wolf management program, said one of the wolves was wearing a tracking collar. Also Friday, a rancher killed a wolf on his property because he’d been having problems with a wolf harassing his livestock, said Cat Urbigkit, a member of the Sublette County Predator Board. All three wolves were killed in Wyoming’s predator zone, where people are now allowed to kill wolves at any time and for any reason as long as they report the time, location and sex of each kill to the state within 10 days. The animals are still protected as a trophy species in Wyoming’s northwestern corner. “There has been a lot of excitement and interest for hunters in Sublette County,” Urbigkit said. “The predator board has nothing to do with that, but if the hunters are successful in their efforts, then hopefully the predator boards will not be called in on conflicts.” Wyoming is home to 25 wolf packs living outside of Yellowstone National Park, and seven of those live in the predator area. Wildlife officials have said that most of the 30 to 35 wolves living outside the trophy game zone live in adjoining Sublette County. Terry Pollard, co-owner of Bald Mountain Outfitters in Pinedale, said he heard reports of many locals going wolf hunting over the weekend, but most didn’t make any kills. “I think they’re finding just what we figured,” Pollard said. “These wolves are an extremely tough animal to hunt. There was a significant amount of hunters out this weekend, and very few of them were taken.” Mike Leahy, Rocky Mountain regional director of Defenders of Wildlife, said it’s hard to know how many wolves were killed over the weekend because hunters have 10 days to report kills within the predator zone. “In a shoot-on-sight zone, a large number of the wolves could be killed before Wyoming Game and Fish or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service even knows about it,” Leahy said. “There could be big impacts to the wolf population that go underreported until it’s too late.” Defenders of Wildlife is one of several groups that has filed notice of their intent to sue the Fish and Wildlife Service to retain Endangered Species Act protections for the wolves. Leahy said it’s too early to know whether the group will seek an emergency injunction against the federal delisting decision.

Quote:

Delisting sets new hurdles for initiative calling for removal of wolves in Idaho Supporters of an initiative demanding wolves be removed from Idaho say they are within an achievable 10,000 signatures of their goal with less than a month before the May 1 deadline for filing. But organizers aren't sure how many of the people who have signed are registered voters in Idaho - a requirement for each of the 45,893 signatures needed to get the issue on the Nov. 4 ballot. And now they've got another problem - the federal government has gotten out of the wolf business, removing Rocky Mountain wolves from Endangered Species Act protection. The state is now in charge of wolves and plans to make it easier for ranchers and hunters to kill the animals. The initiative would end that and return control to the feds - and likely return the endangered species protections many Idahoans are glad to leave behind. "We wouldn't be able to hunt wolves this fall," said Steve Nadeau, Fish and Game large carnivore manager and the state's point man on wolf management. Tony Mayer, leader of the group Save Our Elk, took over leadership of the initiative drive from Ron Gillett, director of the Stanley-based Idaho Anti-wolf Coalition. Mayer, who lives in Twin Falls, said his approach to the issue is different than that of Gillett, who was arrested in March on assault and battery charges after he was accused of attacking a wolf advocate. Gillett has pleaded not guilty in Custer County court. "Ron has approached the issue from an anti-wolf standpoint," Mayer said. "We're defending the elk." Mayer said the public should not take the language of the initiative literally. He doesn't intend nor believe the federal government would remove all of the wolves. Instead, he hopes the initiative prompts a new court case, with the backing of the state, to get a better deal that reduces the number of wolves required in Idaho. "We have to draw the line in the sand and say enough is enough," Mayer said. But Nadeau said removing the state from management won't help elk; it will increase conflicts among wolves, hunters, ranchers, livestock and elk. "There's a lot of emotion here," he said. "It's hard for people to think clearly when you are that emotional." Idaho officials fought the wolf introduction for years, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service turned management over to the Nez Perce tribe in 1995. That continued until 2002. Now the state has taken over, but seven environmental groups have vowed to sue to reverse the federal government's decision to delist the animals. But the Idaho Cattle Association, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife and other sportsmen and agriculture groups support the state's management of wolves. Even if the initiative got on the ballot, John Freemuth, a senior fellow at Boise State University's Andrus Center for Public Policy, doubts it would pass. A series of BSU polls since the early 1990s shows that while support for wolves has dropped, supporters of wolves have always outnumbered opponents. "If there was a vote, wolves would consistently win the election," Freemuth said.

wow i hope they don't get wolves removed from idaho, what would that do anyway

Rednecks will think they have another victory and use it to do more immoral acts, that are not justified and supporters are way outnumbered by animal activist. That's what will happen.

As the story says, hunting wolves is not an easy thing to do but with so few numbers (although hunters think 1800 is enough, when the population used to be in the millions and lived just fine), those 3 killings will add up.

probably add up pretty fast...

I figure I won't make as many topics which don't get very many replies, so I'll go ahead and update here. I haven't been paying very close attention to the issue of delisted wolves, but now lawsuits are being ordered and I think the States are getting sued for the delisted wolves and the killing of wolves.

Even some conserative viewers on the issue think that allowing hunting right after the wolves were delisted is illogical. "We'll kick them right back on the endangered speices list." Wolf hunting is trophy hunting, and trophy hunting all together is wrong. All hunting is now becoming trophy hunting and the spieces of every animal hunted will suffer for it. Killing off a buck that's the strongest in the herd, will make it impossible for that buck to pass on its genes to make strong offspring. That's how evolution works, and we're stopping that.