Government Delays Gray Wolf Delisting

Timber Wolf

According to North American Hunter magazine, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) says it won’t remove the gray wolf (Timber Wolf) from the Endangered Species List until Wyoming changes its proposed management plan for the animal. The USFWS has already accepted the wolf management plans of Idaho and Montana, two other states where the core population of the western gray wolf lives.

Wyoming wants two classifications for wolves – one in an area around Yellowstone where they’d be considered a trophy game species, and the other where they’d be considered a predator and hunted without limits.

To the end, the Wyoming House passed a bill upholding the wolf’s status as both a trophy game animal and predator.

Officials say the next step is likely a lengthy litigation process.

Delisting Wolves, Part Deux

Delisting and reclassifying wolves obviously means that some wolves are going to get shot. There are certainly some ranchers here in Idaho that simply can’t wait for the opportunity. But it also means that there are enough of them now that it's not a concern. It means that the re-introduction efforts were successful.

Provided that wolves are not hunted to extinction the way they were in the late seventeen and early eighteen hundreds, this may actually be good. If you study other game animals that are legal to hunt, (deer, elk, etc) those herds are stronger than ever as a result of hunting. I know it’s a hard concept to grasp, but in a nutshell, controlled amounts of hunting actually keep the herds (packs) from growing to sizes that are too big for the region they inhabit to support.

If game animals are allowed to multiply in un-checked quantities they will actually deplete their habitat of the resources they need to survive and end up killing themselves anyway. If there are enough wolves in the wild that hunting is eventually allowed, it’s honestly better for the wolves. And for us too!

As you probably already know, I am a hunter. But I have no intention of shooting wolves just because of a change in the law. If I eventually see that there are too many wolves in a given area, and I feel that thinning the pack would be beneficial, I *MIGHT* change my mind about that. But for now, I just can’t bring myself to do it. Shooting wolves currently serves no purpose for me.

Big Bad Buck Story, Part II

Perhaps I should have named this entry Big SAD Buck Story. The quick and deadly efficiency of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) has destroyed more than 90% of the deer in the areas that I hunt. And that number is more like 95% in the area that I've been chasing this buck. I saw more dead deer than live deer this past weekend.

The Buck that I've been out chasing over the years was killed by EHD about 2 weeks ago. I found him in the area I was hunting this past weekend and I was able to recover his antlers. But this is NOT the way I wanted to go about it.

This fabulous Buck has eluded me, and dozens of other hunters, for the better part of 5 or 6 years. There is no honor in death for a Buck of this caliber to die from a gnat bite. His antlers will hang on my wall with a small brass plaque that reads "The one that got away". And I'll enjoy telling the stories of how he got away time after time.

I'm convinced that I finally got it right this year, and that my hunt would have been successful had it not been for EHD. I was hunting in the right place at the right times. I saw the other deer that he ran with; I knew where his bedding and feeding areas were; and I knew what his escape routes were. It's hard for me to believe that I would not have been successful this year.

Then again, he always was just one step ahead of me... Was he still just one step ahead? Sadly, we'll never know for sure. But I do know that this will be my favorite debate for a great many years to come.

Big Bad Buck Story, Part I

I've been chasing this buck around for the better part of four years now. He doesn't look as big as he really is in this picture just because this picture was taken in April of this year and his antlers had only just begun to grow. In simple East Coast terms, this guy is a massive 10 point. Change to a West Coast Count and it gets a little trickier. He's either a 5x5 or a 4x4, depending on whether or not you count the brow tine. But no matter how you prefer to count, this guy is a Boone and Crockett for sure!

He's tricked me, gotten away, gone nocturnal and just been lucky for reasons as far reaching as a broken down truck. I've never had a legal shot at him. But don't get me wrong, this is one very smart buck. The truck created the financial pressure that caused me to settle for the smaller buck last year; but ultimately the big buck got away because he is smart. The good news is that I also got a little smarter each of the previous four years. Even shooting the spike made me realize something about how this character operates.

I spent just a few hours hunting this past weekend. Nothing serious, just out to have a look around, take some blurry bino-cam pictures and test my new found knowledge. And it looks like I passed the test. I saw the big buck's "harem", and I saw the token spike that he keeps around for emergencies. The big guy promptly went nocturnal on opening day, but the rut isn't that far away. What remains to be seen is whether or not his hormones get the best of him, and if I get the shot that I've been waiting for.

I hope that with what I now know about this buck I will finally get to "send the very best" in his general (actually, very specific) direction. Be sure to stay tuned for Part II of the Big Bad Buck Story later this season, and to learn if I've finally outsmarted a record book buck; or not.

The Rut is On!

The Rut. It's what every Elk hunter dreams of. A time when Bull Elk take complete leave of their senses in pursuit of a suitable partner to mate with - literally throwing caution to the wind and allowing their hormones to do all of their thinking for them.

The Rut is the best time to see the Bull Elk at Jewell Meadows Wildlife Area, about 40 miles west of Portland, OR. During the Rut these incredible animals fight to establish breeding rights. If you've never seen two 900+ pound animals square off and then collide head-long in a tangle of antlers, pushing and pulling, you'll be amazed. It's one of the most fascinating shows that Mother Nature has to offer!

The Rut is also the best time of the year to HEAR the Bull Elk at Jewell Meadows. It's during the Rut that they become the most vocal. If you've never heard an Elk Bugle, you're in for another real treat. It's like nothing you've ever imagined. In fact, it's a lot like something you might expect to hear in a Spielberg film. The only sound that can send more chills down your spine when you're alone in the wild is the call of the Wolf.

The Elk are always easy to spot in the Winter, but the best show is on right now. Elk are "in Rut" from approximately September 1st to October 15th. As many as 200 Roosevelt Elk live at this site managed by the Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. Be sure to bring your binoculars so that you can see the Elk from the view points along the pastures perimeter.

Wolf Song

Have you ever heard a wolf howl at night in the wild? I just read that some Native Americans believe that the howls of a lone wolf are the lost souls of deceased humans trying to return to the earth. Other tribes believe they are simply communicating with those in the Spirit World. Reading that made me remember quite clearly the first and only time I've ever heard wolves in the wild.

I was Elk Hunting and camping alone, not another human for miles. I was sound asleep and it was about 3am. I was awakened by what I estimate were three different wolf packs way up high on the three ridges that surrounded me. One pack on each ridge. The hair stood straight up on the back of my neck as I woke up. I was confused with sleep in my eyes, and never having had the pleasure of hearing wolves before, it took me a few minutes to realize what I was listening too.

Once I woke up enough to realize what I was hearing I rested a little easier and enjoyed the "show". But even knowing what it was it still felt very creepy to be out there all alone listening to that chorus.

Scary as it was, I'd drop everything and go camp right now if I thought I could duplicate the experience. If you've never heard wolf song in the wild you should add this to your to list of things you want to do before you leave this world. It will be VERY HARD to actually accomplish, kind of like winning the lottery. But worth the effort once it actually happens.