Cry wolf!
- Thread starter cliffy
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Harve Curry
Member
You Guys Don't Get It...........
The above statement doesn't work because reintroduced grey wolves are protected by the Endangered Species Act and the full forces of the Federal Government will come down on you for any violation.
At this time it costs about 1/4 million dollars to reintroduce one wolf, that is your tax payers dollars It was costing almost 1 million dollars per wolf. How do you like them apples? I think our soldiers could use the equipments that money could buy or how about a pay raise! Better then giving it to a dam wolf and ruining a local economy over it.
Another item that goes over peoples heads who are simpethetic or sitting on the fence for wolves is this:
The lower 48 states has lots of hunters and a huge industry of hunting elk and deer. I'm talking about western and southwestern states, very dry even the mountains are high deserts. If you have ever spent a week in the south west hunting you'll know what I'm talking about. It doesn't support large populations of elk and deer already. We are going to lose our good elk and deer hunting because the wolves will get them first. I'm for people first.
The above statement doesn't work because reintroduced grey wolves are protected by the Endangered Species Act and the full forces of the Federal Government will come down on you for any violation.
At this time it costs about 1/4 million dollars to reintroduce one wolf, that is your tax payers dollars It was costing almost 1 million dollars per wolf. How do you like them apples? I think our soldiers could use the equipments that money could buy or how about a pay raise! Better then giving it to a dam wolf and ruining a local economy over it.
Another item that goes over peoples heads who are simpethetic or sitting on the fence for wolves is this:
The lower 48 states has lots of hunters and a huge industry of hunting elk and deer. I'm talking about western and southwestern states, very dry even the mountains are high deserts. If you have ever spent a week in the south west hunting you'll know what I'm talking about. It doesn't support large populations of elk and deer already. We are going to lose our good elk and deer hunting because the wolves will get them first. I'm for people first.
Hello? The lights are on, but is anybody home? "You guys don't get it"??? I think maybeso you don't read so well. Let's try the most simple English, since you didn't understand what I said before. Wolves don't fit in the lower 48. They should not have been re-introduced.
Harve Curry
Member
Moosehunt,
I was refering to reply number
51 and others that are pro wolf. I read all your replies to this topic and your right on target.
I'm going back out and call some coyotes..........
I was refering to reply number
51 and others that are pro wolf. I read all your replies to this topic and your right on target.
I'm going back out and call some coyotes..........
cassandrasdaddy
Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
- Messages
- 4,206
http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/mammals/wolf/annualrpt06/Table 5b.pdf
http://www.pinedaleonline.com/news/2008/04/Fourwolveskilledforl.htm
http://www.casperstartribune.net/ar.../wyoming/11d9b701618c0ad787256fc6006c3410.txt
Wildlife considerations
Wolves could be used to control populations of wild ungulates, another Colorado speaker said Tuesday.
Mike Bond of Littleton spoke about the effects wolves have on elk, deer, moose and other animals. Bond represents hunters on the Colorado wolf working group, which was established about a year ago after Colorado officials decided to develop plans to address wolves they expect to migrate to their state.
Bond did his homework and reviewed data from 71 studies done on the impacts of wolves on ungulates.
"I was astonished by what I learned. I determined wolves have a minimal impact on wild ungulates unless those ungulates are already impacted by other factors," Bond said. Those other factors include harsh winters, overgrazing and disease.
Most of the studies showed that wolf predation can have a negative effect on ungulates, Bond said, but wolves don't have a significant controlling effect on wild ungulate populations.
What that means to Bond and other Colorado hunters, he said, is that wolves can have a positive effect in helping move elk and deer around, and wolves can be instrumental in getting rid of old and sick deer and elk.
Bond went so far as to suggest that a few wolves be introduced into Rocky Mountain National Park to help reduce the elk population there. Hunting is not allowed in Rocky Mountain National Park, he said.
Wildlife managers have estimated that Colorado has more than 100,000 elk above the state's herd objective, Bond said.
The presence of wolves in Colorado would mean some elk, especially sick animals, would be killed by wolves, he said, and wolves might chase some elk out of protected parks, so hunters could kill some elk.
"Wolves may the best management tool we have for chronic wasting disease," Bond said.
Bond said he was "substantially opposed to having any wolves in Colorado" when he was appointed to the working group.
"I was astonished that as I talked to friends and hunters, I found a lot of hunters weren't opposed to wolves," he said. "This annoyed and shocked me."
It's also important to take into consideration the economic advantages that wolves can bring to small Western towns, he said.
Tourists travel from all over the world to see wolves, and if there was a limited, managed wolf reintroduction in Colorado, towns there would benefit, Bond said.
Star-Tribune correspondent Shelley Ridenour can be reached at [email protected].
http://www.pinedaleonline.com/news/2008/04/Fourwolveskilledforl.htm
http://www.casperstartribune.net/ar.../wyoming/11d9b701618c0ad787256fc6006c3410.txt
Wildlife considerations
Wolves could be used to control populations of wild ungulates, another Colorado speaker said Tuesday.
Mike Bond of Littleton spoke about the effects wolves have on elk, deer, moose and other animals. Bond represents hunters on the Colorado wolf working group, which was established about a year ago after Colorado officials decided to develop plans to address wolves they expect to migrate to their state.
Bond did his homework and reviewed data from 71 studies done on the impacts of wolves on ungulates.
"I was astonished by what I learned. I determined wolves have a minimal impact on wild ungulates unless those ungulates are already impacted by other factors," Bond said. Those other factors include harsh winters, overgrazing and disease.
Most of the studies showed that wolf predation can have a negative effect on ungulates, Bond said, but wolves don't have a significant controlling effect on wild ungulate populations.
What that means to Bond and other Colorado hunters, he said, is that wolves can have a positive effect in helping move elk and deer around, and wolves can be instrumental in getting rid of old and sick deer and elk.
Bond went so far as to suggest that a few wolves be introduced into Rocky Mountain National Park to help reduce the elk population there. Hunting is not allowed in Rocky Mountain National Park, he said.
Wildlife managers have estimated that Colorado has more than 100,000 elk above the state's herd objective, Bond said.
The presence of wolves in Colorado would mean some elk, especially sick animals, would be killed by wolves, he said, and wolves might chase some elk out of protected parks, so hunters could kill some elk.
"Wolves may the best management tool we have for chronic wasting disease," Bond said.
Bond said he was "substantially opposed to having any wolves in Colorado" when he was appointed to the working group.
"I was astonished that as I talked to friends and hunters, I found a lot of hunters weren't opposed to wolves," he said. "This annoyed and shocked me."
It's also important to take into consideration the economic advantages that wolves can bring to small Western towns, he said.
Tourists travel from all over the world to see wolves, and if there was a limited, managed wolf reintroduction in Colorado, towns there would benefit, Bond said.
Star-Tribune correspondent Shelley Ridenour can be reached at [email protected].
cassandrasdaddy
Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
- Messages
- 4,206
more cry wolf
i thought they didn't kill em?
http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2008/09/04/features/outdoors/doc48c09b10a0390295122354.txt
Montana wolves eradicated because of livestock depredation
By Lee News Service
Federal trappers have killed the entire Willow Creek wolf pack near Hall because of chronic livestock depredations.
The pack included an alpha male wolf, alpha female, a yearling and two wolf pups.
Each year, several wolf packs in Montana are eradicated because of conflicts with livestock, but it’s not a common practice, said Liz Bradley, wolf management specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
A male wolf from Idaho migrated southwest of Hall and established the Willow Creek pack in the summer of 2005. For three years, the pack roamed private property near grazing livestock.
But last year, there were several reports of wolves in the area harassing livestock and one report of an injured calf.
Then in April, wolves killed a calf and a lamb belonging to two different landowners. The pack had grown to 10 adult wolves and three pups at that time.
Given the size of the pack, its proximity to private property and the number of livestock in the area, FWP – the agency charged with wolf conservation and management in Montana on nontribal lands – initially decided the best long-term solution was to reduce the pack by half.
Federal agents killed five of the adult wolves last spring, Bradley said.
During the summer, state wildlife managers stepped up monitoring efforts to reduce future conflicts. In addition, they built visual barriers between livestock and the wolves, and hazed the pack out of calving pastures and off private land.
Ranchers helped by removing livestock carcasses immediately when they died of natural causes, Bradley said.
“Everyone was working together to keep it from happening again,” she said.
Then on Aug. 14, it was confirmed another wolf killed a calf in the area.
This time, wildlife managers decided to take out three of the five remaining adult wolves in an incremental fashion. There had been turnover within the pack during the summer, so biologists thought that eliminating a few more members of the pack would stop the depredations.
Then, on Aug. 23, another calf was killed by a wolf on private land.
At that point, state officials decided to take out of the remainder of the pack, a plan that was executed by federal trappers on Friday.
There’s quite a bit of livestock in western Montana, but it’s not often that packs chronically depredate, Bradley said. Last year, an entire pack was removed in the same area.
Often livestock and wolf conflicts increase in late summer because cattle are grazing across open range and wolf pups are becoming more mobile so there’s more pressure to feed them, Bradley said.
i thought they didn't kill em?
http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2008/09/04/features/outdoors/doc48c09b10a0390295122354.txt
Montana wolves eradicated because of livestock depredation
By Lee News Service
Federal trappers have killed the entire Willow Creek wolf pack near Hall because of chronic livestock depredations.
The pack included an alpha male wolf, alpha female, a yearling and two wolf pups.
Each year, several wolf packs in Montana are eradicated because of conflicts with livestock, but it’s not a common practice, said Liz Bradley, wolf management specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
A male wolf from Idaho migrated southwest of Hall and established the Willow Creek pack in the summer of 2005. For three years, the pack roamed private property near grazing livestock.
But last year, there were several reports of wolves in the area harassing livestock and one report of an injured calf.
Then in April, wolves killed a calf and a lamb belonging to two different landowners. The pack had grown to 10 adult wolves and three pups at that time.
Given the size of the pack, its proximity to private property and the number of livestock in the area, FWP – the agency charged with wolf conservation and management in Montana on nontribal lands – initially decided the best long-term solution was to reduce the pack by half.
Federal agents killed five of the adult wolves last spring, Bradley said.
During the summer, state wildlife managers stepped up monitoring efforts to reduce future conflicts. In addition, they built visual barriers between livestock and the wolves, and hazed the pack out of calving pastures and off private land.
Ranchers helped by removing livestock carcasses immediately when they died of natural causes, Bradley said.
“Everyone was working together to keep it from happening again,” she said.
Then on Aug. 14, it was confirmed another wolf killed a calf in the area.
This time, wildlife managers decided to take out three of the five remaining adult wolves in an incremental fashion. There had been turnover within the pack during the summer, so biologists thought that eliminating a few more members of the pack would stop the depredations.
Then, on Aug. 23, another calf was killed by a wolf on private land.
At that point, state officials decided to take out of the remainder of the pack, a plan that was executed by federal trappers on Friday.
There’s quite a bit of livestock in western Montana, but it’s not often that packs chronically depredate, Bradley said. Last year, an entire pack was removed in the same area.
Often livestock and wolf conflicts increase in late summer because cattle are grazing across open range and wolf pups are becoming more mobile so there’s more pressure to feed them, Bradley said.
caribou
Member
Interesting Cassandrasdad, think i might agree.....LOL!
No matter the subject, emotions are always challanging science.
What a Thread!
"Are we Men or are we Devo??!!"
~L.O.L.!!!~
No matter the subject, emotions are always challanging science.
What a Thread!
"Are we Men or are we Devo??!!"
~L.O.L.!!!~
Last edited:
Harve Curry
Member
Wolf related links:
www.770KKOB.com
www.wolfcrossing.org
Wolf Deaths in Press Release Aren't Accurately Portrayed
(article from a local newsletter)
Recently the Center for Biological Diversity issued a press release. Read the release in it's intended context in a prior email.
We tend to disagree with just about everything the CBD has to say about the cause of death for their mortality chart. The first three wolf pups actually did die of canine parvovirus but that diagnosis doesn't fit the CBD agenda. The francisco pups were killed and eaten by their parents in the den this happens in the wild as well. Perhaps this has more to do with the perceived low numbers of wolves in the wild than mismanagement does although, very little attempt to verify litter survival has occurred in the program other than a year end count of collared wolves. Pups don't collar themselves therefore are seldom counted.
The following is a clearer explanation of what actually happened to the wolves the CBD are trying to portray as victims. Almost every one was a legitimate and legal removal. The Hon-Dah pups were the only exception and we agree the person who housed them with another wolf pack was responsible for their brutal but totally foreseeable end. It is very important that we continually hold the CBD's feet to the fire and remember what happened to these animals and why. If anyone sees a story about this press release in the media in upcoming days please feel free to clarify the misinformation put forth by the CBD.
thanks Wolf ID / Pack Death Date Cause or Circumstances of Death
m623 / Pipestem 8/24/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus a virus that commonly kills entire litters of canine pups, not caused by stress.) f625 / Pipestem 8/30/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus) m626 / Pipestem 8/30/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus) M580 / Wildcat 11/9/2001 hyperthermia from helicopter pursuit WE SAY (wolf left newly released mate with newborn litter and strayed from recovery area. This caused the death of most litter and blind survivor rescued by FWS personnel. Completely abnormal behavior of inbred wolves, continues to contribute to mortality.)
AF592 / Sycamore 5/27/2003 CBD says: shot by Fish and Wildlife Service WE SAY: (With it's mate, this wolf harassed and terrorized a human child and killed multiple calves agency personnel merely managed appropriately as the ten J rule and ESA allow.) ??827 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??828 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_
??829 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??830 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??831 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_
AM574 / Saddle 7/11/2004 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation) as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes. AM729 / Ring 6/26/2005 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation) lethally controlled as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes for massive multiple uncontrollable livestock depredation dozens of head killed prior to lethal control) AF511 / Francisco 7/21/2005 CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly but 3.5 after her third capture indicates age and physical condition when captured played a roll. Removal was as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes for massive multiple uncontrollable livestock depredation dozens of head killed prior to lethal control in same area as Ring pack (AF 511's daughter was Ring AF so it was all in the family) m1018 / Hon-Dah 4/26/2006
CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly starvation related stress) f1020 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) f1021 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1022 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1023 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.)
m1024 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1025 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) AF1027 / Hon-Dah 5/22/2006 CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly but starvation and large litter may have played a roll.)
AM578 / Hon-Dah 5/24/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (All Hon-dah were removed for massive livestock depredations on White Mtn, Reservation impacting poverty stricken indegenous people's unduly, possibly due to starvation.) M864 / lone wolf 5/28/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation uncompensated, lethal control took place as per 10 J rule and ESA)
AM993 / Nantac 6/18/2006 CBD says shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (both wolves were killing a cow calf pair a day, agency personnel could not stop them, both wolves were in proximity of home with children and were coming to home and behaving aggressively. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) AF873 / Nantac 7/6/2006 CBD says shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (both wolves were killing a cow calf pair a day, agency personnel could not stop them, both wolves were in proximity of home with children and were coming to home and behaving aggressively. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.)
M859 / lone wolf 11/22/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple livestock depredations occurred, were tied to this animal. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) AM796 / San Mateo 2/20/2007 shot by USDA Wildlife Services (multiple livestock depredation confirmed, including attacks on horses. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) ) m1007 / Saddle 3/16/2007 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple livestock depredation occurred were tied to this animal. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) )
AF924 / Durango 7/5/2007 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (final livestock depredation occurred was tied to this and it's mate, both wolves 23 times at residence where child lived and was terrorized by wolf presence.)
And not last and certainly not least, apparently, the Center for Biological Diversity doesn't want to discuss Aspen pack stresses, and mortalities much less, depredations from November 2006 to December 2007 either. They don't want to discuss with media the stalking of an 8 year old human child the attack of her dog that defended her. The killing of numerous dogs at family homes. Then finally a full grown horse belonging to the stalking victim. They don't seem to care that the Alpha male was killed by another wolf, the pack was moved by the new male, much to the relief of the parents and child impacted by these animals.
The newly formed pack lost two to three members, and those that were left promptly began killing yearling cattle to feed a new litter, a tally of about 16 head until they were removed in Dec of 07. Only removed because the rancher involved was faced with no choice but to legally shoot them for the uncontrolled destruction of livestock that was occuring primarily on private land. Since that last major spree depredation, there have been dozens of livestock killed and maimed by other wolves but these and other organizations refuse to allow management authorized by the 10J rule and the ESA. Worse, now the agencies are caving into their whims.
www.770KKOB.com
www.wolfcrossing.org
Wolf Deaths in Press Release Aren't Accurately Portrayed
(article from a local newsletter)
Recently the Center for Biological Diversity issued a press release. Read the release in it's intended context in a prior email.
We tend to disagree with just about everything the CBD has to say about the cause of death for their mortality chart. The first three wolf pups actually did die of canine parvovirus but that diagnosis doesn't fit the CBD agenda. The francisco pups were killed and eaten by their parents in the den this happens in the wild as well. Perhaps this has more to do with the perceived low numbers of wolves in the wild than mismanagement does although, very little attempt to verify litter survival has occurred in the program other than a year end count of collared wolves. Pups don't collar themselves therefore are seldom counted.
The following is a clearer explanation of what actually happened to the wolves the CBD are trying to portray as victims. Almost every one was a legitimate and legal removal. The Hon-Dah pups were the only exception and we agree the person who housed them with another wolf pack was responsible for their brutal but totally foreseeable end. It is very important that we continually hold the CBD's feet to the fire and remember what happened to these animals and why. If anyone sees a story about this press release in the media in upcoming days please feel free to clarify the misinformation put forth by the CBD.
thanks Wolf ID / Pack Death Date Cause or Circumstances of Death
m623 / Pipestem 8/24/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus a virus that commonly kills entire litters of canine pups, not caused by stress.) f625 / Pipestem 8/30/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus) m626 / Pipestem 8/30/1999 CBD says capture stress-induced disease WE SAY (Canine Parvovirus) M580 / Wildcat 11/9/2001 hyperthermia from helicopter pursuit WE SAY (wolf left newly released mate with newborn litter and strayed from recovery area. This caused the death of most litter and blind survivor rescued by FWS personnel. Completely abnormal behavior of inbred wolves, continues to contribute to mortality.)
AF592 / Sycamore 5/27/2003 CBD says: shot by Fish and Wildlife Service WE SAY: (With it's mate, this wolf harassed and terrorized a human child and killed multiple calves agency personnel merely managed appropriately as the ten J rule and ESA allow.) ??827 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??828 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_
??829 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??830 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_ ??831 / Francisco 6/10/2003 CBD says: stress from construction activities near pen WE SAY: (possibly canine parvovirus and Cannibalism by parents. FWS won't say_
AM574 / Saddle 7/11/2004 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation) as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes. AM729 / Ring 6/26/2005 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation) lethally controlled as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes for massive multiple uncontrollable livestock depredation dozens of head killed prior to lethal control) AF511 / Francisco 7/21/2005 CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly but 3.5 after her third capture indicates age and physical condition when captured played a roll. Removal was as 10J rule allows and ESA authorizes for massive multiple uncontrollable livestock depredation dozens of head killed prior to lethal control in same area as Ring pack (AF 511's daughter was Ring AF so it was all in the family) m1018 / Hon-Dah 4/26/2006
CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly starvation related stress) f1020 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) f1021 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1022 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1023 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.)
m1024 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) m1025 / Hon-Dah 5/20/2006 CBD says: captured pup placed with & killed by unrelated wolf WE SAY: (agree with CBD placement with other wolves was shear idiocy someone should have been fired.) AF1027 / Hon-Dah 5/22/2006 CBD says: capture myopathy WE SAY: (possibly but starvation and large litter may have played a roll.)
AM578 / Hon-Dah 5/24/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (All Hon-dah were removed for massive livestock depredations on White Mtn, Reservation impacting poverty stricken indegenous people's unduly, possibly due to starvation.) M864 / lone wolf 5/28/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple uncontrolled livestock depredation uncompensated, lethal control took place as per 10 J rule and ESA)
AM993 / Nantac 6/18/2006 CBD says shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (both wolves were killing a cow calf pair a day, agency personnel could not stop them, both wolves were in proximity of home with children and were coming to home and behaving aggressively. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) AF873 / Nantac 7/6/2006 CBD says shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (both wolves were killing a cow calf pair a day, agency personnel could not stop them, both wolves were in proximity of home with children and were coming to home and behaving aggressively. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.)
M859 / lone wolf 11/22/2006 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple livestock depredations occurred, were tied to this animal. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) AM796 / San Mateo 2/20/2007 shot by USDA Wildlife Services (multiple livestock depredation confirmed, including attacks on horses. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) ) m1007 / Saddle 3/16/2007 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (multiple livestock depredation occurred were tied to this animal. Lethal control took place through 10J rule and ESA requirements.) )
AF924 / Durango 7/5/2007 CBD says: shot by USDA Wildlife Services WE SAY: (final livestock depredation occurred was tied to this and it's mate, both wolves 23 times at residence where child lived and was terrorized by wolf presence.)
And not last and certainly not least, apparently, the Center for Biological Diversity doesn't want to discuss Aspen pack stresses, and mortalities much less, depredations from November 2006 to December 2007 either. They don't want to discuss with media the stalking of an 8 year old human child the attack of her dog that defended her. The killing of numerous dogs at family homes. Then finally a full grown horse belonging to the stalking victim. They don't seem to care that the Alpha male was killed by another wolf, the pack was moved by the new male, much to the relief of the parents and child impacted by these animals.
The newly formed pack lost two to three members, and those that were left promptly began killing yearling cattle to feed a new litter, a tally of about 16 head until they were removed in Dec of 07. Only removed because the rancher involved was faced with no choice but to legally shoot them for the uncontrolled destruction of livestock that was occuring primarily on private land. Since that last major spree depredation, there have been dozens of livestock killed and maimed by other wolves but these and other organizations refuse to allow management authorized by the 10J rule and the ESA. Worse, now the agencies are caving into their whims.
Last edited by a moderator:
wyocarp
Member
Today's article on wolves and their interaction with other animals.
cassandrasdaddy
Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
- Messages
- 4,206
http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=8689
Wolves well fed at Yellowstone, but elk population's safe
By Ryan Smith, ExpressNews Staff
Wolves attack an elk in Yellowstone National Park.
Wolves attack an elk in Yellowstone National Park.
Print story | Email story
August 30, 2007 - Edmonton - If Mark Boyce could converse with elk, he might give them a word of advice: avoid open, flat, snowy areas near rivers and roads.
A biological scientist at the University of Alberta, Boyce analyzed 774 wolf-elk kill sites and concluded that spatial patterns of predation between wolves and elk are more strongly influenced by landscape features than by wolf distribution.
"We found that even though wolf and elk populations overlapped in many areas of our study, the kill sites did not correlate with the areas of overlap as much as they were consistent with certain landscape features, such as proximity to roads," Boyce said.
The research results were published recently in the academic journal Ecology Letters.
Boyce and his colleagues studied the wolf-elk interactions over a period of 10 consecutive winters in a northern range of the Yellowstone National Park in the U.S.
The area has been of special interest to researchers since 1995, when 14 wolves from the Canadian Rockies were introduced to the park. Wolves had been extirpated from Yellowstone in the 1930s, and some people speculated the park's elk population would be doomed with the re-introduced wolves. However, while the number of wolves on Yellowstone's northern range has since grown to 84, the number of elk has not declined appreciably.
"We've found that the availability of refuge areas for elk, and their ease of accessing them, should buffer the elk population in the park from extreme levels of predation," Boyce said.
Boyce added that wolves are inefficient predators, with low rates of hunting success, usually around 20 per cent, due in part to the large size and defensive capabilities of elk, their main prey. Elk in their prime are largely invulnerable to predation from wolves, which are highly selective and target the young, old or weak.
"Our findings suggest that landscape features may often 'tip the balance' in predator-prey outcomes, thus influencing post-encounter outcomes," Boyce said.
Boyce and colleagues noted that "browse communities" - foraging areas in open, flat landscape near roads or rivers (which can cut off escape routes) - offer the greatest risk of wolf predation for elk. Also, deep snowy areas, much harder for elk to move through, are also dangerous.
The great challenge for the elk, however, is that the risky foraging areas provide sustenance during the critical winter months, when the elk experience shrinking fat reserves.
"Our study makes clear that elk in winter face a clear trade-off between forage quality and predation risk. How elk perceive and manage the trade-off between food and safety will ultimately determine if they will survive," Boyce said.
Wolves well fed at Yellowstone, but elk population's safe
By Ryan Smith, ExpressNews Staff
Wolves attack an elk in Yellowstone National Park.
Wolves attack an elk in Yellowstone National Park.
Print story | Email story
August 30, 2007 - Edmonton - If Mark Boyce could converse with elk, he might give them a word of advice: avoid open, flat, snowy areas near rivers and roads.
A biological scientist at the University of Alberta, Boyce analyzed 774 wolf-elk kill sites and concluded that spatial patterns of predation between wolves and elk are more strongly influenced by landscape features than by wolf distribution.
"We found that even though wolf and elk populations overlapped in many areas of our study, the kill sites did not correlate with the areas of overlap as much as they were consistent with certain landscape features, such as proximity to roads," Boyce said.
The research results were published recently in the academic journal Ecology Letters.
Boyce and his colleagues studied the wolf-elk interactions over a period of 10 consecutive winters in a northern range of the Yellowstone National Park in the U.S.
The area has been of special interest to researchers since 1995, when 14 wolves from the Canadian Rockies were introduced to the park. Wolves had been extirpated from Yellowstone in the 1930s, and some people speculated the park's elk population would be doomed with the re-introduced wolves. However, while the number of wolves on Yellowstone's northern range has since grown to 84, the number of elk has not declined appreciably.
"We've found that the availability of refuge areas for elk, and their ease of accessing them, should buffer the elk population in the park from extreme levels of predation," Boyce said.
Boyce added that wolves are inefficient predators, with low rates of hunting success, usually around 20 per cent, due in part to the large size and defensive capabilities of elk, their main prey. Elk in their prime are largely invulnerable to predation from wolves, which are highly selective and target the young, old or weak.
"Our findings suggest that landscape features may often 'tip the balance' in predator-prey outcomes, thus influencing post-encounter outcomes," Boyce said.
Boyce and colleagues noted that "browse communities" - foraging areas in open, flat landscape near roads or rivers (which can cut off escape routes) - offer the greatest risk of wolf predation for elk. Also, deep snowy areas, much harder for elk to move through, are also dangerous.
The great challenge for the elk, however, is that the risky foraging areas provide sustenance during the critical winter months, when the elk experience shrinking fat reserves.
"Our study makes clear that elk in winter face a clear trade-off between forage quality and predation risk. How elk perceive and manage the trade-off between food and safety will ultimately determine if they will survive," Boyce said.
cassandrasdaddy
Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2006
- Messages
- 4,206
...Except that dogs don't play with their food. Cats do though..in fact, cats are one of the only other animals besides humans that hunt for fun/sport. Dogs, are not. Every time I've ever seen one of my dogs kill (birds, rabbits, etc) the deed is done is seconds, and if I'm not fast whatever they caught will be eaten in seconds as well. With my cats, they'll play with what they catch for 5-30 minutes before killing it, each and every time. I have no problem with your apparent hatred for wolves...just make sure you have your facts right if you choose to do so.
Just a random question...has anyone ever seen a dog toy with an animal it intends to kill/eat? For that matter, has anyone ever seen a dog kill for fun?
Harve Curry
Member
Domestic dogs running in packs chasing livestock (horses, cattle goats sheep etc.) They have a blast heeling and heading them, and contagious behaviour for other dogs.
IdahoLT1
Member
my great grand father shot and killed one of the of the neighbors 2 dingo's. They would chase his horses, and he got tired of scaring them off with them coming back. So he called the neighbor and notified them/warned them he would shoot them if he saw them on his property chasing his horses. About 5 days later, saw them again and shot and killed the female. He dragged it over to the neighbors front step, shotgun in hand. He knocked on the door and when they answered he said "heres your dog. I told you what was going to happen. If you wouldnt take care of it, i would." and he left it at that. Never saw male Dingo after that.
I missed the part where they attacked, maimed, or killed the livestock for fun. Not saying it doesn't happen, just trying to make a point that that type of behavior is not the norm for canines, domesticated or otherwise. Sure, there are going to be some animals with behavioral issues, but that's the animal's issue, and should not be seen as reflective the whole species, which by and large, doesn't attack, maim, or kill something unprovoked unless it plans on eating it at some point.
IdahoLT1
Member
Dingo's are well known for chasing an animal till it dies. My great grnadpa didnt lose any horses but his son(my grand uncle) had one of his horses killed a similar way in Missouri. The horse was chased by dogs until it died and was left, bite wounds on the hind legs but nothing was consumed off of it.
First, when you say Dingo, do you mean the wild animal from Australia?
Second, there's a difference between chasing something and having it die as a consequence of that and playing with something until you kill it for fun. The dogs weren't hunting the horse, they weren't thinking of it as a prey animal, they just saw something interesting and were having fun. If the horse stopped running, the dogs would have lost interest and that would have been that. When a cat sees a mouse, it'll bat it around and maul it as long as it's moving, and when it stops/becomes incapable of running and the cat gets bored, assuming it's still alive, the cat will either kill it or leave it so mangled that it might as well have finished it off. Eating it is a secondary concern. The cat was in hunter mindset from the start, and saw the mouse as prey, even if it didn't realize that it wasn't hungry until after the fact. The dogs just saw something they thought was fun and interesting. It's a subtle but very important difference...the cat's intention was to kill, the dog's was not..the animal just happened to die as an unfortunate consequence.
It's the same subtle distinction that one has to make when looking at a self defense shooting; was the shooter's intention to kill, or was the shooter's intention to stop the attacker? The feline intends to kill, or at the very least, to harm. The dogs just saw something fun; they never made the switch into hunter/prey mentality. The horse might as well have been a tennis ball.
d2wing
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- Joined
- Nov 10, 2008
- Messages
- 6,434
We've always had wolves here in Mn. They are pretty shy, it's rare to see them in the wild. My grandfather was threatened by a pack but managed to hold them off and get home. I only know of one person actually attacked and injured by a wolf. They do thin out the deer and moose in a tough winter.
In some areas the deer numbers are way down and moose have disappeared altogether. In some areas they are hard on livestock too.
I can only recall seeing one in the wild. I've been told they take turns chasing deer in big circles. It's not unusual to hear them howl at night camping up "Nort".
As far as I am concerned they are difficult to control and should not be protected. I don't want to share a place on the food chain and the wolves really hurt some livestock owners. They can really raise havoc with a flock of turkeys or sheep, they do kill for fun.
In some areas the deer numbers are way down and moose have disappeared altogether. In some areas they are hard on livestock too.
I can only recall seeing one in the wild. I've been told they take turns chasing deer in big circles. It's not unusual to hear them howl at night camping up "Nort".
As far as I am concerned they are difficult to control and should not be protected. I don't want to share a place on the food chain and the wolves really hurt some livestock owners. They can really raise havoc with a flock of turkeys or sheep, they do kill for fun.
MT GUNNY
Member
Quote:
I'm all for reintroducing wolves and thus restoring our full indigenous species spectrum to the North American eco-system, PROVIDED THAT there are reasonable laws allowing culling by humans; i.e. (1) that a rancher or other person can shoot them without being charged with anything, if they are attacking livestock or people, (2) that each state's wildlife department has the right to regulate their numbers as they see fit, by establishing hunting criterion: season dates, numbers killed, etc.
Absolutely Agreed +2
I'm all for reintroducing wolves and thus restoring our full indigenous species spectrum to the North American eco-system, PROVIDED THAT there are reasonable laws allowing culling by humans; i.e. (1) that a rancher or other person can shoot them without being charged with anything, if they are attacking livestock or people, (2) that each state's wildlife department has the right to regulate their numbers as they see fit, by establishing hunting criterion: season dates, numbers killed, etc.
Absolutely Agreed +2
That's because it's a trait that can be bred in or out of a line.
Google "sharpness" and "drathaar" or "German wirehair" etc.
A dog bred for "sharpness" may be a soft-mouthed bird dog, but it will chase and kill animals (i.e. cats) for fun.
Beware of VHD's with German bloodlines! They sound cool, but the dogs have some issues that aren't compatible with American expectations, at least in populated areas.
A guy I talked to the other day had to put down his German Wirehair for that reason, or face fines and lawsuits from neighbors. I think that's plain wrong -- unless there's a rodent problem, keep your damn cat INSIDE where it doesn't kill birds -- cat nuts don't agree and tend not to acknowledge their animals' impact on the local ecosystem. Fish and Game sides with me, but Animal Control sides with cat owners, apparently.
Anyway... Canines can and will kill for fun. I love my dogs like their my children, but I don't delude myself about what they are.
Harve Curry
Member
Wolf attack a tragic, cautionary tale
Jerry George
http://www.aws.vcn.com/wolf_attacks_on_humans.html
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Bad news.
A story reached my desk yesterday about the death of Kenton Carnegie, 22, a geology student. Carnegie was attacked and killed by wolves while hiking in remote Northern Saskatchewan. Carnegie is the first human known to have been killed by healthy, wild wolves in North America.
The incident took place in early November, but yesterday's story was the first I'd heard of the unfortunate tragedy.
Those of us who stand a few feet back from the impassioned wolf watchers have wondered when a person would fall victim to wolves. Wolves are wild animals. They have a long track record of killing people in Europe and elsewhere, about which I will offer a bit of perspective in a moment. But, before this, death by wolf was unknown in North America.
I have been able to find 27 recorded wolf attacks on humans in North America. Some have resulted in serious injury, but all of the people attacked by wolves here have survived.
Now, before everyone runs off in a panic nattering that we have to stop wolf reintroductions, let's put Carnegie's untimely death in perspective. Canadian wildlife officials have launched a thorough investigation and have already issued some preliminary findings.
The officials noted that the local people had fed the wolves -- both intentionally and unintentionally -- in the area where Carnegie was attacked. The wolves had grown used to being around people and seeing them as a source of food. The term wildlife managers use for this is habituation. Contrary to popular belief, habituated wildlife is always more dangerous to humans than wildlife that is naturally wary of humans.
I am not the best person to make this point because I have done it myself, but feeding wildlife, except in situations authorized by local wildlife officials, is dumb, harms the animals, and may harm you. The best example is deer. Deer are everywhere because we feed them our garden plants and even put out food for them. Where there are deer, there are mountain lions. Enough said.
Humans have a very weird news gene that causes us to panic over unlikely events, such as great white shark attacks, a far bigger risk than wolf attacks even if you're not a surfer, and ignore or trivialize more immediate dangers such as domestic dogs.
I see this all the time in Yellowstone. Visitors go on and on about bear attacks (12 people injured since 1978) and pay no attention to the bison (56 people attacked in the same time frame). Or how about this statistic: 29,000 people injured and 200 killed each year in the United States in automobile collisions with deer.
An exhaustive Norwegian study surveyed all wolf attacks throughout the world for the last several hundred years. Wolf attacks on humans have been growing in frequency. The Norwegians wanted to assess the threat.
The most prevalent cause of wolf attacks? Rabies. During the period when wolf attacks were more common in Europe, the majority were made by rabid wolves. At the same historical time, wolves and larger domestic dogs interbred. Some of the "killing sprees" by wolves documented in France (one rabid wolf/dog cross bit more than 30 people) were by domestic dog/wolf crosses.
Just thinking about a rabid wolf is scary, but there is almost no chance of rabies getting into a wolf population today. Because of inoculation, Europe is almost rabies-free and so is North America. Rabid wolves are unlikely in the extreme.
After rabies, habituation -- wolves losing their natural wariness of humans -- leads to the most conflict between wolves and man. Then comes provocation, what I call stupid human tricks, such as crawling into a wolf den to see the pups. Stupidity happens. It seems to be linked to that news gene.
The least frequent cause of wolf attacks is predation, but these instances have become the stuff of folktales for one very good reason. In those rare instances when wolves decide to feed on people, they attack children. If you think about wolf feeding habits, this sad fact is no surprise. Wolves and other predators feed on calves, the young, of their normal prey species. Also, children often tended the family herds and still do in places such as India, where at least 273 children have been killed by wolves.
Carnegie's death is unfortunate. A life cut short always seems a waste. That it came by wolf is cautionary, but no more. It is still far safer to trek the wilds than cross a street.
Freelance writer "Digger'' Jerry George and his wife are back in Yellowstone National Park for the winter. E-mail him at [email protected].
Jerry George
http://www.aws.vcn.com/wolf_attacks_on_humans.html
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Bad news.
A story reached my desk yesterday about the death of Kenton Carnegie, 22, a geology student. Carnegie was attacked and killed by wolves while hiking in remote Northern Saskatchewan. Carnegie is the first human known to have been killed by healthy, wild wolves in North America.
The incident took place in early November, but yesterday's story was the first I'd heard of the unfortunate tragedy.
Those of us who stand a few feet back from the impassioned wolf watchers have wondered when a person would fall victim to wolves. Wolves are wild animals. They have a long track record of killing people in Europe and elsewhere, about which I will offer a bit of perspective in a moment. But, before this, death by wolf was unknown in North America.
I have been able to find 27 recorded wolf attacks on humans in North America. Some have resulted in serious injury, but all of the people attacked by wolves here have survived.
Now, before everyone runs off in a panic nattering that we have to stop wolf reintroductions, let's put Carnegie's untimely death in perspective. Canadian wildlife officials have launched a thorough investigation and have already issued some preliminary findings.
The officials noted that the local people had fed the wolves -- both intentionally and unintentionally -- in the area where Carnegie was attacked. The wolves had grown used to being around people and seeing them as a source of food. The term wildlife managers use for this is habituation. Contrary to popular belief, habituated wildlife is always more dangerous to humans than wildlife that is naturally wary of humans.
I am not the best person to make this point because I have done it myself, but feeding wildlife, except in situations authorized by local wildlife officials, is dumb, harms the animals, and may harm you. The best example is deer. Deer are everywhere because we feed them our garden plants and even put out food for them. Where there are deer, there are mountain lions. Enough said.
Humans have a very weird news gene that causes us to panic over unlikely events, such as great white shark attacks, a far bigger risk than wolf attacks even if you're not a surfer, and ignore or trivialize more immediate dangers such as domestic dogs.
I see this all the time in Yellowstone. Visitors go on and on about bear attacks (12 people injured since 1978) and pay no attention to the bison (56 people attacked in the same time frame). Or how about this statistic: 29,000 people injured and 200 killed each year in the United States in automobile collisions with deer.
An exhaustive Norwegian study surveyed all wolf attacks throughout the world for the last several hundred years. Wolf attacks on humans have been growing in frequency. The Norwegians wanted to assess the threat.
The most prevalent cause of wolf attacks? Rabies. During the period when wolf attacks were more common in Europe, the majority were made by rabid wolves. At the same historical time, wolves and larger domestic dogs interbred. Some of the "killing sprees" by wolves documented in France (one rabid wolf/dog cross bit more than 30 people) were by domestic dog/wolf crosses.
Just thinking about a rabid wolf is scary, but there is almost no chance of rabies getting into a wolf population today. Because of inoculation, Europe is almost rabies-free and so is North America. Rabid wolves are unlikely in the extreme.
After rabies, habituation -- wolves losing their natural wariness of humans -- leads to the most conflict between wolves and man. Then comes provocation, what I call stupid human tricks, such as crawling into a wolf den to see the pups. Stupidity happens. It seems to be linked to that news gene.
The least frequent cause of wolf attacks is predation, but these instances have become the stuff of folktales for one very good reason. In those rare instances when wolves decide to feed on people, they attack children. If you think about wolf feeding habits, this sad fact is no surprise. Wolves and other predators feed on calves, the young, of their normal prey species. Also, children often tended the family herds and still do in places such as India, where at least 273 children have been killed by wolves.
Carnegie's death is unfortunate. A life cut short always seems a waste. That it came by wolf is cautionary, but no more. It is still far safer to trek the wilds than cross a street.
Freelance writer "Digger'' Jerry George and his wife are back in Yellowstone National Park for the winter. E-mail him at [email protected].
Harve Curry
Member
WOLF ATTACKS ON HUMANS
By T. R. Mader, Research Division
It has been widely discussed whether a healthy wild wolf has ever attacked a human on this continent. In fact, many say such attacks have never occurred in North America.
History states otherwise. Although attacks on humans are uncommon, they have occurred on this continent, both in the early years of settlement and more recently. Here is one report:
“NEW ROCKFORD, DAK, March 7 - The news has just reached here that a father and son, living several miles northeast of this city, were destroyed by wolves yesterday. The two unfortunate men started to a haystack some ten rods from the house to shovel a path around the stack when they were surrounded by wolves and literally eaten alive. The horror-stricken mother was standing at the window with a babe in her arms, a spectator to the terrible death of her husband and son, but was unable to aid them. After they had devoured every flesh from the bones of the men, the denizens of the forest attacked the house, but retired to the hills in a short time. Investigation found nothing but the bones of the husband and son. The family name was Olson. Wolves are more numerous and dangerous now than ever before known in North Dakota." (Saint Paul Daily Globe, March 8, 1888)
Here an account is reported which included an eyewitness and the family name. Some have reasoned the wolves were rabid. That is unlikely as these animals were functioning as a pack. A rabid wolf is a loner. Our research has never found a single historical account of packs of rabid wolves on this continent. Individual animals are the norm. Further, accounts of rabid (hydrophobic) animals were common in that day and were reported as such.
The winters of 1886-1888 were very harsh. Many western ranchers went broke during these years. The harsh winter could have been a factor in the attack.
Noted naturalists documented wolf attacks on humans. John James Audubon, of whom the Audubon Society is named, reported an attack involving 2 Negroes. He records that the men were traveling through a part of Kentucky near the Ohio border in winter. Due to the wild animals in the area the men carried axes on their shoulders as a precaution. While traveling through a heavily forested area, they were attacked by a pack of wolves. Using their axes, they attempted to fight off the wolves. Both men were knocked to the ground and severely wounded. One man was killed. The other dropped his axe and escaped up a tree. There he spent the night. The next morning the man climbed down from the tree. The bones of his friend lay scattered on the snow. Three wolves lay dead. He gathered up the axes and returned home with the news of the event. This incident occurred about 1830. (Audubon, J.J., and Bachman, J.; The Quadrupeds of North America, 3 volumes. New York, 1851 - 1854)
George Bird Grinnell investigated several reported wolf attacks on humans. He dismissed many reports for lack of evidence. Grinnell did verify one attack.
This occurrence was in northwestern Colorado. An eighteen-year-old girl went out at dusk to bring in some milk cows. She saw a gray wolf on a hill as she went out for the cows. She shouted at the wolf to scare it away and it did not move. She then threw a stone at it to frighten it away. The animal snarled at her shouting and attacked her when she threw the stone at it. The wolf grabbed the girl by the shoulder, threw her to the ground and bit her severely on the arms and legs. She screamed and her brother, who was nearby and armed with a gun, responded to the scene of the attack and killed the wolf. The wolf was a healthy young animal, barely full grown. Grinnell met this girl and examined her. She carried several scars from the attack. This attack occurred in summer about 1881. (Grinnell, G.B.; Trail and Campfire - Wolves and Wolf Nature, New York, 1897)
In 1942, Michael Dusiak, section foreman for the Canadian Pacific Railway, was attacked by a wolf while patrolling a section of track on a speeder (small 4-wheeled open railroad car). Dusiak relates, "It happened so fast and as it was still very dark, I thought an engine had hit me first. After getting up from out of the snow very quickly, I saw the wolf which was about fifty feet away from me and it was coming towards me, I grabbed the two axes (tools on the speeder), one in each hand and hit the wolf as he jumped at me right in the belly and in doing so lost one axe. Then the wolf started to circle me and got so close to me at times that I hit him with the head of the axe and it was only the wielding of the axe that kept him from me. All this time he was growling and gnashing his teeth. Then he would stop circling me and jump at me and I would hit him with the head of the axe. This happened five times and he kept edging me closer to the woods which was about 70 feet away. We fought this way for about fifteen minutes and I fought to stay out in the open close to the track. I hit him quite often as he came at me very fast and quick and I was trying to hit him a solid blow in the head for I knew if once he got me down it would be my finish. Then in the course of the fight he got me over onto the north side of the track and we fought there for about another ten minutes. Then a west bound train came along travelling about thirty miles an hour and stopped about half a train length west of us and backed up to where we were fighting. The engineer, fireman and brakeman came off the engine armed with picks and other tools, and killed the wolf."
It should be noted that this wolf was skinned and inspected by an Investigator Crichton, a Conservation Officer. His assessment was that the animal was a young healthy wolf in good condition although it appeared lean. ("A Record of Timber Wolf Attacking a Man," JOURNAL OF MAMMOLOGY, Vol. 28, No. 3, August 1947)
Common Man Institute, in cooperation with Abundant Wildlife Society of North America, has done extensive research on wolves and their history for several years. We have gathered evidence on wolf attacks which occurred in North America.
A forester employed by the Province of British Colombia was checking some timber for possible harvest in the 1980s. He was met by a small pack of three wolves. The forester yelled at the wolves to frighten them away. Instead, the wolves came towards him in a threatening manner and he was forced to retreat and climb a nearby tree for safety. The wolves remained at the base of the tree. The forester had a portable radio, but was unable to contact his base, due to distance, until evening. When the call for help came in, two Conservation Officers with the Ministry of Environment were flown to the area by floatplane to rescue the treed forester.
When the Conservation Officers arrived, the forester was still in the tree and one wolf, the apparent leader of the pack, was still at the base of the tree. The officers, armed with shotguns, shot at the wolf and missed. The wolf ran for cover and then started circling and howling near the two officers. After a couple missed shots, the wolf was finally shot and killed.
The wolf tested negative for rabies. It appeared healthy in every respect, but was very lean. The Conservation Officers felt the attack was caused by hunger. (Taped Interviews and a photo of the wolf on file at Abundant Wildlife Society of North America.)
This is but one example from British Colombia. Wolves overran Vancouver Island in the 1980s. Attacks became so common that articles were published in Canadian magazines documenting such attacks. (Copies available upon request.)
Wolf Attacks on humans have occurred in national parks, too. In August 1987, a sixteen-year-old girl was bitten by a wild wolf in Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario. The girl was camping in the park with a youth group and shined a flashlight at the wolf. The wolf reacted to the light by biting the girl on the arm. That bite was not hard and due to the thick sweater and sweatshirt the girl was wearing, she sustained two scratch marks on her arm. The wolf was shot by Natural Resources personnel and tested negative for rabies. (Interview with Ron Tozer, Park Naturalist for Algonquin Provincial Park, 7/25/88.)
Well-known wolf biologist Dr. David Mech took issue with this attack stating it couldn't really be considered an authentic attack since the girl wasn't injured more severely. It was exactly nine years when such an attack would take place.
Algonquin Provincial Park is one of several areas where people are encouraged to "howl" at the wolves in hopes of a response from the wild wolves in the area. In August, 1996, the Delventhal family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were spending a nine-day family vacation in Algonquin and joined a group of Scouts in "howling" at the wolves. They were answered by the howl of a solitary wolf.
That night the Delventhals decided to sleep out under the stars. Young Zachariah was dreaming when he suddenly felt excruciating pain in his face. A lone wolf had bit him in the face and was dragging him from his sleeping bag. Zach screamed and Tracy, Zach's Mother, raced to his side and picked him up, saturating her thermal shirt with blood from Zach's wounds.
The wolf stood menacingly less than a yard away. Tracy yelled at her husband, Thom, who leapt from his sleeping bag and charged the wolf. The wolf retreated and then charged at Tracy and Zach. The charges were repeated. Finally the wolf left. Thom turned a flashlight on 11-year-old Zach and gasped "Oh, my God!" "The boy's face had been ripped open. His nose was crushed. Parts of his mouth and right cheek were torn and dangling. Blood gushed from puncture wounds below his eyes, and the lower part of his right ear was missing." Zach was taken to a hospital in Toronto where a plastic surgeon performed four hours of reconstructive surgery. Zach received more than 80 stitches in his face.
Canadian officials baited the Delventhals' campsite and captured and destroyed a 60-lb wild male wolf. No further attacks have occurred since. (Cook, Kathy; "Night of the Wolf" READER'S DIGEST, July 1997, pp. 114-119.)
Humans have been attacked by wolves in Alaska. The late David Tobuk carried scars on his face from a wolf attack on him as a small child. The incident occurred around the turn of the century in interior Alaska. David was playing in his village near a river. An old wolf came into the village and bit David in the face and started to carry him off. Other Eskimos saw the wolf dragging the child off and started yelling and screaming. The wolf dropped the child and was shot by an old Eskimo trapper who had a gun. (Interview with Frank Tobuk, brother, Bettles, Alaska, December 1988.)
Paul Tritt, an Athabascan Indian, was attacked by a lone wolf while working a trap line. Paul was setting a snare, looked up and saw a wolf lunging at him. He threw his arm up in front of his face and it was bitten severely by the wolf. A struggle ensued. Tritt was able to get to his sled, grab a gun and kill the wolf. Nathaniel Frank, a companion, helped Tritt wash the wound with warm water. Frank took Tritt, via dog sled, to Fort Yukon to see a doctor. The arm healed, but Tritt never regained full use of it. Several years later, the arm developed problems and had to be amputated. (Interview with Paul Tritt, Venetie, Alaska, November, 1988)
Two wolf attacks on humans occurred in 2000.
Icy Bay, Alaska - Six-year-old John Stenglein and a nine-year-old friend were playing outside his family's trailer at a logging camp when a wild wolf came out of the woods towards the boys. The boys ran and the wolf attacked young Stenglein from the back, biting him on the back and buttocks. Adults, hearing the boy's screams, came and chased the wolf away. The wolf returned a few moments later and was shot. According to Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) officials, the wolf was a healthy wild wolf that apparently attacked without provocation. The boy was flown to Yakutat and recieved stitches there for his wounds. Later, however, the bites became infected and the boy had to be hospitalized. (Reports and Interviews on file and available upon request.)
Vargas Island, British Colombia - University student, Scott Langevin, 23, was on a kayak trip with friends. They camped out on a beach and, about 1 AM, Langevin awoke with something pulling on his sleeping bag. He looked out and came face to face with a wild wolf. Langevin yelled at the wolf and it attacked, biting him on the hand. Langevin attempted to force the wolf toward a nearby campfire, but as he turned, the wolf jumped on his back and started biting him on the back of his head. Friends, hearing his yells, came to his aid and scared the wolf away. Fifty (50) stitches were required to close the wound on Langevin's head. British Colombia Ministry of Enviroment officials speculate the reason for the attack was due to the wolves occasionally being fed by humans although there was no evidence that Langevin or any of his party fed these animals. (Reports and Interviews on file and available upon request.)
This is but a brief summary of a few verifiable accounts of attacks on humans by healthy wild wolves in North American History.
Biologists tell us that the wolves of Asia and North America are one and the same species. Wolf attacks are common in many parts of Asia.
By T. R. Mader, Research Division
It has been widely discussed whether a healthy wild wolf has ever attacked a human on this continent. In fact, many say such attacks have never occurred in North America.
History states otherwise. Although attacks on humans are uncommon, they have occurred on this continent, both in the early years of settlement and more recently. Here is one report:
“NEW ROCKFORD, DAK, March 7 - The news has just reached here that a father and son, living several miles northeast of this city, were destroyed by wolves yesterday. The two unfortunate men started to a haystack some ten rods from the house to shovel a path around the stack when they were surrounded by wolves and literally eaten alive. The horror-stricken mother was standing at the window with a babe in her arms, a spectator to the terrible death of her husband and son, but was unable to aid them. After they had devoured every flesh from the bones of the men, the denizens of the forest attacked the house, but retired to the hills in a short time. Investigation found nothing but the bones of the husband and son. The family name was Olson. Wolves are more numerous and dangerous now than ever before known in North Dakota." (Saint Paul Daily Globe, March 8, 1888)
Here an account is reported which included an eyewitness and the family name. Some have reasoned the wolves were rabid. That is unlikely as these animals were functioning as a pack. A rabid wolf is a loner. Our research has never found a single historical account of packs of rabid wolves on this continent. Individual animals are the norm. Further, accounts of rabid (hydrophobic) animals were common in that day and were reported as such.
The winters of 1886-1888 were very harsh. Many western ranchers went broke during these years. The harsh winter could have been a factor in the attack.
Noted naturalists documented wolf attacks on humans. John James Audubon, of whom the Audubon Society is named, reported an attack involving 2 Negroes. He records that the men were traveling through a part of Kentucky near the Ohio border in winter. Due to the wild animals in the area the men carried axes on their shoulders as a precaution. While traveling through a heavily forested area, they were attacked by a pack of wolves. Using their axes, they attempted to fight off the wolves. Both men were knocked to the ground and severely wounded. One man was killed. The other dropped his axe and escaped up a tree. There he spent the night. The next morning the man climbed down from the tree. The bones of his friend lay scattered on the snow. Three wolves lay dead. He gathered up the axes and returned home with the news of the event. This incident occurred about 1830. (Audubon, J.J., and Bachman, J.; The Quadrupeds of North America, 3 volumes. New York, 1851 - 1854)
George Bird Grinnell investigated several reported wolf attacks on humans. He dismissed many reports for lack of evidence. Grinnell did verify one attack.
This occurrence was in northwestern Colorado. An eighteen-year-old girl went out at dusk to bring in some milk cows. She saw a gray wolf on a hill as she went out for the cows. She shouted at the wolf to scare it away and it did not move. She then threw a stone at it to frighten it away. The animal snarled at her shouting and attacked her when she threw the stone at it. The wolf grabbed the girl by the shoulder, threw her to the ground and bit her severely on the arms and legs. She screamed and her brother, who was nearby and armed with a gun, responded to the scene of the attack and killed the wolf. The wolf was a healthy young animal, barely full grown. Grinnell met this girl and examined her. She carried several scars from the attack. This attack occurred in summer about 1881. (Grinnell, G.B.; Trail and Campfire - Wolves and Wolf Nature, New York, 1897)
In 1942, Michael Dusiak, section foreman for the Canadian Pacific Railway, was attacked by a wolf while patrolling a section of track on a speeder (small 4-wheeled open railroad car). Dusiak relates, "It happened so fast and as it was still very dark, I thought an engine had hit me first. After getting up from out of the snow very quickly, I saw the wolf which was about fifty feet away from me and it was coming towards me, I grabbed the two axes (tools on the speeder), one in each hand and hit the wolf as he jumped at me right in the belly and in doing so lost one axe. Then the wolf started to circle me and got so close to me at times that I hit him with the head of the axe and it was only the wielding of the axe that kept him from me. All this time he was growling and gnashing his teeth. Then he would stop circling me and jump at me and I would hit him with the head of the axe. This happened five times and he kept edging me closer to the woods which was about 70 feet away. We fought this way for about fifteen minutes and I fought to stay out in the open close to the track. I hit him quite often as he came at me very fast and quick and I was trying to hit him a solid blow in the head for I knew if once he got me down it would be my finish. Then in the course of the fight he got me over onto the north side of the track and we fought there for about another ten minutes. Then a west bound train came along travelling about thirty miles an hour and stopped about half a train length west of us and backed up to where we were fighting. The engineer, fireman and brakeman came off the engine armed with picks and other tools, and killed the wolf."
It should be noted that this wolf was skinned and inspected by an Investigator Crichton, a Conservation Officer. His assessment was that the animal was a young healthy wolf in good condition although it appeared lean. ("A Record of Timber Wolf Attacking a Man," JOURNAL OF MAMMOLOGY, Vol. 28, No. 3, August 1947)
Common Man Institute, in cooperation with Abundant Wildlife Society of North America, has done extensive research on wolves and their history for several years. We have gathered evidence on wolf attacks which occurred in North America.
A forester employed by the Province of British Colombia was checking some timber for possible harvest in the 1980s. He was met by a small pack of three wolves. The forester yelled at the wolves to frighten them away. Instead, the wolves came towards him in a threatening manner and he was forced to retreat and climb a nearby tree for safety. The wolves remained at the base of the tree. The forester had a portable radio, but was unable to contact his base, due to distance, until evening. When the call for help came in, two Conservation Officers with the Ministry of Environment were flown to the area by floatplane to rescue the treed forester.
When the Conservation Officers arrived, the forester was still in the tree and one wolf, the apparent leader of the pack, was still at the base of the tree. The officers, armed with shotguns, shot at the wolf and missed. The wolf ran for cover and then started circling and howling near the two officers. After a couple missed shots, the wolf was finally shot and killed.
The wolf tested negative for rabies. It appeared healthy in every respect, but was very lean. The Conservation Officers felt the attack was caused by hunger. (Taped Interviews and a photo of the wolf on file at Abundant Wildlife Society of North America.)
This is but one example from British Colombia. Wolves overran Vancouver Island in the 1980s. Attacks became so common that articles were published in Canadian magazines documenting such attacks. (Copies available upon request.)
Wolf Attacks on humans have occurred in national parks, too. In August 1987, a sixteen-year-old girl was bitten by a wild wolf in Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario. The girl was camping in the park with a youth group and shined a flashlight at the wolf. The wolf reacted to the light by biting the girl on the arm. That bite was not hard and due to the thick sweater and sweatshirt the girl was wearing, she sustained two scratch marks on her arm. The wolf was shot by Natural Resources personnel and tested negative for rabies. (Interview with Ron Tozer, Park Naturalist for Algonquin Provincial Park, 7/25/88.)
Well-known wolf biologist Dr. David Mech took issue with this attack stating it couldn't really be considered an authentic attack since the girl wasn't injured more severely. It was exactly nine years when such an attack would take place.
Algonquin Provincial Park is one of several areas where people are encouraged to "howl" at the wolves in hopes of a response from the wild wolves in the area. In August, 1996, the Delventhal family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were spending a nine-day family vacation in Algonquin and joined a group of Scouts in "howling" at the wolves. They were answered by the howl of a solitary wolf.
That night the Delventhals decided to sleep out under the stars. Young Zachariah was dreaming when he suddenly felt excruciating pain in his face. A lone wolf had bit him in the face and was dragging him from his sleeping bag. Zach screamed and Tracy, Zach's Mother, raced to his side and picked him up, saturating her thermal shirt with blood from Zach's wounds.
The wolf stood menacingly less than a yard away. Tracy yelled at her husband, Thom, who leapt from his sleeping bag and charged the wolf. The wolf retreated and then charged at Tracy and Zach. The charges were repeated. Finally the wolf left. Thom turned a flashlight on 11-year-old Zach and gasped "Oh, my God!" "The boy's face had been ripped open. His nose was crushed. Parts of his mouth and right cheek were torn and dangling. Blood gushed from puncture wounds below his eyes, and the lower part of his right ear was missing." Zach was taken to a hospital in Toronto where a plastic surgeon performed four hours of reconstructive surgery. Zach received more than 80 stitches in his face.
Canadian officials baited the Delventhals' campsite and captured and destroyed a 60-lb wild male wolf. No further attacks have occurred since. (Cook, Kathy; "Night of the Wolf" READER'S DIGEST, July 1997, pp. 114-119.)
Humans have been attacked by wolves in Alaska. The late David Tobuk carried scars on his face from a wolf attack on him as a small child. The incident occurred around the turn of the century in interior Alaska. David was playing in his village near a river. An old wolf came into the village and bit David in the face and started to carry him off. Other Eskimos saw the wolf dragging the child off and started yelling and screaming. The wolf dropped the child and was shot by an old Eskimo trapper who had a gun. (Interview with Frank Tobuk, brother, Bettles, Alaska, December 1988.)
Paul Tritt, an Athabascan Indian, was attacked by a lone wolf while working a trap line. Paul was setting a snare, looked up and saw a wolf lunging at him. He threw his arm up in front of his face and it was bitten severely by the wolf. A struggle ensued. Tritt was able to get to his sled, grab a gun and kill the wolf. Nathaniel Frank, a companion, helped Tritt wash the wound with warm water. Frank took Tritt, via dog sled, to Fort Yukon to see a doctor. The arm healed, but Tritt never regained full use of it. Several years later, the arm developed problems and had to be amputated. (Interview with Paul Tritt, Venetie, Alaska, November, 1988)
Two wolf attacks on humans occurred in 2000.
Icy Bay, Alaska - Six-year-old John Stenglein and a nine-year-old friend were playing outside his family's trailer at a logging camp when a wild wolf came out of the woods towards the boys. The boys ran and the wolf attacked young Stenglein from the back, biting him on the back and buttocks. Adults, hearing the boy's screams, came and chased the wolf away. The wolf returned a few moments later and was shot. According to Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) officials, the wolf was a healthy wild wolf that apparently attacked without provocation. The boy was flown to Yakutat and recieved stitches there for his wounds. Later, however, the bites became infected and the boy had to be hospitalized. (Reports and Interviews on file and available upon request.)
Vargas Island, British Colombia - University student, Scott Langevin, 23, was on a kayak trip with friends. They camped out on a beach and, about 1 AM, Langevin awoke with something pulling on his sleeping bag. He looked out and came face to face with a wild wolf. Langevin yelled at the wolf and it attacked, biting him on the hand. Langevin attempted to force the wolf toward a nearby campfire, but as he turned, the wolf jumped on his back and started biting him on the back of his head. Friends, hearing his yells, came to his aid and scared the wolf away. Fifty (50) stitches were required to close the wound on Langevin's head. British Colombia Ministry of Enviroment officials speculate the reason for the attack was due to the wolves occasionally being fed by humans although there was no evidence that Langevin or any of his party fed these animals. (Reports and Interviews on file and available upon request.)
This is but a brief summary of a few verifiable accounts of attacks on humans by healthy wild wolves in North American History.
Biologists tell us that the wolves of Asia and North America are one and the same species. Wolf attacks are common in many parts of Asia.
Harve Curry
Member
Biologists tell us that the wolves of Asia and North America are one and the same species. Wolf attacks are common in many parts of Asia.
Con't:
The government of India reported more than 100 deaths attributable to wolves in one year during the eighties. (Associated Press, 1985) This author recalls a news report in 1990 in which Iran reported deaths from attacks by wolves.
Rashid Jamsheed, a U.S. trained biologist, was the game director for Iran. He wrote a book entitled "Big Game Animals of Iran (Persia)." In it he made several references to wolf attacks on humans. Jamsheed says that for a millennia people have reported wolves attacking and killing humans. In winter, when starving wolves grow bold, they have been known to enter towns and kill people in daylight on the streets. Apparently, in Iran, there are many cases of wolves running off with small children. There is also a story of a mounted and armed policeman (gendarme) being followed by 3 wolves. In time he had to get off his horse to attend to nature’s call, leaving his rifle in the scabbard. A later reconstruction at the scene of the gnawed bones and wolf tracks indicated that the horse had bolted and left the man defenseless, whereupon he was killed and eaten.
A Russian Linguist, Will Graves, provided our organization with reports of wolves killing Russian people in many areas of that country. Reports indicate some of the wolves were diseased while others appeared healthy. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
Reports have also come from rural China. The official Zinhua News Agency reported that a peasant woman, Wu Jing, snatched her two daughters from the jaws of a wolf and wrestled with the animal until rescuers arrived. Wu slashed at the wolf with a sickle and it dropped one daughter, but grabbed her sister. It was then Wu wrestled with the animal until herdsmen came and drove the beast away. This incident occurred near Shenyang City, about 380 miles northeast of Beijing. (Chronicle Features, 1992)
The question arises: "Why so many attacks in Asia and so few in North America?"
Two factors must be considered:
1. The Philosophy of Conservation - Our forefathers always believed that they had the right and obligation to protect their livelihoods. Considerable distance was necessary between man and wolf for the wolf to survive.
2. Firearms - Inexpensive, efficient weapons gave man the upper hand in the protection of his livelihood and for the taking of wolves.
Milton P. Skinner in his book, “The Yellowstone Nature Book” (published 1924) wrote, "Most of the stories we hear of the ferocity of these animals... come from Europe. There, they are dangerous because they do not fear man, since they are seldom hunted except by the lords of the manor. In America, the wolves are the same kind, but they have found to their bitter cost that practically every man and boy carries a rifle..."
Skinner was correct. The areas of Asia where wolf attacks occur on humans are the same areas where the people have no firearms or other effective means of predator control.
But ... "Biologists claim there are no documented cases of healthy wild wolves attacking humans."
What they really mean is there are no "documented" cases by their criteria which excludes historical accounts. Here's an example.
Rabid wolves were a frightening experience in the early years due to their size and the seriousness of being bit, especially before a vaccine was developed. The bitten subject usually died a slow, miserable death. There are numerous accounts of rabid wolves and their activities. Early Army forts have medical records of rabid wolves coming into the posts and biting several people before being killed. Most of the people bitten died slow, horrible deaths. Additionally, early historical writings relate personal accounts. This author recalls one historical account telling of a man being tied to a tree and left to die because of his violent behavior with rabies after being bitten by a wolf. Such deaths left profound impressions on eyewitnesses of those events.
Dr. David Mech, USFWS wolf biologist, states there are no "documented" cases of rabid wolves below the fifty seventh latitude north (near Whitehorse, Yukon Territory). When asked what "documented" meant, he stated, "The head of the wolf must be removed, sent to a lab for testing and found to be rabid."
Those requirements for documentation negate all historical records!
As with rabid wolves, the biologist can say, "There are no `documented' cases of wild healthy wolves attacking humans." In order to be "documented" these unreasonable criteria must be met:
1. The wolf has to be killed, examined and found to be healthy.
2. It must be proven that the wolf was never kept in captivity in its entire life.
3. There must be eyewitnesses to the attack.
4. The person must die from their wounds (bites are generally not considered attacks according to the biologists).
That is a "documented" attack.
Such criteria make it very difficult to document any historical account of a wolf attack on a human!
Biologists assume when a wolf attacks a human, that there must be something wrong with the wolf. It's either been in captivity or it's sick or whatever. They don't examine the evidence in an unbiased manner or use historical tests.
Historically, there are four reasons for wolf attacks on humans:
1. Disease such as rabies.
2. Extreme hunger.
3. Familiarity/Disposition - This is an either/or situation. Familiarity is the zoo setting, captive wolves, etc. Disposition is a particularly aggressive wolf which may not fear man as most wolves do.
4. In the heat of the chase and kill - This is where a hiker, trapper or whoever disturbs a fresh chase and kill by wolves. The person walks into the scene only to be attacked by the wolves.
It is our belief that a predator's fear of man is both instinctive and learned behavior. For example, wolves raised as pets or in zoos are well documented to attack and kill humans.
Alyshia Berzyck, of Minnesota, was attacked and killed by a wolf on a chain on June 3, 1989. The wolf tore up her kidney, liver and bit a hole through her aorta. One month later, on July 1, 1989, Peter Lemke, 5, lost 12 inches of his intestine and colon and suffered bites to his stomach, neck, legs, arms and back in another wolf attack in Kenyon, Minnesota. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
Zoos carry abundant records of wolf attacks on people, particularly children. The child climbs the enclosure fence to pet the "dog" and is attacked.
Zoos and domestic settings are unnatural in that they place man and wolf in close proximity and they become accustomed to each other. Consequently attacks occur.
Today predator control is very restricted in scope, and as a result, attacks on humans by predators are becoming more common. In recent years, healthy coyotes in Yellowstone Park have attacked humans. Similar attacks have occurred in the National Parks of Canada.
On January 14, 1991, a healthy mountain lion attacked and killed an eighteen-year-old high school senior, Scott Lancaster, in Idaho Springs, Colorado. The boy was jogging on a jogging path within the city limits of the town when the lion attacked and killed him. (Report on file at Abundant Wildlife Society of North America)
Copyright 1995, 2000, T. R. Mader, Research Division
Permission granted to disseminate and/or reprint if credit is given to the source.
OTHER REPORTED WOLF ATTACKS IN THE WILD
1. Comox Valley, British Colombia – 1986 - While driving a tractor, Jakob Knopp was followed by three wolves to his barn. They didn't leave, but kept snarling and showing their teeth. Knopp ran to his barn, retreived a rifle and had to shoot two of the three wolves before the third left the area.
2. George Williams, a retired sailor heard a commotion in his chicken coup one night. Thinking it was raccoons he took his single shot 22 rifle and headed for the coup. He rounded his fishing boat and trailer when a wolf leaped at him. He instinctively reacted with a snap shot with the rifle and dropped the wolf. A second wolf came at him before he could reload and George swung the rifle and struck the wolf across the head, stunning it. George retreated to the house until morning and found the wolf he had shot, the other was gone.
3. Clarence Lewis was picking berries on a logging road about a mile from Knopp's farm when he faced four wolves. Lewis yelled at them, two left and the other two advanced towards him. He took a branch and took a couple of threatening steps at them. They went into the brush and stayed close to him. Lewis faced the wolves and walked backward for two miles until he reached his car.
4. Don Hamilton, Conservation Officer at Nanaimo went to investigate a livestock killing by wolves. Wolves had killed a number of sheep in a pasture and Don went out to examine the kills. He came upon the scene and saw a large gray wolf feeding on one of the sheep. The wolf looked at him, growled and started running towards him at full speed. The wolf was over 100 yards away and never broke stride as it approached Don. At approximately 15 feet, Don shot the wolf to stop its attack. Don, who has many years experience with wolves, stated that he was convinced that the wolf was going to attack him because of its growling, snarling and aggressive behavior.
5. In 1947, a man was hunting cougar on Vancouver Island and was attacked by a pack of seven wolves. The man backed against a tree and shot the leader of the pack. The pack instantly tore the animal to shreds while the hunter made his escape.
6. Clarence Lindley was reportedly attacked by a 125-pound timber wolf. The incident occurred in early November, 1992 on the Figure 4 Ranch in Dunn County, North Dakota. Lindley was hunting horseback when the wolf attacked Lindley's horse causing it to jump and fall. Lindley was able to grab his saddle gun, a lever action Winchester 94, as the horse fell. The horse recovered its balance and Lindley found himself face to face with a snarling wolf. "My heart was pounding," said Lindley, "I could see those big teeth. He was less than five feet away... He meant business; he wasn't going to back off." Lindley fired his rifle at point blank range and killed the wolf with a shot to the neck. Lindley left the wolf since he couldn't get his horse close to it. On return to his hunting camp, his hunter friends failed to believe the account. They returned to the scene and skinned the wolf. The pelt was a flawless black and gray pelt measuring seven and a half feet from its feet to its snout. Its bottom teeth measured one and a half inches; top teeth - one and a quarter inches. The North Dakota Game and Fish Department (NDGF) confiscated the hide and head of the wolf and took it to the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for determination of its species. Tests revealed that the wolf was non-rabid. The wolf was thought to have come from Canada. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
WOLF ATTACKS ON HUMANS (domestic incidents)
1. In the 1970s, John Harris, a Californian, toured the nation with “tame” wolves to promote public sympathy for preserving wolves. In July, 1975, "Rocky," one of Harris' wolves, attacked a one-year-old girl by biting her in the face. The girl was brought close to the wolf for a picture, an action encouraged by Harris.
2. In Maryland, a man kept a wolf in his basement and this animal turned and savagely bit and clawed his two-year-old son.
3. In New York City, a wolf bit a woman as it approached her.
4. At a zoo in Idaho, a little girl walked up to a cage housing a wolf and reached through the bars to pet the wolf. The wolf bit the arm. The arm had to be amputated.
5. Mr. Edward Rucciuti, former curator of publications for the New York Zoological Society and author of KILLER ANIMALS, personally witnessed a 12-year-old boy savagely attacked in the Bronx Zoo. This boy climbed a high fence in order to pet the wolves. The wolves (male and 2 females) immediately attacked the boy, ripping at the boy's clothing and flesh. The boy instinctively curled up in a ball, protecting his head, chest and abdomen. He then crawled into the moat in front of the exhibit with the wolves chewing his back and legs. Once the boy made it to the water, the wolves ceased their attack. The boy crawled out of the moat and collapsed. Mr. Rucciuti was amazed that the boy was still alive due to the severity of the bites.
6. San Diego Zoo (1971) A 15-year-old boy climbed the fence and tried to take a shortcut across the exhibit. He didn't know there were wolves in the exhibit and tried to run when he saw them. The wolves grabbed him by the leg attempting to drag him off. The boy grabbed a tree and hung on. Two bystanders jumped in the enclosure and attacked the wolves with tree branches. The wolves did not attack the two men, but continued to maul the boy. Dragging the boy and swinging their clubs, the boy was pulled out of the enclosure. The wolves in the enclosure were all young animals and it was thought that if the animals were mature, the boy would have died before being rescued.
7. A few months after the attack on the boy (#6), a man scaled the fence and swung his arms in the exhibit to get the attention of the wolves and got it by being bitten severely on both arms.
8. 1973 - Another boy tried to cross the same compound and was attacked, a security guard shot and killed one of the wolves, and the other fled as the boy was pulled to safety.
9. 1975 - Small zoo in Worcester, Massachusetts, a two-year-old lad was savagely bitten on the leg when it slipped through an enclosure opening. The boy's mother and 2 men could not pull the boy free. The wolves did not stop ripping the boy's leg apart until a railroad tie was thrown in the midst of the wolves.
10. 1978 -- A wolf bit a child in Story, Wyoming. The wolf was penned at a local veterinary clinic for observation. During that time, the wolf escaped its pen and killed a young calf. Wyoming law prohibits the keeping of wild animals as pets, so the animal was shipped to Ohio, where it had come from. The owner of the wolf went to Ohio and brought the wolf back to Wheatland, Wyoming. It was reported the wolf attacked and killed a child in that area shortly thereafter.
11. September, 1981 - A two-year-old boy was mauled to death by an 80-lb, 3 year-old female wolf in Ft. Wayne, Michigan. The boy wandered within the chain length of the wolf.
12. August 2, 1986 (Fergus Falls, Minnesota) - A 17-month-old boy reached and grabbed the fencing which kept his father's pet wolves enclosed. One wolf immediately grabbed the boy's hand and bit it off. The mother was at the scene and received lacerations freeing the child from the wolf.
13. July 1988 (Minnesota Zoo) - A teenage volunteer reached through the wire fence to pet a wolf and was bitten. The wolf was put to sleep and tested for rabies – negative.
14. May 15, 1989 - 2-year-old Timothy Bajinski was bitten by a wolf hybrid in his mother's Staten Island, New York backyard. Mrs. Bajinski has been charged with keeping a wild animal.
15. May 1989 - Lucas Wilken was bitten by two wolf hybrids in Adams County, CO (Denver Area).
16. June 3, 1989 - Three year old Alyshia Berczyk was attacked and killed by a wolf in Forest Lake, Minnesota. The wolf had bitten her severely and had injured her kidneys, liver and bit through her aorta. Alyshia was playing in a backyard when she got too close to the chained wolf that grabbed her dress and pulled her down, attacking her.
17. July 1, 1989 (Kenyon, Minnesota) - Peter Lemke, age 5, attempted to pet a chained wolf and was attacked. He lost 12 inches of his intestine and colon, suffered a tear in his stomach, and bite wounds on his arms, legs, buttocks and neck. While being life-flighted to the hospital, Pete arrested 3 times but was saved by medical personnel. The Lemkes have incurred over $200,000 in hospital bills. Pete has a colostomy bag, but doctors are hopeful they can re-attach his colon and get it to function normally in later surgeries.
18. September 3, 1989 - A wolf and a dog entered a corral belonging to Leona Geppfart of Caldwell, ID and attacked a 6-month-old 400-pound Hereford calf. Geppfart attempted to scare the animals away and they turned on her and she retreated to her house. A short time later, a law enforcement officer arrived and as he approached the corral, the wolf lunged at him. The officer stopped the animal with his shotgun.
NOTE: This list of wolf attacks is by no means exhaustive. They are simply listed to show that attacks have occurred both in the wild and other settings.
About the Author: T. R. Mader is Research Director of Abundant Wildlife Society of North America, an independent research organization. Mader has researched wolf history for more than 15 years and has traveled over 30,000 miles conducting research and interviews on environmental issues.
For more information, contact:
ABUNDANT WILDLIFE SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA
P. O. Box 2
Beresford, SD 57004
Permission granted to disseminate and/or reprint if credit is given to the source
Con't:
The government of India reported more than 100 deaths attributable to wolves in one year during the eighties. (Associated Press, 1985) This author recalls a news report in 1990 in which Iran reported deaths from attacks by wolves.
Rashid Jamsheed, a U.S. trained biologist, was the game director for Iran. He wrote a book entitled "Big Game Animals of Iran (Persia)." In it he made several references to wolf attacks on humans. Jamsheed says that for a millennia people have reported wolves attacking and killing humans. In winter, when starving wolves grow bold, they have been known to enter towns and kill people in daylight on the streets. Apparently, in Iran, there are many cases of wolves running off with small children. There is also a story of a mounted and armed policeman (gendarme) being followed by 3 wolves. In time he had to get off his horse to attend to nature’s call, leaving his rifle in the scabbard. A later reconstruction at the scene of the gnawed bones and wolf tracks indicated that the horse had bolted and left the man defenseless, whereupon he was killed and eaten.
A Russian Linguist, Will Graves, provided our organization with reports of wolves killing Russian people in many areas of that country. Reports indicate some of the wolves were diseased while others appeared healthy. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
Reports have also come from rural China. The official Zinhua News Agency reported that a peasant woman, Wu Jing, snatched her two daughters from the jaws of a wolf and wrestled with the animal until rescuers arrived. Wu slashed at the wolf with a sickle and it dropped one daughter, but grabbed her sister. It was then Wu wrestled with the animal until herdsmen came and drove the beast away. This incident occurred near Shenyang City, about 380 miles northeast of Beijing. (Chronicle Features, 1992)
The question arises: "Why so many attacks in Asia and so few in North America?"
Two factors must be considered:
1. The Philosophy of Conservation - Our forefathers always believed that they had the right and obligation to protect their livelihoods. Considerable distance was necessary between man and wolf for the wolf to survive.
2. Firearms - Inexpensive, efficient weapons gave man the upper hand in the protection of his livelihood and for the taking of wolves.
Milton P. Skinner in his book, “The Yellowstone Nature Book” (published 1924) wrote, "Most of the stories we hear of the ferocity of these animals... come from Europe. There, they are dangerous because they do not fear man, since they are seldom hunted except by the lords of the manor. In America, the wolves are the same kind, but they have found to their bitter cost that practically every man and boy carries a rifle..."
Skinner was correct. The areas of Asia where wolf attacks occur on humans are the same areas where the people have no firearms or other effective means of predator control.
But ... "Biologists claim there are no documented cases of healthy wild wolves attacking humans."
What they really mean is there are no "documented" cases by their criteria which excludes historical accounts. Here's an example.
Rabid wolves were a frightening experience in the early years due to their size and the seriousness of being bit, especially before a vaccine was developed. The bitten subject usually died a slow, miserable death. There are numerous accounts of rabid wolves and their activities. Early Army forts have medical records of rabid wolves coming into the posts and biting several people before being killed. Most of the people bitten died slow, horrible deaths. Additionally, early historical writings relate personal accounts. This author recalls one historical account telling of a man being tied to a tree and left to die because of his violent behavior with rabies after being bitten by a wolf. Such deaths left profound impressions on eyewitnesses of those events.
Dr. David Mech, USFWS wolf biologist, states there are no "documented" cases of rabid wolves below the fifty seventh latitude north (near Whitehorse, Yukon Territory). When asked what "documented" meant, he stated, "The head of the wolf must be removed, sent to a lab for testing and found to be rabid."
Those requirements for documentation negate all historical records!
As with rabid wolves, the biologist can say, "There are no `documented' cases of wild healthy wolves attacking humans." In order to be "documented" these unreasonable criteria must be met:
1. The wolf has to be killed, examined and found to be healthy.
2. It must be proven that the wolf was never kept in captivity in its entire life.
3. There must be eyewitnesses to the attack.
4. The person must die from their wounds (bites are generally not considered attacks according to the biologists).
That is a "documented" attack.
Such criteria make it very difficult to document any historical account of a wolf attack on a human!
Biologists assume when a wolf attacks a human, that there must be something wrong with the wolf. It's either been in captivity or it's sick or whatever. They don't examine the evidence in an unbiased manner or use historical tests.
Historically, there are four reasons for wolf attacks on humans:
1. Disease such as rabies.
2. Extreme hunger.
3. Familiarity/Disposition - This is an either/or situation. Familiarity is the zoo setting, captive wolves, etc. Disposition is a particularly aggressive wolf which may not fear man as most wolves do.
4. In the heat of the chase and kill - This is where a hiker, trapper or whoever disturbs a fresh chase and kill by wolves. The person walks into the scene only to be attacked by the wolves.
It is our belief that a predator's fear of man is both instinctive and learned behavior. For example, wolves raised as pets or in zoos are well documented to attack and kill humans.
Alyshia Berzyck, of Minnesota, was attacked and killed by a wolf on a chain on June 3, 1989. The wolf tore up her kidney, liver and bit a hole through her aorta. One month later, on July 1, 1989, Peter Lemke, 5, lost 12 inches of his intestine and colon and suffered bites to his stomach, neck, legs, arms and back in another wolf attack in Kenyon, Minnesota. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
Zoos carry abundant records of wolf attacks on people, particularly children. The child climbs the enclosure fence to pet the "dog" and is attacked.
Zoos and domestic settings are unnatural in that they place man and wolf in close proximity and they become accustomed to each other. Consequently attacks occur.
Today predator control is very restricted in scope, and as a result, attacks on humans by predators are becoming more common. In recent years, healthy coyotes in Yellowstone Park have attacked humans. Similar attacks have occurred in the National Parks of Canada.
On January 14, 1991, a healthy mountain lion attacked and killed an eighteen-year-old high school senior, Scott Lancaster, in Idaho Springs, Colorado. The boy was jogging on a jogging path within the city limits of the town when the lion attacked and killed him. (Report on file at Abundant Wildlife Society of North America)
Copyright 1995, 2000, T. R. Mader, Research Division
Permission granted to disseminate and/or reprint if credit is given to the source.
OTHER REPORTED WOLF ATTACKS IN THE WILD
1. Comox Valley, British Colombia – 1986 - While driving a tractor, Jakob Knopp was followed by three wolves to his barn. They didn't leave, but kept snarling and showing their teeth. Knopp ran to his barn, retreived a rifle and had to shoot two of the three wolves before the third left the area.
2. George Williams, a retired sailor heard a commotion in his chicken coup one night. Thinking it was raccoons he took his single shot 22 rifle and headed for the coup. He rounded his fishing boat and trailer when a wolf leaped at him. He instinctively reacted with a snap shot with the rifle and dropped the wolf. A second wolf came at him before he could reload and George swung the rifle and struck the wolf across the head, stunning it. George retreated to the house until morning and found the wolf he had shot, the other was gone.
3. Clarence Lewis was picking berries on a logging road about a mile from Knopp's farm when he faced four wolves. Lewis yelled at them, two left and the other two advanced towards him. He took a branch and took a couple of threatening steps at them. They went into the brush and stayed close to him. Lewis faced the wolves and walked backward for two miles until he reached his car.
4. Don Hamilton, Conservation Officer at Nanaimo went to investigate a livestock killing by wolves. Wolves had killed a number of sheep in a pasture and Don went out to examine the kills. He came upon the scene and saw a large gray wolf feeding on one of the sheep. The wolf looked at him, growled and started running towards him at full speed. The wolf was over 100 yards away and never broke stride as it approached Don. At approximately 15 feet, Don shot the wolf to stop its attack. Don, who has many years experience with wolves, stated that he was convinced that the wolf was going to attack him because of its growling, snarling and aggressive behavior.
5. In 1947, a man was hunting cougar on Vancouver Island and was attacked by a pack of seven wolves. The man backed against a tree and shot the leader of the pack. The pack instantly tore the animal to shreds while the hunter made his escape.
6. Clarence Lindley was reportedly attacked by a 125-pound timber wolf. The incident occurred in early November, 1992 on the Figure 4 Ranch in Dunn County, North Dakota. Lindley was hunting horseback when the wolf attacked Lindley's horse causing it to jump and fall. Lindley was able to grab his saddle gun, a lever action Winchester 94, as the horse fell. The horse recovered its balance and Lindley found himself face to face with a snarling wolf. "My heart was pounding," said Lindley, "I could see those big teeth. He was less than five feet away... He meant business; he wasn't going to back off." Lindley fired his rifle at point blank range and killed the wolf with a shot to the neck. Lindley left the wolf since he couldn't get his horse close to it. On return to his hunting camp, his hunter friends failed to believe the account. They returned to the scene and skinned the wolf. The pelt was a flawless black and gray pelt measuring seven and a half feet from its feet to its snout. Its bottom teeth measured one and a half inches; top teeth - one and a quarter inches. The North Dakota Game and Fish Department (NDGF) confiscated the hide and head of the wolf and took it to the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for determination of its species. Tests revealed that the wolf was non-rabid. The wolf was thought to have come from Canada. (Reports on file and available upon request.)
WOLF ATTACKS ON HUMANS (domestic incidents)
1. In the 1970s, John Harris, a Californian, toured the nation with “tame” wolves to promote public sympathy for preserving wolves. In July, 1975, "Rocky," one of Harris' wolves, attacked a one-year-old girl by biting her in the face. The girl was brought close to the wolf for a picture, an action encouraged by Harris.
2. In Maryland, a man kept a wolf in his basement and this animal turned and savagely bit and clawed his two-year-old son.
3. In New York City, a wolf bit a woman as it approached her.
4. At a zoo in Idaho, a little girl walked up to a cage housing a wolf and reached through the bars to pet the wolf. The wolf bit the arm. The arm had to be amputated.
5. Mr. Edward Rucciuti, former curator of publications for the New York Zoological Society and author of KILLER ANIMALS, personally witnessed a 12-year-old boy savagely attacked in the Bronx Zoo. This boy climbed a high fence in order to pet the wolves. The wolves (male and 2 females) immediately attacked the boy, ripping at the boy's clothing and flesh. The boy instinctively curled up in a ball, protecting his head, chest and abdomen. He then crawled into the moat in front of the exhibit with the wolves chewing his back and legs. Once the boy made it to the water, the wolves ceased their attack. The boy crawled out of the moat and collapsed. Mr. Rucciuti was amazed that the boy was still alive due to the severity of the bites.
6. San Diego Zoo (1971) A 15-year-old boy climbed the fence and tried to take a shortcut across the exhibit. He didn't know there were wolves in the exhibit and tried to run when he saw them. The wolves grabbed him by the leg attempting to drag him off. The boy grabbed a tree and hung on. Two bystanders jumped in the enclosure and attacked the wolves with tree branches. The wolves did not attack the two men, but continued to maul the boy. Dragging the boy and swinging their clubs, the boy was pulled out of the enclosure. The wolves in the enclosure were all young animals and it was thought that if the animals were mature, the boy would have died before being rescued.
7. A few months after the attack on the boy (#6), a man scaled the fence and swung his arms in the exhibit to get the attention of the wolves and got it by being bitten severely on both arms.
8. 1973 - Another boy tried to cross the same compound and was attacked, a security guard shot and killed one of the wolves, and the other fled as the boy was pulled to safety.
9. 1975 - Small zoo in Worcester, Massachusetts, a two-year-old lad was savagely bitten on the leg when it slipped through an enclosure opening. The boy's mother and 2 men could not pull the boy free. The wolves did not stop ripping the boy's leg apart until a railroad tie was thrown in the midst of the wolves.
10. 1978 -- A wolf bit a child in Story, Wyoming. The wolf was penned at a local veterinary clinic for observation. During that time, the wolf escaped its pen and killed a young calf. Wyoming law prohibits the keeping of wild animals as pets, so the animal was shipped to Ohio, where it had come from. The owner of the wolf went to Ohio and brought the wolf back to Wheatland, Wyoming. It was reported the wolf attacked and killed a child in that area shortly thereafter.
11. September, 1981 - A two-year-old boy was mauled to death by an 80-lb, 3 year-old female wolf in Ft. Wayne, Michigan. The boy wandered within the chain length of the wolf.
12. August 2, 1986 (Fergus Falls, Minnesota) - A 17-month-old boy reached and grabbed the fencing which kept his father's pet wolves enclosed. One wolf immediately grabbed the boy's hand and bit it off. The mother was at the scene and received lacerations freeing the child from the wolf.
13. July 1988 (Minnesota Zoo) - A teenage volunteer reached through the wire fence to pet a wolf and was bitten. The wolf was put to sleep and tested for rabies – negative.
14. May 15, 1989 - 2-year-old Timothy Bajinski was bitten by a wolf hybrid in his mother's Staten Island, New York backyard. Mrs. Bajinski has been charged with keeping a wild animal.
15. May 1989 - Lucas Wilken was bitten by two wolf hybrids in Adams County, CO (Denver Area).
16. June 3, 1989 - Three year old Alyshia Berczyk was attacked and killed by a wolf in Forest Lake, Minnesota. The wolf had bitten her severely and had injured her kidneys, liver and bit through her aorta. Alyshia was playing in a backyard when she got too close to the chained wolf that grabbed her dress and pulled her down, attacking her.
17. July 1, 1989 (Kenyon, Minnesota) - Peter Lemke, age 5, attempted to pet a chained wolf and was attacked. He lost 12 inches of his intestine and colon, suffered a tear in his stomach, and bite wounds on his arms, legs, buttocks and neck. While being life-flighted to the hospital, Pete arrested 3 times but was saved by medical personnel. The Lemkes have incurred over $200,000 in hospital bills. Pete has a colostomy bag, but doctors are hopeful they can re-attach his colon and get it to function normally in later surgeries.
18. September 3, 1989 - A wolf and a dog entered a corral belonging to Leona Geppfart of Caldwell, ID and attacked a 6-month-old 400-pound Hereford calf. Geppfart attempted to scare the animals away and they turned on her and she retreated to her house. A short time later, a law enforcement officer arrived and as he approached the corral, the wolf lunged at him. The officer stopped the animal with his shotgun.
NOTE: This list of wolf attacks is by no means exhaustive. They are simply listed to show that attacks have occurred both in the wild and other settings.
About the Author: T. R. Mader is Research Director of Abundant Wildlife Society of North America, an independent research organization. Mader has researched wolf history for more than 15 years and has traveled over 30,000 miles conducting research and interviews on environmental issues.
For more information, contact:
ABUNDANT WILDLIFE SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA
P. O. Box 2
Beresford, SD 57004
Permission granted to disseminate and/or reprint if credit is given to the source
cassandrasdaddy
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Founded by former cattleman Dick Mader in 1989 in effort to obstruct reintroduction of the endangered grey wolf in Yellowstone National Park. Mader's son, Troy, considers himself the world's leading expert on the wolf, and distributes booklets showing deer, sheep, and cattle supposedly mauled by the grey wolf. Associated with the Wise Use movement and is a member of the Alliance for America.
cassandrasdaddy
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my husky/lab kills for fun my chickens and i've seen her bring me squirrels and rabbits still quite alive
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