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Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on December 31, 2014, 08:54 AM:
Grand Canyon gray wolf may have been shot in Utah
LiveScience
By Megan GannonPublished December 30, 2014
After a 500-mile trek across the West, a lone wolf's journey may have come to an end this weekend.
A coyote hunter in Utah mistakenly shot and killed an endangered gray wolf, which wildlife groups worry was the same wolf photographed near the Grand Canyon this fall. That animal had strayed from its pack in the northern Rockies and was the first of its species to roam Arizona in 70 years.
The slain wolf, which was wearing a radio collar, was shot near the south end of the Tushar Mountains near Beaver, Utah, on Sunday (Dec. 28), the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) said in a statement. [In Photos: The Fight Over Gray Wolves' Endangered Status]
When the hunter realized the animal wasn't a coyote, he alerted state officials who then contacted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The federal agency confirmed the animal was a 3-year-old female gray wolf that had been outfitted with its collar near Cody, Wyoming, earlier this year. Wildlife groups are still waiting to hear whether DNA tests will confirm that the wolf was really the lone female they had been tracking since October.
"This was a worry of ours," said Michael Robinson, with the Center for Biological Diversity. "Personally, I'm very saddened by it."
Gray wolves were wiped out from Arizona in the 1940s. That's why Robinson and other conservationists were excited by the news this past October that a gray wolf was repeatedly spotted near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Federal officials failed to capture the wolf to remove its radio collar, but DNA tests of the wolf's feces confirmed that it was a female from the northern Rocky Mountains population.
Although gray wolves have been removed from the endangered species list (and are even legally hunted) in some parts of the country, they still receive federal protections in many states, including Arizona and Utah. It's not clear whether the hunter will face any charges.
"This shows how vulnerable gray wolves are and how important real protection is," Robinson told Live Science. "What we need is a response that follows the Endangered Species Act and prevents these kinds of occurrences from happening again. We think a thorough investigation is imperative."
Robinson added that better education programs could help teach people what gray wolves look like and make people aware that the animals are endangered.
Posted by Moe (Member # 4494) on December 31, 2014, 09:59 AM:
I have no sympathy. If they were going to reintroduce the wolves they also should've reintroduced the animals they preyed upon. Mainly the American Bison. I find it appalling that the people who wanted to reintroduce the wolves and the ones who want them to spread have absolutely no skin in the game. City dwellers, mostly.
I remember the posters and the TV shows telling us how noble wolves are. When I lived in Alaska I had an airplane and flew over frozen lakes in the winter where I saw the results of a wolf kill. Blood spread over the ice with tracks leading every which way. The wolves tore apart some poor moose. Hardly noble. In the Yakutat area wolves have decimated the moose population to a dangerous point. The state conducts aerial hunts every year to control the numbers but activists in the lower 48 threaten boycotts. Let them. A-holes should stay in the city.
Posted by Aznative (Member # 506) on December 31, 2014, 03:02 PM:
I feel sorry for the coyote hunter that shot the wolf.
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on December 31, 2014, 06:19 PM:
I don't see how they can do anything to the hunter, honest mistake....he says? And, who can prove otherwise?
So, the bunny huggers will fret and insist that everyone in the woods needs to take an ID course. That way, no excuse.
However, I agree with Moe. I think they are pushing wolves where they never were, in the first place, other than an occasional Lobo.
Good hunting. El Bee
Posted by Rifleshooter (Member # 3983) on December 31, 2014, 07:26 PM:
I don't understand why he told them.
Posted by Kokopelli (Member # 633) on December 31, 2014, 07:53 PM:
"What we need is a response that follows the Endangered Species Act and prevents these kind of occurrences from happening again. We think a thorough investigation is imperative."
"..........better education yada yada......"
Center For Biological Diversity (A rabid anti-hunting group)
Translation;
(1) Make the hunter's life Hell. Honest mistake or no, he killed a sacred wolf & must be made to pay. Make an example of him to other hunters.
(2) Outlaw coyote hunting in 'sensitive habitat areas' {all of Arizona} so that this kind of tragedy cannot happen again.
(3) Restrict deer & elk hunting so that wolves have abundant natural prey.
(4) Use this once in a million occurrence as a public relation windfall to generate donations so that our important work can continue yada yada....
This whole affair will do little more than to convince hunters that it takes two bullets to kill a wolf. One in the lungs and one in the collar.
Posted by Dave Allen (Member # 3102) on December 31, 2014, 08:16 PM:
Yep, that guys screwed. I can't imagine why he didn't just keep moving along.
Being honest, unfortunately doesn't apply in this situation.
I haven't hunted Oregon in several years now. I do remember the last set of reg's mentioned there were no wolves in Oregon, yet there was an illustration indicating the difference between a wolf and coyote and for coyote hunters to be aware of this.
Hmmmm ?
[ December 31, 2014, 08:17 PM: Message edited by: Dave Allen ]
Posted by Aznative (Member # 506) on January 01, 2015, 08:16 AM:
They put those damn Mexican grey wolves in the Apache/Sitgraves national forest. They wanted something like a dozen breeding pairs. Well they have more than double that number and the antis are still not satisfied. I've heard if the wolves go onto the White Mountain Apache reservation the Indians shoot them on sight. The wildlife service is already gearing up to set forth policy protecting them in the blue ridge area 150 miles away because they are moving in. In ten years they will be all over northern Arizona if left unchecked. There goes our elk heard and wolves kill coyotes too.
Posted by 3 Toes (Member # 1327) on January 07, 2015, 06:10 AM:
One quick comment. If you can't tell the difference between a 3 year old wolf and a coyote, I damn sure ain't going hunting with you, and you shouldn't be allowed to hunt anything. That's kind of like the story of the guy shooting a mule and thinking it was an elk.
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on January 07, 2015, 07:41 AM:
I agree with Cal's comments, but. Just maybe there are extenuating circumstances? Like, maybe it was poor visibility? Maybe he didn't see the whole animal through brush? Maybe it was long range? And, maybe he was a new hunter, had not seen very many coyotes, or wolves?
In other words, the situation wasn't exactly like mistaking a mule for an elk because, after all there are similarities.
Example: I have seen two animals through the scope at night, and an ID can be challenging. Think about a face on kit fox at 300 yards versus a pup coyote facing you, while looking into a rising sun at 430 yards. Maybe I'm a numbskull, but I have had some difficulty arriving at an identification under certain conditions.
Okay, I'm reaching for straws, but we can't know, for sure if the guy is a complete bonehead, or he made an honest mistake. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Good hunting. El Bee
Posted by Fur_n_Dirt (Member # 4467) on January 07, 2015, 08:48 AM:
Haven't we learned anything from Idaho's experiences with wolves???
Posted by booger (Member # 3602) on January 07, 2015, 09:54 AM:
A couple of years ago, some dog hunters turned out on what they thought was a big coyote. Turned out to be a 90 pound Great Lakes Wolf. Happened in Trego County which is about 2 hours east of the Colorado border.
Guess the dogs were pretty well being bested until the guy stepped in and ended the fight. The Feds took the carcass, but as far as I know, nothing happened to the hunter.
Saw a picture next to a normal sized coyote, and yes, I think even I could have told the difference in the wild.
Apparently this critter had been running around the area for a while, and most knew it was there...I have a suspicion they all knew what it was, but could never get it in their sights or close enough to catch it with dogs until they finally did.
Posted by Prune Picker (Member # 4107) on January 07, 2015, 01:20 PM:
I'm pretty sure the anti's agenda on the reintroduction of the wolf has more to do with their anti hunting agenda period, on that we probably all agree. I mostly hunt alone and at night so I would be the one that would decide on what shot('s) to take or pass on but if and when I'm hunting with a partner or partners I have always tried to abide by a prearranged agreement or understanding on shot/target selection and who shoots first. Take Quail hunting as an example, I've never owned a great or even average Quail dog but have hunted behind some damn good dogs always mindful of only taking a safe shot (out of respect) but... if we were making a sweep and one of the dogs was attacked by a stray dog, coyote, cat or wolf, I'm going to stop the attack as fast as I can pull the trigger. For what it's worth there are cougars in my immediate area even tho until recently the game commission has denied their presence not only in my area but in the entire state of Oklahoma.
Posted by 3 Toes (Member # 1327) on January 07, 2015, 02:46 PM:
Shooting a wolf in self defense all the while knowing its a wolf is one thing. Shooting a grown wolf thinking it was a coyote is completely different. There is just no way to confuse the two. I agree with some species LB. Here we have swift fox and at times they are pretty hard to tell between a swifty and a coyote pup. But the difference between a grown wolf and coyote would be like shooting someones dalmation and saying you thought sure it was a coyote.
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on January 07, 2015, 05:29 PM:
I'm just trying to rationalize, Cal. If you give the guy the benefit of the doubt, and he is moderately honest, then I'm just trying to figure out how the supposed honest mistake was made.
Now, you probably have it all over the rest of us, since I have only seen one wolf, in the field. He was between 300/400 yards and there was no doubt in my mind. Of course, I have a pretty good idea what a coyote looks like.
I want to be fair. Without being gullible, at the same time. If the guy is a predator hunter, I can figure it was some kind of mistake...and, as far as I'm concerned, BFD. I will shed no tear.
Good hunting. El Bee
Posted by jimanaz (Member # 3689) on January 07, 2015, 05:51 PM:
11 or 12 years ago when checking out of the Kaibab (north rim of the Grand Canyon), my nephew and I described a scene that we had come upon to the AZGFD officer doing the checking. When we finished telling what we had seen, we asked him if wolves were in the Kaibab or Grand Canyon. His answer was sort of "not that we have confirmed". This much later, there is not a shred of doubt in my mind. Maybe not in numbers, but they're there.
The scene...no animals sighted, but a deer had been taken and COMPLETELY consumed the night before. Hair everywhere, blood everywhere, some small bone chips. Rocky ground, no tracks. No drag marks. Probably covered 10 square yards. The hair still stands up on the back of my neck when I think about it.
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on January 07, 2015, 07:18 PM:
I can relate to that. Although I only saw a single animal, I saw evidence, the next morning. The night before, it was quite an experience, the wolves were very vocal, and so were we, and the icing on the cake was the Northern Lights.
The next morning these wolves had been all over where we had been calling them. There was no kill but the spoor was everywhere, the footprints were unbelievable. I will never again ponder coyote tracks and wonder if they could possibly be wolf?
And, the urine! Everywhere. And especially the turds! Unbelievable, I mean, these were over a foot long, consisting of tightly packed deer hair. Never saw anything like that from a coyote, and there were coyotes in this area. But, we felt the evidence was a statement for us. Of course, they were able to tell that some humans were there, but maybe they also thought the WT sounds and the voice howling we did meant that they "might" have concluded humans and strange wolves were there the night before.
It was kinda spooky.
Good hunting. El Bee
[ January 07, 2015, 07:20 PM: Message edited by: Leonard ]
Posted by Chris S (Member # 3888) on January 08, 2015, 02:34 PM:
Some page on Facebook posted an article about this and you should have seen all the anti's calling for the guy to be killed. It was awe inspiring to see how desperately these twats wanted a human to be killed in lieu of an animal.
[ January 08, 2015, 02:35 PM: Message edited by: Chris S ]
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on January 08, 2015, 02:40 PM:
Beyond pathetic.
Posted by Dave Allen (Member # 3102) on January 08, 2015, 06:23 PM:
Quote.
Haven't we learned anything from Idaho's experiences with wolves???
I'm not sure what you mean ?
I found this on the news for whatever it's worth ?
http://www.jrn.com/kivitv/news/No-wolves-killed-at-Idaho-predator-derby-287546961.html
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