Category: Conservation News

FORMER WOLF ADVISORY COUNCIL TO MEET WITH GOV. BULLOCK, FWP

Former members of Montana’s Wolf Management Advisory Council will gather in Helena, April 12, to review and discuss the wolf management plan they helped to create.
The disbanded 12-member citizens’ council last met about five years ago to discuss specific hunting and trapping recommendations in anticipation of the wolf’s official recovery in the northern Rocky Mountains.
“A lot has transpired since the council last met in 2007,” said FWP Director Jeff Hagener. “Governor Steve Bullock and I have invited the members to gather in Helena for a one-day meeting to review the status of the wolf in Montana today and to discuss the effectiveness of the management plan.”
The April 12 meeting, set to begin at 8:30 a.m., will be held at FWP Headquarters in Helena, 1420 E. Sixth Ave. The meeting will be video streamed live to each FWP regional office. A live audio stream will also be available via the FWP website at fwp.mt.gov.
The meeting agenda includes introductory remarks from Gov. Bullock, Hagener and Chase Hibbard, the former chairman of the council. The core of the agenda includes an update on existing federal requirements; a review of the legal procedures that led to delisting in 2011; and reviews and updates on the wolf population’s status, research activities, hunting and trapping seasons, livestock depredation, recent wolf-related legislation, and wolf-program funding. The agenda also includes opportunities for public comment at 2 p.m.
The delisting of wolves in 2011 allows Montana to manage wolves in a manner similar to how bears, mountain lions and other wildlife species are managed, which is guided by state management plans, administrative rules, and laws.
Montana wildlife officials recently estimated that at least 625 wolves, in 147 verified packs, and 37 breeding pairs inhabited the state at the end of 2012. To learn more about Montana’s wolf population, visit FWP online at fwp.mt.gov.
The wolf advisory council was created in 2000 to advise FWP on the development of a wolf conservation and management plan. Montana’s plan was approved by federal officials in 2004.
FWP ensures its meetings are fully accessible to individuals with special needs. To request arrangements call FWP at 406-444-3186.
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NEW WOLF LAWS TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY

A wolf management bill that won swift and overwhelming bipartisan support in the Montana Legislature was signed into law today by the state’s new governor.
Gov. Steve Bullock said the law, sponsored by Rep. Kelly Flynn, will allow hunters to purchase up to three wolf licenses and lowers the price of a nonresident wolf license from $350 to $50. The measure will also fortify state wildlife officials’ science-based efforts to manage Montana’s recovered and growing wolf population, the Governor said.
“This legislation leaves management of the gray wolf where it belongs, in the hands of scientists, not politicians,” Gov. Bullock said.
The legislation was amended by law makers to allow hunting and trapping of wolves near national parks and allows wildlife officials to close such areas after established wolf harvest quotas are met.
In signing the legislation, Gov. Bullock asked FWP to ramp up education programs aimed at averting the harvest of collared wolves near national parks.
Gov. Bullock also directed his staff to determine the best way to reengage the wolf advisory council. The council was originally formed to lead the state’s productive wolf conservation and management plan discussions more than 12 years ago.
The new law also allows for wolf hunters to use their license after 24-hours of purchase, instead of a five-day wait; authorizes the use of electronic calls ; and removes the requirement for wolf hunters to wear hunter-orange clothing after the general deer and elk hunting seasons have ended.
The recovery of the wolf in the northern Rockies—an area generally comprised of wolf populations in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming—remains one of the fastest endangered species comebacks on record. The recovery goal for wolves in the three states was set at a minimum of 30 breeding pairs—successfully reproducing wolf packs—and a minimum of 300 individual wolves for at least three consecutive years. In the mid 1990s, to hasten the overall pace of wolf recovery, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released wolves into Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. By 2002 the recovery goal was reached and the wolf population has increased every year since.
Today, at least 1,774 wolves in 287 packs and about 109 breeding pairs, live in the region. The minimum Montana wolf population estimates at the end of 2011 include 653 wolves, in 130 verified packs, and 39 breeding pairs. New official population estimates are expected in March.
Montana’s wolf hunting and trapping seasons are open through Feb. 28. So far, hunters have taken 115 wolves and trappers have reported taking 84 wolves. For more information, visit FWP online at fwp.mt.gov. Click “Montana Wolf Hunt”.