News - Area News

On May 31, USDA’s Wildlife Services confirmed that a single wolf killed 9 sheep on a ranch near Jeffers (near Ennis).  WS set traps near the carcasses to catch the wolf most likely responsible for the damage and caught a gray male wolf.  The wolf was killed, and the control action was discontinued.

On June 10, WS investigated and confirmed a single calf had been injured by wolves near the Wall Creek Wildlife Management area south of Ennis.  The situation was monitored, and no lethal control actions were authorized until further information was collected.

On June 29, WS confirmed that a calf was killed by wolves in the West Fork of the Madison River.  The kill appeared to occur in the territory of the Horn Mountain pack.  A second calf was confirmed killed by wolves on July 1 in the same area.  Both calves were owned by the same rancher, and Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks authorized the removal of 3 wolves.   None had been removed so far.  

In its weekly wolf report, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks noted that a calf was killed by wolves in the Cedar Creek area near Ennis. 

Landowners in that area reported consistently seeing a large pack containing 10 – 12 wolves in the immediate area.  USDA’s Wildlife Services darted and collared two wolves in this area in March from a group of 12. 

FWP asked Wildlife Services to remove five wolves from this pack as large livestock losses have historically occurred in this area. 

A shoot-on-site permit was also issued to the livestock owner.  So far, Wildlife Services have removed three wolves.  

On February 2, Wildlife Services, a department of USDA, euthanized a wolf south of Ennis.  WS was performing routine coyote control work on the west side of the Madison River.  According to the release from Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, "An effort to opportunistically dart a wolf took a different path after the wolf was fully anaesthetized and closely inspected.  WS discovered prior injuries to a hind leg and the belly area. 
FWP and WS agreed that the animal should be euthanized and it was.  The carcass was retrieved from the field for full necropsy."

From the Helena Independent Record
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Editorial from the Casper Star Tribune
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So far, it looks as if the dry season may be ending throughout the majority of Montana - Great Falls Tribune; 5/28/09
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Anywhere from 26 to 165 gray wolves could be taken by hunters this fall in Montana under tentative quotas unanimously adopted Thursday by the Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission - Independent Record; 5/15/09
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Legislative panel told effective vaccine could take decades to develop - Billings Gazette; 5/14/09
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Thinning projects help loggers find work - The Missoulian; 5/13/09
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Plan would limit public’s access - The Spokesman Review; 5/5/09
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