Wolves and Elk

R

Rob Meyers

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Rosemary Jaffe,who studied elk and wolves in Yellowstone for her Montana State graduate work,said she found wolves there are preying heavily on elk calves. In the first winter of her study,there were 46 calves per hundred cows in the area in December but only three per hundred cows by May. In the second year,which had milder weather ,the numbers changed from 38 calves per 100 to nine per 100.
 
Sounds about normal did she do any collar work and what were the bear kills to wolf and if any coyote.

Here it is about 12 moose per one wolf in the pack so if you add the rest of wolves it goes higher still and it is about 30 Bou per wolf there has not been any work done as to how many sheep per wolf.

Just asking here, I have heard that coyotes have declined due to the wolf come back what is your take on that I got that Info from a fed F&G report that is out Thanks >>>
 
Coyote Slayer the article didn't say anything about bears or coyotes.She did say that elk calves decreased most dramatically of all the sexes,ages and species of prey in the area and that the calves made up 50 percent of the wolf diet.
 
thanks for the Info I guess that they did a scat study to come up with that data just because they can't kill them there so on avarage it is 4000 scats and test 400 to come up with that # along with time spent in the field and area count.

when we did the study in the wrangle we shot them and did a content study of all wolves and coyotes taken along with a scat study it just gives you better #s. The moose study in Mcgrath we collared 30 new borne moose calfs at the end of 30 days all were dead 14 killed by Griz,8 by Black bears, 6 by wolves and 2 by acts of god.

As to the hunting of them the Bio. from the WY.part of the park came here to work in Alaska and when I was down there doing coyote work him and I spent part of the day talking he told me that the packs had grown a lot faster than they wanted and was not sure how far the feds would let it go before they might come off the list but I think that may be a hard won battle as to hunting them it is a lot easyer to get them on the list than get them off and all the animal do gooders would have a fit to boot. >>>
 
The May issue of The American Hunter has the first part of a two part article on wolves and their effect on wildlife in Alaska. Very interesting reading, to say the least. One more thing, the wolves here in the UP of MI are really taking it to the deer herd. This past deer season some hunters reported seeing no deer, but only wolves. The wolf population is climbing at a very rapid rate and they have gone from being listed as endangered to threatened. No season on them here though. God Bless The Troops. MI VHNTR
 
here in the yukon the only good wolf is a dead wolf. yes wolves kill coyotes!!!! have seen it 2 times.try howling with a foxpro on a moose kill
 
Welcome Paul. I'd like to hear your experiences with calling, hunting, and trapping wolves. You mentioned howling over a moose kill? Could you give the details?

The wolves that were reintroduced here (In Idaho) are growing at a very fast rate. Much quicker than anyone would have guessed. I'm hoping they will be taken off the endangered list and hunting them will be allowed some day. I'd like to hear any tips you have on how to hunt and call wolves. Thanks Paul.
 
Lonny: most of my luck calling wolves has been at wolves kills.It normal takes wolves 2 t0 4 days to eat a moose We try to setup in a large open area close to the kill.(this is easy as most kills are on lakes) we have had good luck with howling, both wolf and coyote seem to work.
here wolves spend most the winter traveling on frozen lakes an rivers. setups at beaver houses is also a good place for blind calling.here again we howl or distress call.The yukon has some very big lakes.We travel them with dog team or snowmachine,spot for wolves setup and howl.
Some people have baits this works good,but you need lots of bait 2 or 3 horses(20 wolves can eat lots of meat in one night)allso the bait is only good for one try at a pack,they seldem come back.
trapping wolves is simple. you need lots of snares 400 t0 500 .boil everything,clean gloves ,clean boots and clothing.Blind sets work the best. put snares on both sides of your trail(30 per side) then scare the pack off the trail into your snares. this is just a matter of leaving a old glove or coat on the trail
PS. email me your mailing address send you more info and a snare so you can see how we make
 
Thanks for the great information Paul. It's great to hear from a guy like yourself with some wolf experience. If you think of any other wolf calling and hunting tips or experiences you have had I'd like to hear them.

It sounds like it would be a real adventure traveling by dog team to hunt wolves. I hope that someday we can hunt wolves here. Thanks for the offer on the snares but we can't even hunt them yet and I really doubt they will ever let us trap or snare wolves down here. Take care.
 
lonny traveling with the dogs is fun but a hell of alot of work. they eat ever day. the old snow machine shuts of for the summer. the dogs hate the wolf hunts I think they think there bait.Wy can you not hunt the wolves?did they plant them from alberta?
 
Paul, I think the wolves that were brought to Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho did come from Alberta. I could be wrong on that though. The wolves were released in the mid 1990's and they are quickly repopulating and expanding out from the areas where they were released. I have read some articles lately that suggest maybe in the future we may have the chance to hunt wolves in the lower 48. I'm sure the animal rights people will fight it the whole way and do their best to stop any kind of wolf hunting season.

Rob Meyers, what's your take on the possibility of a wolf hunting season in Montana, Idaho or Wyoming someday? You always seem to keep well informed on these topics.
 
Guys,
Wolves will be moved from the Endangered to Threatened list in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho soon. With the move, the individual states will be given responsibility to manage the populations. The big question is, do they have the fortitude to do the right thing and allow a limited take or will they buckle to the Anti’s and not allow any take. I really don’t have a feel for it. Montana buckled to the Anti’s on bison hunting in the early 90’s so their record isn’t so good. I think Wyoming may buck the tide but they only have a small area around Yellowstone with wolves. Idaho is anyone’s guess.

Coyote Slayer.

I worked on a wolf/black bear/moose study in Galena in the early 90’s. Were you around McGrath then?
 
Lonny I don't think it will ever happen for the reasons Mike mentioned. I hope I'm wrong like you I would love to have the opportunity to take one.
 


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