Wolf Cull on BCTV News @ 6pm Today Feb 12

[Ohwildwon]

Wolf Cull on BCTV News @ 6pm Today Feb 12

More bleeding hearts?

[TARCHER]

http://youtu.be/dRuxCMhvl84

[Stone Sheep Steve]

BCTV? Will be painful to watch.

[bruce44]

Wolf Cull on BCTV News @ 6pm Today Feb 12

More bleeding hearts? I don't mean to stir the pot because I personally don't feel one way or the other about wolves. But my friend who is studying to be a conservation officer says there are many factors that are killing the caribou and wolves are very small. For example the lichen that they feed on are not as plentiful due to human impact so many starve. Roads being built by humans allow more movement for the wolves which give them access to areas that they couldn't before which makes caribou easier to hunt. Many of the locals in Chetwynd say thats also the reason for lower elk heard numbers.

[btridge]

I don't mean to stir the pot because I personally don't feel one way or the other about wolves. But my friend who is studying to be a conservation officer says there are many factors that are killing the caribou and wolves are very small. For example the lichen that they feed on are not as plentiful due to human impact so many starve. Roads being built by humans allow more movement for the wolves which give them access to areas that they couldn't before which makes caribou easier to hunt. Many of the locals in Chetwynd say thats also the reason for lower elk heard numbers.
Wow, roads allow wolves to go where they didn't have access before, Just Wow! You obviously have never watched wolves in the wild, they can go anywhere they choose, unlike most humans, they don't need roads.

[Treed]

Wolves have significantly better hunting success when using road networks. As well, sledders that use the roads in winter make packed tracks that allow wolves access to caribou in their wintering grounds. So yeah, roads do matter.

[ryanb]

Wow, roads allow wolves to go where they didn't have access before, Just Wow! You obviously have never watched wolves in the wild, they can go anywhere they choose, unlike most humans, they don't need roads.

No one ever suggested wolves need roads but roads do make it easier for wolves to efficiently travel, hunt, and make kills. A pack can have a far bigger range in a roaded area over a roadless area.

[Stone Sheep Steve]

Kill efficiency goes up considerably with roads which results in healthier wolves which leads to increased birth and survival rates.

[Husky7mm]

I don't mean to stir the pot because I personally don't feel one way or the other about wolves. But my friend who is studying to be a conservation officer says there are many factors that are killing the caribou and wolves are very small. For example the lichen that they feed on are not as plentiful due to human impact so many starve. Roads being built by humans allow more movement for the wolves which give them access to areas that they couldn't before which makes caribou easier to hunt. Many of the locals in Chetwynd say thats also the reason for lower elk heard numbers.

I dont think anyone is in disagreement with the fact that man has mess up habitat, created connectivity and creates easy access. I dont believe that caribou or any other ungulates for that matter are starving to death. It all about whats eating them, be it wolves, cougars or bears. Be it calf recruitment or adult mortality. Unless we are going to stop all industry, farming, urban sprawl and recreation in the wilderness, and revert it all back to its "natural" form predators need to be managed, sometimes intensely. We have a much larger problem than just caribou.

[Husky7mm]

Wow, roads allow wolves to go where they didn't have access before, Just Wow! You obviously have never watched wolves in the wild, they can go anywhere they choose, unlike most humans, they don't need roads.
In a "natural" wilderness it takes a long time and lots of effort to get around and hunt. This is especially true in the winter when there is deep snow. Now with plowed road networks, trails, seismic, pipelines and snowmoblie trails it takes very little effort and wolves are thriving.

[.264winmag]

I would think it would be easier for all animals to travel in the timber, especially old growth in the winter snow conditions. I don't think it's so much the roads that are the issue, ever tried to walk in 5 or 10 feet of unmolested snow on a road? Pretty much useless without snowshoes or skis. Those damn sleds, however, create a nice packed trail for predator and prey alike. This upsets the natural Travel routes and makes safe havens for ungulates into accessible slaughter zones. That's why they closed a bunch of snowmobile trails in Revelstoke. Husky is right, we've made such a mess out of the wild country already why shouldn't we be able to control the predators too? It will never be what used to be but there's no reason we can't have a man made balance too, at least to help save a species or two in certain areas. It makes more sense than what they did north of Revelstoke, opened it up for leh moose slaughter so the wolves would have less to eat. Well the wolves just ended up eating more 'bou cause there were no moose left to eat and now there's no moose or 'bou. A wolf cull originally would have helped save two species in that area.

[Doostien]

In a "natural" wilderness it takes a long time and lots of effort to get around and hunt. This is especially true in the winter when there is deep snow. Now with plowed road networks, trails, seismic, pipelines and snowmoblie trails it takes very little effort and wolves are thriving.

Yep, wolf feet are huge for their bodies. So packed snow is easy for them to walk on. A moose or elk will just fall through the same snow the wolf is running on. In winter its like a free buffet for predators.

[Husky7mm]

These wolves are born into this unnatural enviroment, using roads and trails is as natural to them as breathing. Easy hunting and big territorys.
Working in the north I use snowmobiles for almost half the year. Within a day or two of being in an area animal s are using the tracks we leave, deer, moose , wolves cougars...... It requires a fraction of the energy to get around in deep snow.
I challenge anyone that is in disagreement with the "road" theory to spend a few days in 1.5 ft plus snow without good snow interception, (and with a poor or changing base) to walk around for awhile without snowshoes. You will be exhausted and needing rest often, you will cover very little ground. You will be very quickly looking for a packed trail or road to take instead. Same goes for the wolves.

[btridge]

These wolves are born into this unnatural enviroment, using roads and trails is as natural to them as breathing. Easy hunting and big territorys.
Working in the north I use snowmobiles for almost half the year. Within a day or two of being in an area animal s are using the tracks we leave, deer, moose , wolves cougars...... It requires a fraction of the energy to get around in deep snow.
I challenge anyone that is in disagreement with the "road" theory to spend a few days in 1.5 ft plus snow without good snow interception, (and with a poor or changing base) to walk around for awhile without snowshoes. You will be exhausted and needing rest often, you will cover very little ground. You will be very quickly looking for a packed trail or road to take instead. Same goes for the wolves.
Yes, snow machines are a huge problem and do make it easier for wolves, but in a lot of places, you don't need a road for these machines to have a very big affect on wildlife travel. to blame the road for wolf access is a very small part of the problem.

[Husky7mm]

Some over think it to be a complexed problem. Its actually very simple and logical. In the "new wilderness" there is a network of connectivity and easy travel. Its in the form of fsr, oil and gas roads, pipe and powerlines, seismic, mining and drill trails, snowmobile and atv trails...... It has catered to the hunting style of wolves and other predators. What should be a daily struggle is now a cake walk. Like SSS said kill efficiency along with survival and birth rates are all up. They are expanding like a plague because of it, even as prey deminishes, and yes it is mans fault, thats where it becomes a complexed problem because there is no normal wilderness anymore. The public doesnt want to persecute wolves and it is an absolute must. We are on the verge of crumbling other wildlife populations and having massive predator problems and conflicts. If an intense cull does not happen wolves will die from stavation and strife with eachother and other predators. The public will kill off wolves with kindness and do extensive damage to other wildlife in the process. People need to support the cull.

[btridge]

I fully support the cull, further, I support a bounty on wolves by MU until we can get the wolf problem somewhat controlled.

[180grainer]

I wonder why they haven't eliminated the bag limit on wolves? That and have an open season April 1st to March 31st of the following year.

[hawk-i]

Wow, roads allow wolves to go where they didn't have access before, Just Wow! You obviously have never watched wolves in the wild, they can go anywhere they choose, unlike most humans, they don't need roads.

You are correct in saying wolves don't need roads but it is also correct to say, they sure like to follow them and can and do cover more ground in the process.

[coach]

I wonder why they haven't eliminated the bag limit on wolves? That and have an open season April 1st to March 31st of the following year.

NBL and Sep 1 to June 15 is current reg for areas of the Koktenays where Caribou are present.

[bruce44]

Wow, roads allow wolves to go where they didn't have access before, Just Wow! You obviously have never watched wolves in the wild, they can go anywhere they choose, unlike most humans, they don't need roads.

Go walk 100m in 5 ft of snow then do the same with a plowed trail. With roads the wolves conserve more energy meaning they can travel farther and longer. Doesnt matter if youre human wolf or cow. Packed roads make a massive difference.

[bruce44]

Good points guys. But lets say all the caribou die anyways no matter how many wolves we kill. Now they turn to farm animals. Do we hunt wolves into extinction in that specific area or do we introduce caribou from other places? When there are barely any prey left and wolves themselves have been culled to a very low number, what can we do?

[Husky7mm]

Good points guys. But lets say all the caribou die anyways no matter how many wolves we kill. Now they turn to farm animals. Do we hunt wolves into extinction in that specific area or do we introduce caribou from other places? When there are barely any prey left and wolves themselves have been culled to a very low number, what can we do?

They need to manage for the game we actually what we have, deer moose and elk. Caribou were once present all over southern BC and alberta and down into the northern states. They have been declining for a long time. They now have a very shallow gean pool and I think there is little chance for them to recover in those areas. They tried a transplant and the cougars ate them before the wolves had a chance.
Bison and grizzly also roamed in great numbers all through the prairies but there really is not a place for them there anymore.
One thing is certain, wolf numbers need to be managed or we will be in the same predicament with moose and mule deer in 10-20 years. Now is the time to make a difference, not in the 11th hour. All problems are easier to solve if they are they are dealt with at the beginning.

[Downtown]

Wolves have significantly better hunting success when using road networks. As well, sledders that use the roads in winter make packed tracks that allow wolves access to caribou in their wintering grounds. So yeah, roads do matter.

And you my Friend are absolutely right, and now for all those constantly yammering about the overabundance of Wolves make it a habit hunting and killing some every season that is of course if you have the skill and what ever else it takes to be successful.


Cheers.

[huntinnut]

I think it's a bit of a misnomer that wolves actively 'hunt' caribou, at least in the kootenays. Caribou are already at low densities so it's not efficient for Wolves to hunt them. Wolves are at a high density, 'prey switching' and killing Caribou onee in a while they look for other winter targets like moose, deer and elk. It's just that there are so few Caribou that it's a big deal. I think we're down to 18 or less animals here in the selkirk/priest river/purcells area. I also personally think that changes in snowpack and more frequent warm winter rain events are possibly having an impact causing snow conditions that favor the predators, and reduce access to preffered food. there are active conservation meausures already in place and the Caribou continue to decline. Caribou habitat zones as a Government Action Regulation order (GAR), restricting forestry activites, no snowmobile zones ect. It is a complex issue for sure with only one effective short term solution. Cull the Wolves, and not just 20 or so and not just once!, or let the Caribou become extripated which may happen anyways.