Endangered or Endangering?

Wolves of Wisconsin: Endangered or Endangering?
Eric Scharenbrock
11/02/2011
The current status of the wolf in Wisconsin is endangered. Studies have shown that the gray wolf is abundant within Wisconsin. In fact, wolves are overly abundant in WI. According to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Wisconsin's gray wolf population has jumped 26%,” between the years 2008 and 2009. The population change went from 540 wolves in 2008 to as many as 680 wolves in 2009, and over the winter in 2011, the wolf population soared at about 800 wolves. It is believed that such a drastic change was caused by a severe winter that allowed the wolves to hunt deer more effectively. The original federal wolf population goal was 100 wolves. On a more personal note, I have seen 4 wolves in 2009 while I was deer hunting. Is the population of wolves affecting the deer populations? Many hunters would agree that the wolves are partially to blame for the low harvest rates. I believe that wolves are partially to blame along with a variety of other factors such as baiting making deer more nocturnal.
Wolves not only attack deer, but they also will attack livestock and even pets. According to UW-Madison Professor Adrian Treves, who is the head of the Carnivore Coexistence Laboratory, wolf attacks on livestock are “highly localized and may be predictable.” In 2010, record numbers of wolf attacks on livestock were recorded at 47 farms reporting at least 75 animals killed and 6 injured. Wolves not only have been having an impact on livestock, but peoples’ pets have also been being killed by wolves at record numbers. There are 23 recorded cases of dogs that have been killed by wolves. How would you feel if the US Government were protecting something that killed your pet and friend? In fact, there have even been record numbers of human safety cases which resulted in 19 wolves and 1 wolf-dog hybrid being captured and euthanized. Is this going to be a trend in the future? If so, why shouldn’t we try to stop it now?
The most recent reasoning of the US Fish and Wildlife Service for not delisting the wolf from the endangered species list is because they believe that a new species of wolf is present in the Upper Great Lakes Region. That species is the eastern wolf which was considered a subspecies of the gray wolf. I feel that regardless of whether it’s a subspecies or a new species, some type of wolf management plan needs to be implemented. The US Fish and Wildlife Service lacking the competency to be able to determine a new species from a subspecies should not be a reason to continue endangering livestock, pets, and even people. Over the past 25 years, more than 1 million dollars has been spent in paying for damages caused by wolves. Of the 1 million dollars, more than two hundred thousand dollars were spent just last year. This is frustrating because that loss could have been prevented if the US Fish and Wildlife Service would cooperate with their initial wolf management goal. The wolf population needs to be controlled and the wolf needs to be removed from the endangered species list. I don’t know how the wolf should be controlled, but if it isn’t, the wolf will be endangering cattle, dogs, and people throughout Northern Wisconsin for years to come.


Articles
http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/er/mammals/wolf/pdfs/Wolf-Delist-Comment-6-30-11-Signed.pdf
http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/er/mammals/wolf/pdfs/wolf_damage_payments_2010.pdf
http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/45452492.html