Idaho OKs aggressive hunt – It comes as no surprise to anyone that Idaho approved yesterday an aggressive proposal for hunting wolves starting this fall. The final plan approved by the Idaho Fish and Game Commission included several changes that will make it even easier to kill more wolves, including:

  • extending the trapping season  for six more weeks through the end of March;
  • upping the hunt quota in two zones (only five zones out of 13 have quotas at all), and
  • extending the season three more months until June 30 in the Lolo and Selway zones.

Meeting reports indicated that the anti-wolf crowd was out in full force demanding that more wolves be killed. Listen to the full NPR report here (including commentary by our very own wolf expert, Suzanne Stone!):

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Why we need large predators – Check out this editorial in the Oregonian that highlights a new scientific study on the importance of keeping predators on the landscape.

“The key point in the study is that humans have consistently failed to understand the consequences of removing top predators. The researchers argue persuasively that the burden of proof should now shift to an assumption that top predators have major effects on ecosystems until proven otherwise.” — Oregonian editorial board

Bob Ripple, Oregon State University ecology professor elaborates on the study’s findings in this video:

Fifth pack in Washington – While wolves across most of the Northern Rockies appear to be under siege, Washington state’s nascent population continues to flourish. A fifth wolf pack was documented late last week in the northeastern part of the state—the second new pack identified this summer. Wolves first returned to Washington in 2007 and 2008, and the state is still in the process of finalizing a comprehensive wolf management plan.

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