Colorado releases first 5 wolves

[aMurderOfCrows]

Ive got to say I am surprised by how much people on here really hate wolves. I get that they can be problematic, at best. I live in Wyoming. But good grief, we are supposed to be conservationists! To me that means if we removed an animal from the landscape than we ought to put it back wherever possible.

I am willing to pay a few extra bucks in taxes to pay for depredation and to otherwise support ranchers needing to deal with the extra challenge of wolves. I also am willing to have elk herds decrease a bit... they are over target density in big chunks of the Rockies now. hell, here in Wyoming people are talking about crazy measures to reduce the herd size (google around some). I care first and foremost about the animals and the land, if having wolves on the land means I have to hunt a bit harder, so be it.

Just think about anti-hunting people reading a thread like this... we lose all credibility as 'conservationists'.

I know yall are gonna really dislike this post. I dont want to intentionally irritate folks, but I felt the need to say this... because I think we need to think a lot about our stance on these issues, and give some ground, if we want to keep our hunting traditions alive.

Consider the counterfactual of hunters leading the charge of predator recovery, it would give us a ton of ammunition for keeping hunting rights and improving our status in the court of public opinion.

Well, that’s really nice if you but, since this was enacted on ballot initiate of the idiocracy and has no foundation in biological or ecological need, it’s kind of stupid.

 

[mt terry d]

I say we reintroduce thousands of rattlesnakes into urban areas where they were once living before all that darned concrete.

Let's vote on it and I'll count the votes.

 

[Nw2]

I say we reintroduce thousands of rattlesnakes into urban areas where they were once living before all that darned concrete.

Let's vote on it and I'll count the votes.

Great idea!

 

[Bill larson]

A quick google search of Wisconsin wolf reintroduction shows that the DNR there never reintroduced wolves. They say wolves expanded naturally from Minnesota once they were federally protected.

That is a lie..... Many wolves in Wis. with blue neck tags.....

 

[Mike 338]

I predict a big change in "opportunities" in the next 10 years. Just an observation from an Idaho guy.

 

[Bill larson]

A quick google search of Wisconsin wolf reintroduction shows that the DNR there never reintroduced wolves. They say wolves expanded naturally from Minnesota once they were federally protected.

There was a season on them last year...... 50% tagged wolves.....

 

[intunegp]

The first/only public update on their location I've seen since the release:

Public captures first images of Colorado's reintroduced wolves after December releases

 

[wapitibob]

Plenty of tags and collars on OR wolves and none of them were introduced.
They tracked the first one from ID; at that point it was all over for any wolf that got near her.

 

[mt terry d]

"They lied to our faces,.....

CPW...will not make staff available for an interview regarding its release of wolves in Grand County."

Public servants. LOL!!

 

[bayoublaster7527]

I feel we have no one to blame but ourselves, which is sad. Not sad because we lost this one battle, just sad that we have to fight this war in the first place. As Randy Newberg says, we need to stop squabbling about minor hunt regs, archery crowding, season dates and the like and unite to protect the simple right to hunt. It is not a privilege as CPW defines. Next is the Mtn Lion/Bobcat ballot initiative. We MUST hit this head-on. I feel conservation to protect what we have, stewardship to grow our hunting base and all means necessary to preserve this right needs to our trifecta at every CPW, RMEF, RMBS, WSF, Bass Pro/Hornady/Midway corp board meeting/convention. We are never going to change the minds of the ultra liberal anti-hunting public. It's the middle ground people we can appease to and we can project our good intentions and image to. Anyone that says the wolf intro is anything but an attack on our way of life as hunters and ag producers is ignoring the facts. Talk to any experienced G&F officer or biologist in Wyo, Wisc, ID, MN, MI or MT where wolf populations have exploded and they will agree. And, we need to accept that there will never be a hunting season in this state decided on by some future commission because we will never have a republican governor again who will appoint the commissioners needed to enact this. Sorry to be so negative, but we need to move on from wolf battle and fight the war to protect our RIGHT to hunt. It starts with the Lion vote next November.

This x 100. We need to continue to be active in wolf management through attendance at commission meetings and public comment but the wolf fight is over. The vote happened and they will be reintroduced. We have to move on to the next fight which is of even more consequence, mtn lion hunting ban ballot initiative. If it passes we truly are doomed. They will just keep launching ballot initiatives until hunting is completely eliminated.

 

[bayoublaster7527]

Ive got to say I am surprised by how much people on here really hate wolves. I get that they can be problematic, at best. I live in Wyoming. But good grief, we are supposed to be conservationists! To me that means if we removed an animal from the landscape than we ought to put it back wherever possible.

I am willing to pay a few extra bucks in taxes to pay for depredation and to otherwise support ranchers needing to deal with the extra challenge of wolves. I also am willing to have elk herds decrease a bit... they are over target density in big chunks of the Rockies now. hell, here in Wyoming people are talking about crazy measures to reduce the herd size (google around some). I care first and foremost about the animals and the land, if having wolves on the land means I have to hunt a bit harder, so be it.

Just think about anti-hunting people reading a thread like this... we lose all credibility as 'conservationists'.

I know yall are gonna really dislike this post. I dont want to intentionally irritate folks, but I felt the need to say this... because I think we need to think a lot about our stance on these issues, and give some ground, if we want to keep our hunting traditions alive.

Consider the counterfactual of hunters leading the charge of predator recovery, it would give us a ton of ammunition for keeping hunting rights and improving our status in the court of public opinion.

I understand how you could think this, we give a little and in turn we as hunters are left to continue our hunting traditions. But that is just not reality in Colorado. The anti-hunting crowd used the wolf vote as a litmus test to gauge future anti-hunting efforts. Once successful they decided to start launching more aggressive anti-hunting ballot initiatives. They won’t stop until hunting is eliminated. Appeasement isn’t a terribly effective strategy when dealing with extreme activists.

 

[Bill larson]

Bottom line is wolves eat the same thing we eat....thats why they were exterminated by our forefathers,..elk,deer,bear,squirrels ,rabbits..,grouse songbirds.... including US,.....our children,.....our livestock ....and our pets......

 

[mt terry d]

Trying to finish a podcast with Don Gates, Pres of CRWM at

. Seems like a guy with 110% the right thoughts on all this and leading the organizations we need to support.

One point I am taking to heart is how disorganized we are as hunters to fight these initiatives. Seems like he blames ourselves. No idea how we fix this except communicate at CPW mtgs, non-hunters and legislators who listen how much we care about the animals we pursue and we love our hunting and fishing heritage. Seems like we have a lot of work to and soon.

As Dr Phil would say,

" How's that been working for you?"

 

[SWDutchman]

Thanks for this info.

 

[Tjv0003]

will ruin elk / deer hunting

 

[ProStaffSteve]

For anyone still following and passionate, i have begun following the pro-wolf reddit. They post stuff like this, here is the link you need! https://myfwp.mt.gov/fwpPub/mtg/specialmeetingofthefwcommission02092024

 

[Crowmangler]

247 ?? Those are rookie numbers... we gotta pump them up!

 

[ProStaffSteve]

Got another one for yall. https://wdfw.wa.gov/newsroom/wdfw-o...-rule-making-proposed-status-change-gray-wolf

 

[rickyw]

We could use a few less wolves in Alaska. Don’t know why people want more down there.

 

[BossGobbler2024]

Well, that’s really nice if you but, since this was enacted on ballot initiate of the idiocracy and has no foundation in biological or ecological need, it’s kind of stupid.

The problem is that the bleeding hearts will never allow scientific control of predators and ungulates. It becomes all political and a legislative nightmare. But, here we are. Now its a wait and see what happens...