Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery 1999 Annual Report
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Montana Gray Wolf Conservation and Management 2006 Annual Report A cooperative effort by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, USDA Wildlife Services, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Blackfeet Nation, and The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes MFWP Photo by Jon Trapp This report presents information on the status, distribution, and management of wolves in the State of Montana, from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2006. It is also available at: www.fwp.mt.gov/wildthings/wolf This report may be copied in its original form and distributed as needed. Suggested Citation: Sime, Carolyn A., V. Asher, L. Bradley, K. Laudon, M. Ross, J. Trapp, M. Atkinson, L. Handegard, and J. Steuber. 2007. Montana gray wolf conservation and management 2006 annual report. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Helena, Montana. 119 pp. TABLE OF CONTENTS MONTANA EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.........................................................................1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND .....................................................................2 STATEWIDE PROGRAM OVERVIEW.........................................................................3 Overview of Wolf Ecology in Montana................................................................3 Population Estimation and Monitoring Methods..................................................5 Montana Statewide Wolf Population and Distribution.........................................7 Wolf Health Monitoring and Disease Surveillance ..............................................8 Wolf – Ungulate Relationships.............................................................................16 Wolf –Livestock Interactions................................................................................17 Depredation Incidents...........................................................................................18 Defenders of Wildlife: Bailey Wildlife Foundation Wolf Compensation Trust..21 Development of a Montana-based Reimbursement Program ...............................21 PACK SUMMARIES .......................................................................................................24 Northwest Montana Endangered Area..................................................................24 Overview...................................................................................................24 Verified Packs (Table 1a in Appendix 3) .................................................36 Verified Border Packs Counting in the Idaho Population (Table 3 in Appendix 3)................................................................36 Verified Border Packs in Canada that do not count in the Montana Population................................................................37 Miscellaneous / Lone Individuals .............................................................38 Suspected Packs........................................................................................38 Other Miscellaneous Information ............................................................38 Southern Montana Experimental Area..................................................................38 Montana Portion of the Greater Yellowstone Experimental Area............38 Overview.......................................................................................38 Verified Packs (Table 1b in Appendix 3) .....................................39 Verified Border Packs Counting in the Wyoming Population (Table 2 in Appendix 3)....................................................45 Miscellaneous / Lone Individuals.................................................45 Suspected Packs............................................................................46 Other Miscellaneous Information ................................................46 Montana Portion of the Central Idaho Experimental................................48 Overview.......................................................................................48 Verified Packs (Table 1c in Appendix 3) .....................................49 Verified Border Packs Counting in the Idaho Population (Table 3 in Appendix 3)....................................................55 Miscellaneous / Lone Individuals.................................................56 Suspected Packs............................................................................56 Other Miscellaneous Information ................................................56 OUTREACH AND EDUCATION...................................................................................57 RESEARCH AND OTHER FIELD STUDIES................................................................58 LAW ENFORCEMENT...................................................................................................63 FUNDING.........................................................................................................................64 PERSONNEL AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................65 LITERATURE CITED AND NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN WOLF BIBLIOGRAPHY: 2000-2006..................................................................68 APPENDIX 1: MONTANA CONTACT LIST...............................................................86 APPENDIX 2: GRAY WOLF CHRONOLOGY IN MONTANA .................................88 APPENDIX 3: NORTHERN ROCKIES WOLF PACK TABLES.................................91 Table 1a. Northwest Montana wolf recovery area: wolf packs and population data 2006..............................................................92 Table 1b. Montana portion of the Greater Yellowstone Experimental Area: wolf packs and population data 2006...............................................................................................94 Table 1c. Montana portion of the Central Idaho Experimental Area (Montana statewide totals): wolf packs and population data 2006.....................................................................95 Table 2. Wyoming wolf packs and population data 2006, and totals for Greater Yellowstone Recovery Area and Yellowstone National Park. ..........................................................97 Table 3a. Idaho portion of the Central Idaho recovery area: wolf packs and population data 2006....................................................100 Table 3b. Idaho portion of the Northwest Montana recovery area: wolf packs and population data 2006............................................103 Table 3c. Idaho portion of the Greater Yellowstone recovery area: wolf packs and population data 2006..................................104 Table 3d. Totals for Central Idaho: wolf packs and population data 2006.......................................................................................104 APPENDIX 4: NORTHERN ROCKIES PACK DISTRIBUTION MAPS 2006 ...........109 Figure 1. Central Idaho, Northwest Montana and Greater Yellowstone wolf recovery areas (Key: Tables 1, 2, 3)................110 Figure 2. Northwest Montana wolf recovery area (Key: Table 1a, 3). ............................................................................................111 Figure 3. Greater Yellowstone Wolf Recovery Area (Key: Tables 1, 2, and 3).........................................................................112 Figure 4. Central Idaho Wolf Recovery Area (Key: Tables 1, 2, and 3). ...........................................................................................113 APPENDIX 5: NORTHERN ROCKIES WOLF POPULATION GRAPHS .................114 Figure 5. Northern Rocky Mountain wolf population trends 1979-2006, by recovery area.........................................................115 Figure 6. Northern Rocky Mountain wolf population trends 1979-2006, by state.......................................................................115 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Northern Rockies gray wolf recovery area comprised of the states of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. ..................................................................2 Figure 2. Map of the interim federal wolf management areas showing the endangered area where the 1999 Interim Wolf Control Plan applies and the experimental area where the 2005 10(j) regulations apply. ................4 Figure 3. Minimum estimated number of wolves in the State of Montana, 1979 – 2006......................................................................................................9 Figure 4. Verified wolf pack distribution in the State of Montana, as of December 31, 2006. .........................................................................................9 Figure 5. Causes of gray wolf mortality in Montana for wolves examined at the MFWP Wildlife Research Laboratory, 2003 – September, 2006. ...............................................................................................................12 Figure 6. Confirmed cattle and sheep depredation and the number of wolves lethally controlled in the State of Montana based on investigations by USDA Wildlife Services, 1995-2006..........................................................20 Figure 7. Number of confirmed depredation events on cattle and sheep by wolves in Montana by month in calendar years 1987-2006, based on investigations by USDA Wildlife Services. ..............................................20 Figure 8. Compensation payments by Defenders of Wildlife in Montana through October, 2006. Source: http://www.defenders.org/wolfcomp.html.......................................................22 MONTANA EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Wolf recovery in Montana began in the early 1980’s. Gray wolves increased in number